Yay, this is my first YA Highway Road Trip Wednesday post ever! (See the emblem. Do you see it? YES IT REALLY IS REAL) --------------------->I've always wanted to do one, but thought it was some sort of exclusive club. I still don't feel like an exclusive club member or anything, but I will do a post anyway, because if you can't be free on the internet, then WHERE?
So, plotter or pantser?
For me, it depends on the novel. I have run the gamut from so pants-ed I was naked to spending a month making eighteen spreadsheets.Here are my thoughts on each:
Pantsing it: My first book I wrote with no clue where I was going. It was fun and kittens and daisies and I came up with all kinds of inventive and funny scenes. Aaaaaand it also took two years to finish and was insanely long.
Verdict: Unadulterated fun in drafting. Prepare to spend months--nay, years--in editing hell.
Planning it: Totally burned by pantsing it, I tried the Snowflake method. I spent over a month writing character bios, scene spreadsheets, chapter run-downs. Writing and revising were quick, but the plot felt...well, blaaaah. Freed by my outline from the shackles of having to write things that kept me entertained, I stuffed the book with mountains of boring crap. Because that's what the plan said to do.
Verdict: Less rewriting, beautiful chapter structure. Limp, bloated storyline.
The Middle Way: This is what I'm trying right now. I made a very general outline, then jumped in. I write a scene at night, and spend the next day at work planning what comes next, always trying to amp up the stakes and twist the characters a bit.The writing has been fast and each individual scene has its own unique punch. No blah blah filler scenes like in my last book.
Verdict, so far: Very fast writing. High enthusiasm. Streamlined plot. Lots of gaps between key scenes. Moderate rewriting required. Finished product = ??? The eternal optimist in me says it will be amazing. Too bad the eternal optimist is DEAD.
(Just kidding!)
What about you? Planner? Panster? Just love saying Pants over and over again because it's a hilarious word? Me too. Pants pants pants pants pants pants.
Julia,
ReplyDeleteI'm still writing my first book and it is definitely pants-style. I've never liked outlines. I mean, I do know the general outline and outcome, but discovering the characters and story as I go, is very fulfilling. I've been working on it a year.
P.S. Thanks for commenting on my mosaic!
And, here's to enchiladas! Ole!
The Write Soil
Awww. We're so happy you participated! RTW is definitely not an exclusive club! We want everyone to play along!
ReplyDeleteI think that letting it depend on each book is a great idea. Every preoject and every writer are so different. Great post!
I'm a litte of both - I know some key plot points, outline a few chapters, get to know my new imaginary friends really well, and then I go with it. I tend to write, then outline some more, then write...
ReplyDeleteBut I'm with Kody - every project is different. The one I'm working on right now needs a lot more TLC in terms of plotting.
And yes - pantspantspants is fun to say. :)
Welcome aboard!
I am definitely in the middle. Pantsing is fun, but like you said, edits take FOREVER. And I just can't plot things out detail by detail-- it never works.
ReplyDeleteHOWEVER, I found the perfect middle ground. I read Larry Brooks' Story Engineering (which is the absolute best craft book I've ever read), and now I'm using his plot point structure to plan out the major points ahead of time, then fill in the blanks with pantsing. It's the perfect method for me, and I love that it's both fun to write my draft, but organized as well!