Change...love it or leave it?

Back in the fall of 2012, several of my author friends were announcing multi-book contracts. I was thrilled for them, but inside, my inner voice mocked. "You'll never get one of those. You can't plot."

Sure, I'd managed to crank out five romances, but they'd all been written in advance, and individually contracted and published with Pelican Book Group. For me, that meant writing a story, submitting it, and then waiting, praying and hoping for a contract. I dreamed of snagging a contract for a series that I hadn't written yet...to know that the story I was laboring over would have a home when I finished. But, in order for that to happen, I needed to force myself to learn how to plot, so that I could submit a proposal based on a synopsis or summary for three stories that hadn't been written yet.

In the early stages of my writing career, I'd tried plotting. Oy! My neighbors could probably hear my ranting and thrashing about my office, banging my head against my desk and threatening to toss my laptop out the window. 

Change...it never gets easier, does it? 

But that fall, this confirmed pantser finally determined to become a plotter. You can read my tips on how I made the transition here and how I organized myself here. Trust me when I say there was plenty of weeping and pulling hair involved, especially when I plunged into simultaneously plotting out five books, two independents and three for a series. 

I'm nearing the end of my timeline, and I'm thrilled to report that this week I completed my fifth plotted book in just a short~ or long, depending on how you look at it~ eighteen months. 

Change is never easy...but it's possible. I like routine, and change hurls me out of my comfort zone, leaving me unsettled and anxious. But with a little faith and a good bit of persistence, I'm always amazed at the outcome.

“If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten.” ― Anthony Robbins

Do you embrace change or despise it? 
What's the most difficult change you've experienced lately?

Organizing a Pantser

So, you've made the decision to migrate from Pantser to Plotter. Now what?

As a Pantser (not under contract), you have flexibility in your schedule. You may have a daily word count goal, but with no deadline, it doesn't really matter if you reach your goal. You can make up for it the next day or just extend the length of time it takes to write the book.

But what happens when you become a Plotter and submit a proposal for three books that aren't yet written? A component of the proposal requires a completion date. How do you come up with a time frame to complete the books?

Hmmm...

A calendar?

Not the ideal solution. Especially when you're working on multiple books. There's just no easy way to adjust.


A timeline would work. One with the capability to insert tasks by book and keep a running word count total.

You can google timeline and and find hundreds of timelines. Please be sure to pop back over here and let me know if you find something that works for you. I didn't.

Instead, I chose to create a fairly basic Excel document with the month, date, book, task, words added, and a running total. I mapped out each book with the targeted word count, taking into consideration vacations and holidays. I used "fill color" to highlight different books, so that I can easily decipher the transition from one book to the next. I add my word count for each day, and adjust if necessary. According to my timeline, I should finish Book #5 by early 2014. And now, I have completion dates for my proposal.

It's not ideal, either, but it works for now.

It's your turn.

If you're a Plotter, which organizational software works well for you?

Can A Pantser Evolve Into A Plotter?

A couple weeks ago, I alluded to crossroads and major decisions. One of them was to join up with the team at Seriously Write. 

Another was resolving to evolve from pantser to plotter. For those of you unfamiliar with the terms:

A pantser sits down in front of their laptop and starts typing, with only a few rough ideas for either characters or story floating around in their head. A pantser allows their characters the freedom of writing their own story.

A plotter uses a "roadmap" or outline and finds their rhythm by organizing their thoughts prior to any actual writing. A plotter logs hours in their hero/heroine's heads with fully developed character charts. They write a detailed, chapter-by-chapter synopsis before starting the book, so they know where the book is going, and how it will end.

If you'd like more detail on plotters and pantsers, check out my earlier post here.

Usually, a writer falls naturally into one category. Trying to do the opposite of what comes natural is like writing left-handed when you normally use your right. Early on, I tried both methods, but plotting frustrated me so much that I considered inflicting serious damage to my laptop.

As I celebrated with writer friends over their multi-book contracts, I knew that I'd never be able to accomplish this if I couldn't learn to plot. A key component of the proposal is the synopsis, the summary of your book. No synopsis=No proposal. 

There's nothing wrong with writing a book, submitting it, and settling in to wait for a contract. But, I want to grow as a writer, to expand my comfort zone. This pantser is determined to evolve into a plotter. I just finished synopses for two unwritten books, and I'm working on a proposal for three more. 

Want to know how? I'll share my secrets. :-)

Pray.

Characters. I'm a visual person. I need pictures, so I started by finding my hero/heroine online and getting to know them. Then, I asked my character (whichever one you connect with first) these questions.

What do you want? (Goal)

Why do you want it? (Motivation)

Why can't you have it? (Conflict) 

Develop the story idea/premise. What terrible thing happened in my character's past to make them how they are today? Keep asking "what if?" until you come up with a story idea. 

Write the first few pages, expecting to delete them. Writing the backstory helped me flesh out the characters more, so that I could go back and fill in some of the blanks. Just write a bit and let words flow. It's OK. You can, and probably will, delete them. The goal is for the story to reveal itself. You may need to tweak the premise after doing this.

Picture the story sequence in your head. This helped me tremendously, probably more than anything else. Do what it takes for you to find your zone. Close your eyes. Throw in a CD. Let your dog walk you around the park. Record the chapter number, the date, point-of-view, and what you expect to happen in that chapter/scene. If you know how you want the book to end, you can skip down and work backward.

So far, this process is working for me, but the true test will be if I can actually write the book. I'll keep you posted.

What about you? If you're a pantser, how do you write proposals?

Do you ever see yourself evolving into a plotter? 

Plotter or Pantser?

Which side are you on?

You're a plotter if:

You like the idea of using a "roadmap" and find your rhythm by organizing your thoughts and notes prior to any actual writing.
You type out a rough outline and think through any plot twists ahead of time.
You've logged hours and hours in your hero and heroine's heads, with fully developed character charts, so you know they'll follow the path you've forged for them and why.
You've written a detailed, chapter-by-chapter synopsis before you start the book, so you know where your book is going, and how it will end.

You plan. You plot.

You're a pantser if:

You sit down in front of your laptop and just start typing, with just a few rough ideas for either characters or story floating around in your head.

You love the freedom of allowing the characters to write their own story.

You don't care that the story you end up with is not necessarily the same as the idea you started with. If it's a great story, why should you?

You write by the "seat of your pants." 

Which one are you? 

A plotter or a pantser?

Or are you somewhere in the middle?

Me? 

I'm organized to the point of dividing my shopping list by aisles in the grocery store, like frozen foods, canned goods, produce, etc. 

I eat the same thing for breakfast every morning. I go to bed at the same time every night. My hubby will tell you that I really don't like surprises. 

So what do you think I am?

Ahhh! You'd be wrong.

I'm a pantser!

Where do you fall on the scale?