Panster vs. Plotter
When I get the kernel of a story idea, the floodgates open, and it comes rushing through me. The beginning, midpoint, and the end come to me in ten or fifteen minutes. I don’t know how or why, it’s just the way my imagination works. This is inspiration, and whether it will be any good or it will suck, I always write it down.
Ages ago, the time after clay tablets but before cell phones, I grabbed whatever was available. An old shopping receipt from my wallet, a napkin, or a paper towel. I once called my home phone and left multiple voicemails. Now I sit in the bathroom on the toilet and use text to type. The next day, I make some notes and brainstorm in longhand. The above image is of my current work in progress. I have used ‘Scrivener’ for eleven years now, but at this stage, I find writing down random thoughts, bits of scenes, character sketches, diagrams, and research, etc., in longhand just works better for me.
A pantser is someone who writes by the seat of their pants, thus the name, allowing the story to unfold organically. On the other hand, an outliner is a writer who creates a “storyboard” before beginning the actual writing. Ever heard of the three-part story structure? Every story you’ve ever read has it (or another proven story structure), and your story needs it too. Every chapter and every scene needs it!
Because of the genre I write, without one, it would be a mess. Broken, inconsistent, flawed, and dead boring.
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Does that mean my writing is not organic? No. Does it mean I’m restricted to the outline I’ve written? HELL NO. My planning does not stop me from free writing, going to that dream place. It unfolds there, surprises me every time.
As the story takes shape, characters emerge from the shadows, stage left, they’ve come to audition. “I have nothing to offer you besides the few notes I’ve made, so you’ll have to improvise,” I tell them. The ones with no voice and black eyes dissipate into the air. Then someone struts up from the darkness and stands under the spotlight. He or she acts out a short scene and turns to me. “Yes, you’ll do,” I say. I know and trust my characters. I throw them in and let them go. They write the story, I just record what they’re doing, and let them go. Nothing is written in stone, and even with an outline, my characters drive it, go where they want to, do what they want to. Once I finish my first draft, it’s as if I’ve known them forever.
I then put the draft away for a long time, the longer the better. “Take a break,” I tell them, “you’ve earned it, but I want you back here in six months.” When I pull the draft out, we go back to the storyboard and see how it has changed. What worked, what didn’t, and if it has the elements of a three-act structure, where it lags and is dull. I do not edit this first draft. I redo the storyboard, and I write again. This next draft is fast, and once finished, it goes away again, same process. I seldom write more than two or at most three drafts before sending it to my editor.
Dedicated pansters argue that outlining is restrictive and stifles creativity. Not so. These are the same writers who go on writing forums looking for opinions and beta reading. They tell of how they were gung-ho in the beginning, and ask how to get rid of ‘writer’s block.’ (Something I don’t believe in). They stare at an empty screen trying to summon inspiration, and have no idea what to write next. Months or even years from now, they may still be writing the twentieth draft of a story that will never be as great as it could have been.
The way I write is my process, and it works for me. The key is to find a method that sparks your creativity and helps you stay organized, whether that’s through outlining or another approach.
When it comes to fiction writing, the debate between being a pantser or an outliner is a longstanding one. So, what is your process and why does it work for you?
Originally published at https://goingroguetlraywrites.substack.com.
