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by guest-blogger Mai Christy Thao
Okay, so the title makes no sense. Plotting by pantsing, you ask?
We’ve all heard the expression, “Are you a plotter or a pantser?” Plotters are writers who have to come up with a chapter-by-chapter outline of their book before they sit down and write the actual book. They have character charts, W-charts, and even scene-by-scene note cards. Panters, on the other hand, sit their butt into the chair in front of the computer and the words magically spew out of their fingertips across the keyboard and onto the screen. Some may rely on a short blurb to help them focus and quick one or two line sketches about their characters, but that’s about it.
I believe that in the beginning, new authors are a little bit of both. They feel each one out before finding what fits for them.
My first book, a Regency-set historical, was written by the plotter in me. I had an elaborate outline of what was going to happen in each chapter, down to each scene! It took me two years to write this book. It truly was a labor of love that quickly become labor itself. I never finished the book and it’ll most likely never see the light of day.
With my second book, the first book in my Zenith fantasy series, I decided to shift gears. Sure, I couldn’t completely withdraw from plotting, so I sat down, wrote a four page synopsis, wrote out my protagonists’ and antagonist’s GMCs, planted my butt in a chair, and wrote the book starting from page one to “The End” in about three months.
Finally, I’d found something that worked! For me, the push to get it finished was because I didn’t really know how the end would turn out. I had no idea what was happening in the next scene. I’d only started with a beginning in mind and a general ending, and allowed my characters to lead me on whatever path they wanted. It was an amazing experience.
What I’ve learned is that my characters are smarter than me. Yup, you heard me. My characters are smarter than me. They like to surprise me. By allowing them full reign, I’ve given them permission to develop into the characters that they were meant to be.
Case in point, Prince Kym’rin, the protagonist in PRINCE OF DARKNESS, the second book in my Zenith fantasy series. Prince Kym’rin was first introduced as Lord Mortimir, the antagonist, in the first book. I had every intention of killing off Lord Mortimir by the end of the first book. But somewhere along the way, Lord Mortimir decided he didn’t want to be killed off. Near the end of the book when he was asked by my heroine, “What do you want from us?” and replied with a simple, “To live,” I knew I couldn’t kill him. And so PRINCE OF DARKNESS was born. A good thing, because this is the book that is an American Title finalist currently undergoing voting. Had I plotted the entire book out, I would have constrained Prince Kym’rin into his role as Lord Mortimir, and his story would have never been allowed to be told.
I will say that after finishing PRINCE OF DARKNESS, I did sit down during a W-plot chart presentation and tried to mold the completed manuscript into the plot points in the W-plot chart. I ended up frustrated and unsuccessful.
So I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m a plotter by pantsing. The plots are there and the story comes out when I write by the each of my pants, so to speak. But if I’m not pantsing, no amount of brainstorming or outlining can draw my stories or my characters out.
Do I still plot? Definitely. I plot by knowing the beginning and having a general idea of where I want the story to go. I understand that the story may not always go where I want it to go. I plot by writing that first short blurb or two page synopsis. That is my outline. But the meat of the story – the characters, the turning points, etc. – those don’t make an appearance until I’m pantsing.
So decide which category you fall under by finding out what works for you. Are you a plotter, or a pantser? If the story just isn’t coming out, perhaps it’s time to switch gears and see if that’ll get the words flowing again. Or perhaps you’re neither, but a little bit of both, like me, a plotter by pantsing.
Mai Christy Thao
http://maichristythao.com
American Title finalist – Prince of Darkness
Don’t forget to vote for the next American Title winner at http://www.romantictimes.com/news_amtitle3.php
1 Comment
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Well said, Mai!