Skip to main content

Pantser + Plotter = Plantser >>> Thank you, Ms. Higgins

On November 3, 2018 I attended RWA/NYCs romance conference at the Fordham University campus in The Bronx. The conference was informational as it was fun and we were fortunate to have had on hand several best-selling authors, icons really, and for that I’m eternally blessed. 

Recently, I got to thinking about a comment Kristan Higgins said during one of the workshops: Not a ‘pantser’, not a ‘plotter’, but a ‘plantser’. Several of us laughed out loud, “Yeah, that, that’s me!”

By design I am a pantser and enjoy making up stories as I ‘go’ rather than creating outlines as do my plotter counterparts. As you might imagine, the first draft of my novellas are quite messy as scenes are often deleted/added along the way. Second and third drafts are marginally better.

I think many pantsers will tell you that allowing our imaginary friends to direct the course of a book is the most exciting aspect of the writing process. Pantsers might also tell you that this technique is equally frustrating.

I have tried plotting and using character sheets in the past, but the process didn’t feel natural, so I reverted back to my pantser ways. However, since my goal for 2019 is to have a much more structured writing process I decided to go all in on this plotting thing for NaNoWriMo.

Yes, planning and outlining is a departure from the spontaneity of pantsing, but guess what? It’s okay; as a plantser I can now identify with both worlds. Thank you Kristan!

Happy writing,

Maria
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Thank you for your comments!

Popular posts from this blog

Reading is FUNdamental!

As writers we hear this all the time, “If you want to be a better writer, you need to be a better reader.” And this is very true. But also true is that in reading we need to do so effectively. Yes, effectively. See, reading well can help make a huge difference in the quality of work you produce. Here are three tips to ensure you’re getting the most out of your reading experience, 1) Be sure to read books you enjoy. Unless you enjoy the classics (e.g. Austen, Dickens, Hemingway, etc.) reading mandatory novels some of which you may particularly enjoy might be counterintuitive. Reading should be a pleasure so read books that you like this way you’re sure to read more. 2) Read the type of material you aspire to produce. Find an author or two or three that you admire and read as much of their work as possible; devour their work actually.  3) Keep a good log of the books you’ve read. Voracious readers alike can tell you that they may not remember the books ...
2 comments
Read more

Calgon...take me away!

Family/Friends, I understand now why some companies/celebreties hire people to tend to their Social Media networking, it is very time consuming, not to mention mentally exhausting. Point in case, just today I spent over an hour on Blogger and YouTube working out some kinks with my profile/settings. My head's spinning and I'm pooped. On the topic of Social Media, I'd like to take a moment to thank my daughter, Pamela for acting as a consultant on the topic. Pamela works in the field and has actually helped launch my first AdWords campaign. Although it is progressing slowly, I have seen an increase in site ( www.mywritingden.net ) traffic and Twitter - 10 new followers in a week. I've also been receiving sporadic emails from 'fans' telling me how much they enjoy my stories...so this keeps me going. Ohhh, and a VERY notable mention to Linus Ly who gave me the idea to use a 'new' slogan Erotica, She Wrote . Liked it so much I'm already using it. T...
6 comments
Read more

T-Minus

Family/Friends, I'm six and a half days way from going into a NaNoWriMo 'leave of absence'. Yep, this means the Flash Fiction Friday section of my website will be on hold until 12/7.  Also, I don't expect to be online much (Twitter or Facebook), but will check email periodically. On a side note, I want to say thanks to those of you who have recently signed up to this blog, I appreciate you.  Oh, and thank you also to those folks who have visited this site from Russia,  Sweden, and Malaysia. I think that's pretty awe-SOME! Well, that's all for now. Until next time! Maria
4 comments
Read more