Plotter vs. Pantsers: Which Road Did You Choose?

[Gamal]

Are you a writer who creates a plot before starting your book, or do you write from the seat of your pants? My latest essay has my thoughts on these two styles.

Plotter vs. Pantser: Which Road Did You Choose? http://bit.ly/10GC7dK

Have fun.
G

[Rebecca]

I do 90% in my head but there are months of thinking and plotting. With my last thriller Eyewitness was a dual track story that dovetailed at the end. One story started in 1950 and one present day. Half way through I had to stop and do a timeline but I always knew the arc of the story.

[Gamal]

Thank you Rebecca.

If you work on the plot in your head before you write, do you consider that plotting because you developed the plot first, or writing by the seat of your pants because you never actually wrote the plot down?

Have fun.
Gamal

[Don]

Seat of the pants for me. Waiting for my daughter at the theater, I penned three short stories right off the cuff. Want to read them? :-}

[Robert]

I think of myself as flying by the seat of my pants. My Flying series was based on a single vivid image in a dream. Swamp Witch started as single image in the form of a painting in a gallery. When I presented it to my critique group at 15k words the group they informed me that in spite of what I thought I had not finished the story. 15k words later, I did.

I started the Solomon Family Warriors series with a beginning a middle and an end of the first volume. it would not go where I intended. I have not successfully plotted a story all the way through without it running off the tracks.

[Rebecca]

Gamal, That is an excellent question. I think I am going to revise my answer. I do plot, I simply keep all details (redherrings, motivations, etc.) in my head so it feels like the seat of my pants. But you're correct. I may not physically write down plot points etc. but I have constructed the whole book in my mental notepad. I would love to know why that's great for my writing but I can't remember to pick up the groceries. Ah well.

[Don]

I wanted to collect my thoughts, literally. So I went back into my emails, which I have 15,000 of them since 2007. (These are the ones I liked and kept) Shhh, I think this guy is a hoarder, what do you think?

I am presently pulling up blogs, letters, and poems, that will help me share a detailed work that will tell all about the FALSE misconception regarding Writer's Block. Someone had to lay out the truth after all.

Watch Amazon for "No Such Animal as Writer's Block"

Where eagles fly,
Don (Greywolf) Ford

[Gamal]

Robert wrote: "I think of myself as flying by the seat of my pants. My Flying series was based on a single vivid image in a dream. Swamp Witch started as single image in the form of a painting in a gallery. When ..."

Thanks for sharing Robert.

Do you think your Solomon Family Warriors story could be completed without a plot, or do you think the fact that you can't finish the plot means you need to rework the entire idea?

[Gamal]

Don wrote: "I wanted to collect my thoughts, literally. So I went back into my emails, which I have 15,000 of them since 2007. (These are the ones I liked and kept) Shhh, I think this guy is a hoarder, what ..."

Don, are you planning to structure your next book with your previous writing as the building blocks or just release the curated collection of information to prove your point?

Thanks for the responses.

[Gamal]

Rebecca wrote: "Gamal, That is an excellent question. I think I am going to revise my answer. I do plot, I simply keep all details (redherrings, motivations, etc.) in my head so it feels like the seat of my pants...."

I think having the framework of the story written down from beginning to end works for me in the same way it works for a screen writer; the broad concepts and direction are nailed down first and then the details like dialogue and description can flow from that. I think pantsters are much braver writers but I like to know where I'm going before I get there.

[Don]

By flying by my seat, I want to be as surprised as the next guy at the ending. Hey, why not all enjoy a good story. Cheers, Don :-}
P.S, Sometimes I ask myself, "Did I write that?" I also find myself tearing up at the end of some of my tales and asking yet another question, "Why does this affect me as it does every time I return to it? I wrote it for crying out loud?"

The eagle guy,
Don