Hello everyone.
Wishing a warm welcome to subscribers old and new.
I apologise for the lack of a newsletter last week. I was away for a couple of days and felt so tired when I returned that I couldn’t muster the effort to do any writing until today. It was nice to have a break from my usual routine though.
I haven’t been doing much work on Pipes and Prejudice, as I’m preparing to self-publish Dawn-Wolf. I still don’t have a cover yet, but when I do, you will be the first to see the cover reveal. Once my beta readers have finished and given me feedback I will be sending copies to my ARC team.
Plotter or Pantser
There are two distinct types of writers, plotters and pantser, although many, like me, lie somewhere between the two.
A plotter is someone who outlines their story before writing it. They will usually do all or some of the following: Make a breakdown of the events that will occur in the story, story beats and produce character arcs. They are a writer who plans.
A Pantser is derived from the term: writing by the seat of your pants. Pantsers usually don’t work with a full outline, some with no outline at all.
A plantser is part planner, part pantser, this describes how I write my stories. When I sit down to write a story I have a idea in my head of what I would like to write. The ideas can form at any time, night or day, but usually when things are quiet and I have time to think. The plot ideas I have are not fixed in stone and many times I find the story tends to write itself. I find that this usually works best for me and I love it when a story takes on a life of its own, at times leading me down a writing path that I least expect. Although, I have to confess that there have been a few times where this hasn’t worked.
There is one area where I do not pants and that is research. I will never skimp on story research as it is a very important part of building a story, also in making the story believable. For me it is always better to have too much research than too little. The research rabbit hole is a familiar place for me. If you take a look at my newsletter archive I have written about it in Down the Rabbit Hole. If you are interested you can read it HERE.
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Until the next time
Kindest Regards
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Definitely a Plantser here, too. I've met two true Plotters, one wrote Romance, the other Crime/Mystery. The first built an inverted pyramid from the setting + the two main characters; the second planned out every scene and nuance in a kind of shorthand which took months, before writing the actual novel in a matter of weeks.
I also know a true Pantser who, given the genre, kicks off with an idea, gathering the characters and their motivations as the writing progresses at speed. Once that pass is completed, the author does the research needed, then knits it in to the script, then gives the script another pass to bring the characters to life, then another pass to... The very idea I find horrifying.
But that's the thing with fiction writers. There is no "correct" way. It's what works for the individual.
I'm glad yours works for you, Paula.