To Pants or Plot

That is indeed the question for many writers: Are you a Pantser or a Plotter?

In the very beginning I was a total pantser, I'd get a little glimmer and I'd be straight into it. But it wasn't working very well for me; most of my stories tended to fizzle at about 10K. After an enlightening workshop with writer Peter Temple (thank you, thank you) I found out that planning what came next and how it ended could help. I started working out which ideas weren't going to fly and finding a plot for the ones that would, and finishing manuscripts.

Fast forward a few years and I now have a crit partner who is a veritable Outline Queen, so I've learned some even better tricks from her. My current method runs something like this: idea, premise, GMC, story arc, scene list, examine all of the aforementioned for holes, tweak as needed, start writing, realise I still need to think and plan some more, tweak outline, continue writing, repeat as needed.

Sounds a bit random, still, doesn't it? The difference is that now I'm usually only a few thousand words into the ms when I'm doing the major tweaking, and I no longer flame out at 10K.

The argument some pantsers have against plotting is that it kills the creativity, or takes all the fun and spontaneity out of the writing. I used to think that too, but I have a lot more fun when I'm writing with a clear idea where I'm heading. I particularly like a plan because on the days where it's all a bit hard and the words aren't flowing, I still know what comes next and I can get on with the job.

Even so, I've been a little reluctant to get into too much detail with the outline, partly because it feels like writing the book twice, but mostly because the best fun I have during writing is finding all the intriguing stuff along the way that really enhances the story.

However, it's truly amazing just how much more of this gold you uncover when you've done a lot of planning. The more thinking, considering possibilities and writing them up into GMC notes or scene outlines that I do, the more stuff I uncover as I write and the better it meshes in with what I already have. Neat, huh?

So, I reckon I'm a plotster. What about you?