Writer, Know Thyself!

There's a lot of great advice to be had if you're a new writer wanting to get words on paper. Plenty of teachers and blogs and fellow authors have fantastic methods to share for how to plot, plan, brainstorm, draft and revise. I've followed some suggestions and not followed others. More often I've tried out different recommendations and seen what seems to fit best. And in my humble opinion, the most essential piece of advice I've ever read or heard (or possibly made up, because I can't remember who told me this) is: writer, know thyself.

I'm also a big fan of the big-picture mantra "play to your strengths."

But it all comes down to this: figure out what works for you and run with it. And don't be scared if you think something is going to work for you, and later decide it doesn't really. I'm working on my seventh stand-alone story right now and I'm still figuring out my sweet-spot for turning out words. I've tried to plot, tried to pants. I committed to 1K a day, then 2K, then tried out sprinting at 3K a day. I've always revised—that hasn't changed. But my revision methods have been honed over time. And then I tried to discard them only to realize I was right the first time.

My critique partner, Danica Avet, can turn out 20K words in a day. She can half-draft a novel, decide she doesn't like it, and write the whole thing over in a weekend. She directed me to a bunch of great websites for plotting, yet she doesn't plot at all personally. For her, writing IS thinking. There's no point in doing them in two distinct steps.

Then there are the died in the wool plotters. They think, and think, and think. They write out all the details of their story ahead of time. And they can draft like the wind. These folks can run a bit towards perfectionism and often are huge fans of the "fast draft." In some cases, they can be scared of making mistakes and choosing wrong words. Only you can tell if you are this kind of person. I'm not. This much I know.

Lately, I have a method that I've been enjoying. My natural state of behavior is to think, think, think in circles for a while then WRITEWRITEWRITE, then *collapse.* It's a spring-loaded method of writing that compliments my Tigger-esque personality.

First I brainstorm a litte, until I can't contain myself.

Then I write about 2K of the story and see how it felt. If I'm jazzed I continue, if I'm not I ask a critique partner what they think and usually discard.

Then I do the *real* brainstorming. Pages and pages…and pages of mind-maps. I connect ideas in bubbles over reams of paper, draw maps, color code. Don't get me wrong—there's no "organization" at this stage of the game, at least not in the most normal sense of the word. This lasts about a week.

I write a simple outline—one sentence per scene. I mostly discard the outline as I go, but I like the safety net.

And then I write. Usually at a breakneck pace until the black moment.

At which point I pause, re-read, re-think, and decide if the plot resolution and ending I planned are going to work. I adjust as necessary.

Think, think, think until I can't take it any more…maybe 2–3 days.

WRITEWRITEWRITE like the wind till done!!

Then starts the revision thingy…which is the topic of a whole 'nother blog post.

But this is still a work in progress. Even after another year or two years or three, I'm not sure I'd be able to say definitively what works. So there's no reason that a new writer should get attached to pantsing or plotting or any other label until they're good and ready. There's as many ways to write a book as there are books.

Have fun finding your favorite method!