Have you heard there are two kinds of writers – an outliner and a pantser? One outlines their story from every detail in every scene to a basic three-point outline, and the other simply follows their characters around and writes down the things they do.
I’m a pantser. When I start writing a book, I have a general idea of where it should go, but I never really know. I leave it up to my characters. And they never fail to let me know how the story is going to go. It makes me sound a little bit like a nut doesn’t it?
For instance, I have a general idea of where the story should go, of what this character should be doing and who should be the main character and who should be a secondary character or even a walk-on. But there are times the story simply will not go there. A character will refuse to shine, and another character takes center stage and will not give it up.
In the Spring Street Quilters (SSQ’s) series, Gert was never intended to be a main character. She was going to be a walk-on. Heard from now and then. But I created her with a little more gumption than necessary and she refused to give up center stage. And she turned into a main character throughout all three books, even more so in the last book, Morning of Grace.
So, be warned! If you’re a pantser, you have to be willing to bow to your characters.
Are you an outliner or a pantser? Let’s find out!
- Does the blank paper intimidate you?
- Do you want to know what will happen in Chapter 3, in Scene 11?
- Do you have a written background on every character?
- Do you know exactly how the story will end?
- Do you have a file with pictures and written descriptions of all settings?
If you answered Yes to at least three of those questions, you are probably an outliner. I admit, my bias may have shown through.
- Do you have a few ideas jotted down on a napkin?
- Can you see the main characters in your head?
- Does the idea of an outline bore you to tears?
- Are you prepared for Character Takeover*? Looking forward to it even?
- Are you eager to get writing so you’ll know how the story ends?
If you answered Yes to at least three of those questions, you are probably a pantser. It’s all very scientific. Since this is my area of expertise, I’ll be expanding on Writing as a Pantser.
I’ll be using my current WIP as my example. The Neighbor’s Club. A women’s club, involved in community activities and the lives of the three women who are on the board this year. I was inspired by The Women’s Institute in England. It was referred to as ‘The WI’ and in my book, it’s referred to as ‘The NC.’ Every (i think) village and city in England has a branch of the WI. They are focused on education, while The NC is focused on community projects. If you’re interested, you can find out more about The WI here https://www.thewi.org.uk/faqs If you’ve watched any British TV shows, you may already be familiar with it. Any fans of Land Girls? or Home Fires here? Love those shows!
I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of a women’s club, like the WI, and thought it would be a great premise for a story. So, that was my original idea.
Idea: women’s club
Characters: 3 (since my first series, SSQ’s had 7 main characters, I tried to dial it down)
Setting: 1 town, 3-4 homes
Plot: A year in The NC, with the new president and her board.
The twist: … oh no, you’ll have to read the book to find that out!
This time, I did do some pre-writing about the premise and the characters. Since I knew the seven women in SSQ’s so well, it was hard to meet three completely new women. So, I filled out a Character Sheet for each, and mock-interviewed each one, writing up a bio for each. It made me feel better. But, I admit I promptly forgot all those details.
Here I am, near the end, and I needed to know how many sisters Jewelle has, so I referred back to my Character Sheet for Jewelle. For almost 300 pages, I’d written her very different than what her interview revealed about her. Oh well, I’m not changing it now. She wrote her story the way she wanted it written.
The big dilemma? I’m within 5000 words of the end and I don’t know how it ends. You know how frustrating it is to wait on fictional characters to let you in on their secrets? Sigh. It just makes me feel like I have no control over the situation. And I really don’t. Things have happened in this book that floored me. Who knew? (They knew and I get the feeling they’re laughing at me most of the time.)
*Character Takeover: Exactly what it says. One character refuses to live in the little room you’ve prepared for her, cute as it may be. “I will not live in that room, I will live in THAT room over there!” and they march over to that room, and the on the way, they stir the pot here and there. Trust me. It happens.
So, what are you? An outliner or a pantser?
