Hey all, and welcome to my blog. Wednesday's Writing with D.C. Malcolm is all about Plotting vs Pantsing, and why it is that I am and forever will be a Pantser.
Plotting
I must say, I admire writers who are Plotters. It takes a lot of time and energy to build your worlds this way. I know this because I have attempted it many times. I can imagine it must be nice to spend hours creating the perfect outline, character developments, world builds etc. and know every single detail about your book start to finish, and have the ability to stick to it consistently through the writing process. To all the Plotters out there, I really do envy you. I wish that my mind had the compacity to do what you do, and stick with it to the very end.
Plotting has it's Pros I suppose.
For one it's nice that these types of writers can sit down and figure out every detail of their book without even writing a word of it yet. It is also remarkable to me that they really are able to stick with everything in their outline, and know what's going to happen before they even write a word.
I would love to know the whole story before I sit down at my computer and actually write it.
Unfortunately, I'm not as lucky as the Plotters out there.
I'm sure there are some Cons too.
Like for instance spending, days, weeks, and even months crafting the perfect story before getting that story out. Or sticking to the outline no matter what the character is screaming in your head... like how do you drown them out? I can't do any of this because I tried. No, I am and will forever be a Pantser.
Pantsing
There is a type of writer out there that does little to know prep work. We call ourselves pantsers, and for the longest time, I was ashamed of my writing style. For some out there, writing by the "seat of your pants" is taboo. Pantser's get shunned a lot in the #writingcommunity I find. In fact, I was so ashamed I tried to actually convert myself into a plotter, but of course I failed miserably.
Once you are a pantser you are for life, there is no converting. A lesson I learned the hard way. Yet, someone once asked me, why fix something if it isn't broken? Yes, I write by the seat of my pants, but it works for me. I've written some of my best stories this way. What are the pros to writing by the seat of your pants? Freedom, you sit back and listen to your characters as they tell you want happened, and you simply record the story. There is something magical about a story that even the writer doesn't know the ending until we get there. It is filled with a lot of tension and suspense.
Of course, you have your Cons too.
Like for instance, you have to take lots of notes so you don't have to go back in the story to find key elements to the story. You also have to listen carefully to your characters, because they scream at you until you fix the problem. You also never know which direction the story is going, and don't see the plot twists until they are right in front of you.
My Methods of Writing
I can't write an outline or world build for two reasons.
Everything is Changing constantly
I find it tedious and boring.
I do the bare minimum when it comes to starting a new story. Where I write mysteries, my stories are heavily plot driven with flat characters. That doesn't mean I don't give my characters some depth. Otherwise, the characters would be rather boring and unbelievable as real people in real life situations.
So, before I sit down to write my story, I focus one two things and two things only.
#Plot and #CharacterDevelopment. When I figure out my plot, I find setting, time, place. What happened with the first murder, who was there, what was used etc. I usually figure out at this point how many characters will be in the story, and who my protagonist and victim is. Then I focus on the why. Why did the killer murder this person? After that, I plant items at the scene of the crime that are tied to each of the characters in some way. Then I decide on what clues will be in the story, and what red herrings I'm going to plant.
The whole process takes about an hour tops. With about a paragraph of plot and the rest notes. Then I move on to my characters. I number my characters at first because they don't have names. I decide straight away that number 1 is my protagonist, and number 2 is my victim. I do full character development on both, answering "Interview questions" as if I were them. I do this until I have a good feel of who they are, even though they still do not have names. Then I move on to the supporting characters, and decide what roles they are taking in my story. I ask them a different and much shorter set of questions, which eventually ends with who they are and what role they have in the story. I name my character's last based on their personality.
The entire process of developing my plot and characters do take time. Approximately, 2-3 days total, to figure out the plot and get to know my characters. That's it, that's the only planning I do. I have no idea who the killer is, I have no idea why they did it or what characters are going to die save the first victim.
My Writing Process
I write in order from Chapter One to the last, I can't fathom how some authors write out of order, I tried that and couldn't get it right.
I set up my chapter, and then... I let the protagonist take over. They tell me the story in my head, as it is happening to them, I listen carefully and record what they tell me has happened. I take notes on key elements so I don't have to scroll back in the story to find out where a character was or what they were up to. I guess you could say, I outline the story as I go. Somedays, the protagonist, has a lot to say. Like today for example I wrote Chapter Four through Six. Other days, they don't have a lot to say which is why it took me so long to get from Chapter One to Two.
I enjoy my writing process and sometimes I listen to music to motivate me. That was another key factor about how good of a writing session I had today.
Once I write my first draft in full, I let it sit two days before I touch it again. Then, I will read the entire manuscript from start to finish, making notes on the document as I go. This helps me while writing the second draft so I know what to change, move, or totally omit from my second draft.
Second Draft - Writing Process
When I'm finished going through the First Draft, I let it sit one day before starting my second draft. This is more of a rewrite of the first draft, changing things, moving others. and deleting any unnecessary fluff. Which I sometimes keep in case it makes it to the final draft.
I write the second draft in order yet, again. The thing is this time, I know how it's going to end. (Usually) I have had times where the characters had changed their minds about what really happened. The perfect example of that is the ending for Guilty Deceptions.
Anyways, once I'm done writing the second draft fully, I set it aside again for about a day. Then I go back, and read it through from start to finish. Again making notes where I can make improvements to the story. This is the stage I bust out my battered copy of Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, (Yes, I edit my own work.) I go through the Manuscript twelve times, for each of the twelve steps. It is a bit tedious and repetitive, but it gets the job done. Once I have gone through the second draft, twelve different times, I'll set it aside for another day, sometimes two to a week before I go back to it.
Third Draft - Writing Process
The third draft for me is the final product. Once I'm ready, I work off of the second draft, to create the third. Same way as I done with the First to Second drafts. I make any last minute changes that I left in my notes, make the final moves, and delete the excess fluff I don't need. Sometimes, if it calls for it I will add scenes here or add to the scenes. But, usually in this stage it is nearly ready for me.
Once it's finished, I open my copy of Self-Editing for Fiction Writer's again, and go through each step, on each individual chapter, until I am satisfied, with the finished product.
Formatting
I do all this myself as well, and it usually takes a few days. During this process, I will also start looking at my Cover Design, if I hadn't created it before hand. Sometimes,
I get excited and create this during the first or Second Draft, if I know the working Title. You did read that right, I design my own book cover too. Once I'm done with formatting, and cover design, my book is usually ready to be published. The entire process takes me about 6-8 months to a year.
My Current WIP: 12:05 AM
I am still in the process of step one, but I'm about to start chapter seven out of about twenty chapters. I'm nearly half way through. I have inspiration for my cover design, so I might actually work on that tomorrow, to see if I can come up with a concept that works for the book.
12:05 AM, is a murder mystery that takes place in Hollow Manor in 1970. The main Character is a 42 year old woman, named Myra Matthews. She is a mystery writer who must find out who they shady killer is hidden within the manor. The story is coming along quite well, and I expect to be at least on Chapter Ten by tomorrow.
At the rate I'm going, I expect to be on the second draft by mid- July.
Until Next time,
D.C.
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