My husband and I love to travel. We
enjoy seeing new things, meeting new people, experiencing life in a different
way. What we don’t love is wasting time—showing up at a National Trust property,
for example, only to find that it closed for the season two weeks earlier,
missing the last ferry between islands in Norway, ending up in Paris on a Sunday
and Monday when many tourist sites and restaurants are closed. Yes, these
things happened to us in the past.
That’s why I always do a bit of
pre-planning now. Knowing how many days we have, I make an itinerary, noting
the driving distance between stops. I book places to stay overnight, and I
think through each day and the possibilities open to us. Where might be a good
place to have lunch? Should we take the boat ride on the lake or get advance
tickets to the museum? But here’s the point: our most memorable experiences are
almost always things we didn’t plan (with a few photo):
Meeting an
accordion maker and his wife in a small Austrian village
Joining the
festivities as a bridal couple marched to church in Dubrovnik
Being serenaded by a Cornish men’s choir out for a weekend holiday in Devon (wish I could have uploaded the video!)
Seeing an elderly Italian man cry as he thanked us as Americans for liberating his small mountain village in WW2
Being kicked out
of four taxis in Beijing because we didn’t understand their zoning system (or
their language)
Watching Prince William’s new girlfriend, Kate Middleton, navigate the paparazzi as she arrived at a wedding in the Cotswolds (photo by one of our travel companions, Patti)
Plotting a novel is a little like
planning an itinerary—at least it is for me. I’m what people call a “tent-pole”
plotter. I know the major plot points, twists, and reveals in advance because I
don’t want to waste time writing myself into a corner. But the best ideas usually
occur to me in the process of writing.
Last week, for example, I was doing
a bit of online research for my WIP when I happened upon a strange phenomenon
connected to AI. I was fascinated by it and immediately saw how I could use it
in my plot, adding a layer of intrigue to one of the characters and tweaking
the plot to give it greater depth. I couldn’t have planned it ahead because I
didn’t know it existed.
These “plot thickeners,” like
serendipitous travel experiences, can’t be planned out in advance. They just
happen. And when they do, they are almost always exactly right.
Thinking of my plot as an
itinerary—a list of possibilities, stops along the way, with room for the
unexpected—makes sense to me. My “tent poles” give me confidence to know I will
make it to the end of the journey, but the spaces between them leave room for
the unforeseen and fortuitous.
Do you leave room in your plot for
the unexpected?
What is the best unplanned plot
point you’ve ever used?
Happens to me all the time- have found a new character, realized all the clues were there but I had misread them ( had to toss half a book and rewrite for correct murderer, and learning something new about characters.
ReplyDeleteYou "misread" your own clues! Love it!
DeleteAs a pantser, I start the journey and then it's all a mystery to me until I get there.
ReplyDeleteThat takes courage, Jim.
DeleteGreat way to write. I love seeing a work of fiction unfold. And it's often not until I've written it that I realize how something will work out.
ReplyDeleteSo true. I don't really know what the book is about until I've finished the first draft.
DeleteMy process is similar. Hit the highpoints then get in the “car” and drive between them. I usually have some bullet points for each chapter, but not always.
ReplyDeleteGet in that car and drive--perfect!
DeleteConnie, I miss traveling and love reading about your experiences. As for plotting, I've become more of a pantser and welcome the new twists that come as I write.
ReplyDeleteMy most startling moment was when Imogene Duckworthy and a male character shared a kiss at the very end of one of the novels. I had no idea he was even interested in her. In the next novel, they had to get together, obviously. I won't tell you who the guy is, in case you want to read the series. I still remember how surprised I was when my fingers typed that scene.
ReplyDeleteOoh... I think I'm a 'tent-pole' planner too. Loved this, Connie ( ;
ReplyDeleteI've been a panster and it's gotten me into trouble, like having to do a timeline and rearrange a whole book. I'm trying to plot more. Tent pole (love that) is all that I can hope for.
ReplyDelete