Absolutely, the outline is the spine of the story. It’s the silent narrator that tells you who the character is before the first line of dialogue ever lands on the page. A clean, confident edge can hint at mystery, strength or vulnerability in a single sweep. In old-school cel‑shading, the artist would carefully choose the thickness of that line to signal the mood—thick and bold for a hero, thin and wavy for a wisp of doubt. And when a shadow slices through a silhouette, it’s a dramatic punctuation that can turn a simple shape into a scene, a single line becoming a chapter of its own. So yes, a line can whisper, shout, and even carry the weight of an entire narrative.

You’ve hit the nail on the head—an outline is like a drumroll before the chorus. In my old notebooks I keep a page of just strokes and shadows, because those lines carry the soul of the image. A bold contour can scream “hero” while a feathered edge whispers “torn.” And a single dark slash? That’s the perfect cliffhanger, a silent beat that makes the viewer’s eye dance. Keep hunting those lines; they’re the silent storytellers you need to honor.