Drawing from the Well
Unlike my last blog, it’s been a fair writing week. Now, I wouldn’t yet classify it as good, but there’s a definite uptick in production. I’ve cracked 60k with 5,913 words written between blog posts. It hasn’t been every day but I’m getting back in the swing of things. And the plot is coming along nicely. No surprises here so far. This arc was tightly choreographed so that it would work primarily because the first pass on it during planning was less than good. Here’s hoping I can finish getting back in the saddle this week.
Filling the Well
As writing was better this week, so too was reading. I finished four books this week including two nonfiction reads. I like to sprinkle in a couple short reads here and there to reinforce or sharpen my skills for work. This week, I got the first two (almost all three) books down in the Firebird series by Claudia Gray (spoiler: they’re all great). The other two books were about empowering your team to solve problems and managing through Change Management. All good things. This week I’ll definitely finish the Firebird series, hopefully one of the latest by Amy Tintera, and then dive into the seminal classic Dracula.
29/100 for #ProjectBookworm2022
Well Chat
Last week we talked about plotting so this week we’ll hop to the other end of the spectrum and cover pantsing. In the strictest definition, this is the practice of sitting down to write a story of any length with little to no prior planning. It is so called because you are flying by the seat of your pants the entire time. Some people dress this up in other terms like “gardening” but this is an easier way for me to look at it.
Now, this is often billed as a more exciting way to write and there is some truth to that. You discover the plot, its twists and turns, and even whole characters as you write because you invent it all as you go along. You may have an idea of the end point or some big moments throughout the plot, but you likely don’t know how it all fits together.
So, upsides: freedom, extremely low time barrier to entry, and exciting. After last week’s description of plotting, the downsides here should be obvious. Although you have the freedom to take the plot wherever you want, you may find it taking you into a dead end. You may be missing plot elements that you really need. You may not understand a character or a location. All of this necessitates heavy editing after the fact. So all that time you saved in the beginning by just diving in you now have to pay back afterward. #ChooseYourHard
Now, some people love looking at all the various scenes and figuring out how they fit together. For others, this is a huge source of stress (Me!). You might need to add, delete, or rework entire scenes to create the story flow you want. Again, neither plotting or pantsing are bad, though some might argue to the contrary. It’s all about what works for you.
Now, the truth of the matter is that very few people are pure Plotters OR Pantsers. We all live somewhere at least one degree closer to the midline. That is the very wide land I like to call Plantsing and that’s what we’re going to talk about next week in this continuing journey of finding who we are as writers.
I just had a birthday and it was great. My wonderful wife made homemade ravioli, my favorite chocolate espresso cake with peanut butter cream cheese icing, lots of wine, and lots of relaxation. It was the perfect way to finish my 38th year on this earth. I hope you all write all the words and face this dark world with the strength and defiance I know you have in you. Be well.
May the tide carry you to safer shores.
BSG