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Writers are a funny bunch and the split between plotters and pantsers seems to be an arbitrary one in my mind. In this guest post, Nick Thacker explores why mixing planning with “pantsing” is probably the best route to go for writing fiction. It's certainly the way I write. How about you?
I write using a formula.
*Gasp!* *Shock and awe!*
I know; crazy, right?
Listen, it's not like you think. I've finished a novel, plenty of other fiction content, and am completing a second full-length fiction thriller, and trust me–I haven't sold my soul.
In the writing world, as you're probably aware, there's a polarizing debate between the “pantsers”–those who write by the seat of their pants, plotting and planning as they go along–and the “planners”–those who like to get every detail, plot twist, and problem/solution researched before they begin to work on thier manuscripts.
The Pantsers usually are classified as the ultra-creative, left-brained abstract thinkers, who strive for genius in the creative space by charging into uncharted territory.
The Planners are commonly considered the analytical, detail-oriented people who appreciate well-researched and flawless plots with fully-developed literary devices and very full Evernote accounts of research material.
I'm somewhere in-between, and I'd venture a guess that you are, too.
I write in a creative way, AFTER I've planned out what I'm going to write. I don't try to get everything down into a “research journal,” nor do I actively try to free-write every day.
For me, writing zen falls somewhere between the Pantsers' and Planners' respective camps, and if I had to call it something, I'd say I'm a “Plantser.”
I don't plan everything
As a church music director, I ran a contemporary worship band (think U2 for God) that employed some of the finest musicians I've ever worked with. They were each professional gigging musicians, teachers, or industry pros with years of experience.
I decided to start using “loops” in our worship set–basically a pre-recorded or pre-programmed musical backdrop that would play throughout our songs. Imagine stripping out the guitars, drums, bass, and vocals from a rock band's album, and what you'd be left with would be a backing track that adds color and depth to your sound.
For the band, there were a few things that troubled them. Mainly, we were all worried that using loops would cause us to have less freedom, as we were constricted to a set structure, tempo, and order for each song.
They thought creativity as individuals and as a band would plummet.
It didn't.
Strangely enough, when we playing along with some of these songs' loops, we found that our creativity and overall sound improved DRASTICALLY. We were tighter as a unit, and every member of the ensemble felt as though they had MORE freedom to play licks, leads, and filler material.
The church liked it, and we liked it.
Back to writing
So, how does this apply to writing a novel?
Well, if you plan a GENERAL STRUCTURE for the major sections of your book, and create some simple character sketches, you'll find that the creative juices start flowing MUCH easier when you actually get into the writing process.
You won't have to worry about your end goal; that's already been planned. How you get there, though, in each sentence and paragraph and scene is up to you.
Here's a list of what I like to plan out:
1. Overall theme/idea (duh)
2. Major characters–hero/heroine, villain(s), supporting actors
3. Plot summary (a general structure to guide the major story question along)
4. Scenes and Sequels (to borrow from my boy Dwight Swain!)
5. General notes on the novel's direction
As a self-declared “plantser,” it seems natural for me to resist a set structure, yet want to complain when I get stuck. The method I've mentioned here doesn't solve all the problems, obviously, but it does help me feel clearheaded when I approach the daunting task of penning somewhere near 100,000 words!
I'll expand on the idea of planning/pantsing your novel, and hopefully I'll be able to guest-post again soon! For now, though, leave a comment with your own thoughts on this approach–do you do something similar? Or drastically different?
About the Author: Nick Thacker is a writer of fiction and non-fiction, and he blogs about writing novels, among other things, at www.LiveHacked.com. You can subscribe to his newsletter here.
Kathleen Pooler says
Hi Nick,
You have lots of great information here and I’m so impressed with what you have already accomplished through your “plantser” method. So creative! I know I’m a memoir writer stepping into fiction territory but we really all have to accomplish the same thing- moving the reader with a well-crafted story and we all need to use the same tools of plot, character development, scenic details,etc. That being said, I have tended to be more of a pantser, capturing vignettes as they come to me. I have an overall theme and schematic outline but I have pretty much found my way by writing my stories. As I close in on completing my first draft,though, I am feeling the need to hone my planning skills by concentrating more on the overall framework and sequence of events that will tighten up the story. I find Evernote to be an excellent tool to capture for organizing my thoughts in one place. So maybe, I’m a “plantser” too. Thanks for a great post and discussion.
Nick Thacker says
No problem, Kathleen! Good to see you!
Thanks for adding your thoughts here–I think the recurring theme of all this is “do what feels right,” and add in components of both “pantsing” and “planning” as needed.
Talk to you soon!
Nick
LKWatts says
Hi Nick,
Great post! Just as it takes creativity to write, it also takes creativity to decide HOW you’re going to write. Formulas that work for some will not work for others, so it’s all about finding a method that will work for you.
Nick Thacker says
Amen to that! Thanks for dropping by!
K. Traylor says
I’m kind of the opposite of you, I think. Currently what I do is pants the entire first draft on my computer (NaNoWriMo is a great time for this) without planning, looking back, or correcting mistakes. When I finish, I look back on what I’ve written and pull out what I think are the key elements– the most important characters, the basic plot structure, the nature of the ending. Then I start all over from scratch, hand-writing each chapter and detailing/editing as I go. It’s all incredibly time-consuming, but so far it’s helped me produce the best, most coherent writing I’ve ever managed to do. (I’m currently about halfway through the first novel written by this process. A couple of years ago I pantsed one and tried to edit it afterward, but it was such a hot mess that it wouldn’t have been worth the trouble. I might rewrite it using this method later, if I have time.)
Great post! It’s interesting to read other authors’ work and guess which process they use. I actually think it’s really obvious when an author takes the seat-of-the-pants approach and only does a basic edit afterward. The advantage is that the story is often stunningly creative, with lots of strange characters and unexpected plot twists. The disadvantage is that there’s often a lot of extraneous material that could have been cut to make the story a lot smoother.
Nick Thacker says
Hi K!
Thanks for stopping by–and thanks for the comment. It seems like you and Mr. King have something in common–he calls that “pantsed” first draft “writing with the door shut!”
Nick
Jessica Burde says
Never thought of it like this, but it definitely fits. I used to try pure panting and it was a disaster. So I switched to planning, but found I would not put together an outline that worked. I ended up with what I guess would be a kind of plantsing – detailed character sketches, a few plot summaries, and just keep expanding and adding detail to the summaries until I have around 100,000 words.