#plotters

For the first time, in a long time, I have been writing consistently. Where did this come from? Did I have this ability the whole time?

I have had 'writer's block' FOR YEARS!!!! It was really debilitating. It made me feel frustrated, awful, like a loser, like I wasn't actually meant to be an author, which was very crushing because I have stories in my head that WILL NOT SHUT UP!! I thought I'd go insane from my lack of being able to write and the incessant noise of the stories in my head.

Recently, I wrote a 100 word scenario and posted it to a social media I have and one follower that I have been getting close too said they couldn't get the scenario out of their mind and wondered if I would want to continue the story with him. Like, I write one part and then he writes one part.

I was worried obviously because I've had writer's block for so long but I thought, "Fuck it! Let's give it a try."

To my absolute surprise, I was WRITING!!!! Who am I? Since when could I do this? Is it because I have a writing partner? Could it be because someone was waiting on me so that they could continue to write their part? Was it because I got feed back immediately? Is it because I am not planning the story out at all? I just straight up pantsed it! Pantsed! Me, a pantser ?!?!

I don't fucking know. But I'm interested in seeing how this new way of writing will work in my stories. Will it work? Will I choke again?

Regardless, I have agreed to write another story with my social media friend. It's casual, no pressure, just for fun. The best part of the writing that I've recently done is that it's actually good!!

I hope this new writer in me will stick around and I'd actually be able to get these stories out of my head and into the world.

The Plot Thickens: Pen Plotter History and Artistry – Paul Rickards, Erin Sicuranza

Learn about the history of the pen plotter, its use in the development of early computer graphics, and recent rediscovery and use today in fine art. See live demonstrations of plotters from HP, Roland, and more.

When it comes to differentiating between Plotters and Pantsers, which would you say is the “best” way to write? Is it more important to have a good idea of where your story is going, or to actually write the story?

Plotting for Pantsers and Pantsing for Plotters

For those of you who don't already know, when it comes to beginning a new project, the writing world consists of two very different groups of people: plotters and pansters.

Plotters meticulously outline their stories from start to finish, and although they benefit from cohesive, streamlined work, they often hit a wall of writer's block and lose creativity from over-plotting.

Pansters just go with the flow, and despite the freedom that allows them to write whatever they want and boosts writing motivation, their stories often suffer from lack of cohesion and can take a while to get to the point.

In order to make a long project, such as a fanfic or a novel, as successful as it can be, you need to be a mix of both.

You need to plot in order to make sure you don't over/underwrite and can optimize your narrative, while also leaving room for flexibility that allows you to make your own creative decisions and prevent writer's block.

Here's how to do it. It's all in the outline.

Unfortunately for pantsers, all long works should have an outline so you know what points you have to hit along the way.

Unfortunately for plotters, it's restricting and unnecessary to have every single detail planned to a T.

A simple "here's whats going to happen in this chapter" should be enough. It doesn't have to be long. Hell, it can just be one bullet point! But as long as you have a general idea of what needs to happen, you can make the rest.

This leaves enough structure for plotters but enough wiggle room for pantsers!

An example:

Chapter 1

Bar scene

Introduce Character A

Talk with Character B

Foreshadow Character B's betrayal

See? This is a very, very loose idea of what's going to happen in this chapter.

In fact, this is just a list of all the things that HAVE TO happen to make the story go forward; you can still add your own things to it to make it your own!

There are four types of writers out there.

You have the methodological plotters, the intuitive plotters, the methodological pantsers, and the intuitive pantsers.

These four types are categories on a sliding scale. Think of an audio mixing board and on it are sliders. You have two of these sliders installed on your board as a writer, but how these sliders are set or how fast they are sliding might dictate on what kind of advice you need to focus on. To get your first draft written.

Ellen Brock, an editor with a YouTube channel, explains these four types of writers in this video. I highly recommend you watch it.But just in case you don’t feel like doing that, here’s a quick rundown:

For me, the most helpful analogy for how I plot and write my stories has always been jazz. Specifically the improv I used to do back when I played trumpet.

See, my first steps before an upcoming improv solo used to be: learn the song's key and time signatures, get a feel for the chord progression, and come up with a few licks to build the solo around.

Likewise, the first steps of my writing process are to do some initial character development, worldbuilding, tentative theming, and plotting. But only the broad strokes — the framework I plan to play around in.

Then comes the performance.

I sit down. Open my plot outline, which consists of the general "beats" I need to hit. Grab my characters. And go.

I start out knowing I want my main character to make it from Point A, to Point B, to Point C, and on, but I only have a general idea of how it will happen. So I just start writing, and I improvise my way through the setting, plot, and characters like I would a solo, moving from beat to beat. I build the world as I go. Develop the characters further as they appear. Adjust the upcoming plot as needed.

The end result? Something a bit messy, but exciting. A ball of ugly mistakes and beautiful moments.

So all in all, exactly what I want out of a first draft.

How about you? What’s a good analogy for your plotting or writing process? Comment or reblog your response below!

But one of the points was that pantsers shouldn’t write science fiction.

@just_my_typ3 on Instagram

For those who don’t know, plotters are people who, when writing, plan out their book before they write it. They’re detail oriented and prefer already knowing what they’re going to write about and how they’re going to go about it.

Pantsers are people who fly by the seat of their pants, so to speak. This means they do little to no planning and prefer to jump right into it when it comes to writing. 

A plantser would be (you guessed it!) a mix of the plotter and the pantser.

Most people tend to be a mix of both but will lean toward one side of the spectrum more than the other.