He Said She Said (Issue #2): Plotting vs. Pantsing

Written by MVWG Members Scott and Heidi Blanke

Are you a strict plotter? Or do you approach your writing journey as a pantser? If you are an established writer, churning out books, then you are probably a plotter. Not sure what I’m talking about? Then read on!

Plotter

What Is a Plotter?  Simply put, a plotter is someone who plans out their novel before they write it.

My first, unpublished novel took nine years to write and was done as a pantser. My second novel, (December 2021) was written as a plotter. I knew the ending, and broke the novel into three section, each one-third of the book outlined carefully beforehand. 

The writing approach as a plotter helps you generate ideas. Two years ago, at the start of NaNoWriMo, I knew I had the basis for a complete novel, (did I mention it came out in December?). I laid out the story arc and in a notebook mapped out the complete story line. In that notebook, I wrote out a complete chapter by chapter outline. I actually followed the outline and was able to fill in details, character development and subplots easily. I never got writer’s block as I followed the outline. Of course, I still found various reasons for not sitting down and writing each day.

If you’re a painstaking outliner who spends a large amount of time in the prewriting stage charting out plotlines, devising characters, and worldbuilding, you fall into the plotter category. Epic fantasies are perfect for plotters. So are the wonderful twist and turns of murder mysteries. One problem with plotters is if they do get stuck or want to change something, they often have to redo their whole outline. 

So if you already have the great idea and want to flesh out the entire novel, plotting is for you.

Some great resources for plotters, from The Magic Violinist are below.


Pantser

I have no idea what my characters are going to do. They guide me once my fingers hit the keyboard. Sure, I may have a vague idea of what could happen in a certain chapter, but that doesn’t mean it will. While I am full of common sense, the rest of my brain tilts toward the right and aside from vacations and meals, I tend not to stick to a plan.

One time I wrote a romance novel from start to finish; I was under a deadline for a contest and that required some kind of structure. More typically, I write whatever chapter calls to me that day. While I’m pretty good at writing the first chapter, or even the first paragraph, as the first thing, I let loose after that.

Who knows what dream will influence the way my main character behaves? What if I want to incorporate some bizarre news story I read on Facebook? Those things can’t be planned. I want my characters to be full of surprises, not act in a preconceived manner. 

Most of the time, even with a piece of flash fiction, I won’t know the ending until I get there.

So, go make your plans and plan your plots while I put my pants on, sometimes both legs, sometimes one at a time, and sometimes not at all.

P.S. I didn’t win the contest.

Whatever type of writer you are, plotter, pantser or even a combination, a ‘PLANTSER’, keep writing! 


Scott and Heidi are retired and live in La Crosse they spend their days writing, reading aloud to their grand children via Zoom and looking forward to the day we can all write and read together in person again.