This isn’t that discussion.
Or is it? I settled into my writing pattern long enough ago
that I tend not to read or listen to the plotting/pantsing discussion anymore,
so maybe I’ve missed where other people have stumbled onto this notion, this
twist ending to the drama: Pantsing and plotting are identical twins separated
at birth.
Think about it. What’s your goal when you sit down to write
a short story, a novella, or a novel? Well, yes, obviously the goal is to write
the short story, novella, or novel. But some of you can only start the writing process
in the form of an outline, and some of you can only start by jumping right into
the narrative and action of the piece. Different as chalk and cheese? Maybe
not.
Guess what a plotter creates when they produce a neat,
numbered, lettered outline? From the seat of their pants, they create a sparse,
spare first draft. Guess what a pantster creates when they produce a three-hundred-page
first draft that needs revising? They’ve been outlining and plotting
their story in great, nitty-gritty, amazing detail. Plotters fly by the seat of
their pants as they plot. Pantsters plot and plan as they fly.
Every writer pulls ideas out of their head, in some miraculous fashion, and tumble the ideas onto a screen or paper in the way they can best capture them. First draft as outline or first draft as longform narrative – to me it’s six of one, half a dozen of the other. We’re writing, and that’s what matters.
The Boston Globe says Molly MacRae writes “murder with a dose of drollery.” She’s the author of the award-winning, national bestselling Haunted Yarn Shop Mysteries and the Highland Bookshop Mysteries. As Margaret Welch, she writes books for Annie’s Fiction. Her short stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine and she’s a winner of the Sherwood Anderson Award for Short Fiction. Visit Molly on Facebook and Pinterest and connect with her on Twitter or Instagram.
I pay no attentioin to those who insist there's is the only way to write. Abundent proof exists to prove both extremes and all the myriad hybrid approaches in between work. And both still require butt-in-chair or feet on floor at standing desk or laptop in lap while in easy chair or . . .
ReplyDeleteNot only do I agree with you that there is no one correct way to write, there isn't even one way for me to write. Each story is different. Sometimes they flow and I feel like a stenographer; other times I wrestle with the entire thing, sentence by sentence. But the important thing is that I'm writing, and I'm pleased with the end product.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree. I also agree with Jim and KM.
ReplyDeleteMy process changes with each project. Either way, that first draft or outline needs multiple rounds of revisions.
Whatever it takes to get to THE END.
I have an outline,but am writing what I see in Doctorow's headlights. For this project. Great blog, Molly.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to be among you, Jim, KM, Annette, and Margaret. Versatility, flexibility, and eyes on the end goal are key in this game called writing.
ReplyDeleteExcellent points and I agree with all the comments! My process is a mix that changes with every story. The key for me, is staying interested!
ReplyDeleteI keep thinking by now I should have a standard process, but it hasn't solidified yet. Maybe it never will--and maybe that's okay...
ReplyDeleteExcellent points. We all get there in the end, regardless of what path we take.
ReplyDelete