Plotters or Pantsers: You Are a Multitude
Plotter or pantser? I am not fond of those terms. I am not fond of those discussions. I was on a panel discussion at Bouchercon last week, and my answer is that we are both. If you ask a professional writer if they are a plotter or a pantser, you’ll probably see them slap their head, too, because experienced writers know better. There is not one or the other. We are all both at different times and on various projects. Each project brings its challenges, and we adjust to both. Sometimes, we start with a full-fledged idea that will morph as we write. At other times, we have an exciting idea, and we start writing to discover what it is all about and then create our outline when we are finished. Regardless, we are both plotters and pantsers, and the most productive way to classify ourselves is not at all. Just write as the project demands.
Creativity is an individual process. It’s different for everyone. How I look at the world is entirely different from everyone else's. How a project wishes to be addressed is unique to all other projects you’ve ever done. In most cases, it is like starting over each time we begin a new project. I would almost venture to say that no matter how experienced we are, each project makes us feel like we are starting from scratch. This isn’t a hopeful answer for those looking for a formula or a repeatable method of writing. That’s okay, though. Once you have done it a few times, you appreciate the originality of each project. Doing the same process in the same way to the same formula repeatedly does not create exciting writing. With each project as new, each project is new. Enjoy that exploration and adventure.
Some writers think linearly. Some writers believe circularly. Others bounce around from snippets of thoughts to other snippets of thoughts, juggling all sorts of things at once. That’s normal. That’s how we individually process things; all have produced good books. We love to see how other writers work, but the best thing is to determine how we work, and the only way to do that is through writing and experimentation. Try writing something as a plotter and see how it goes. Try writing something else as a pantser and see how it goes. Then, try writing something else as a combination of the two. You will find your path and the way you like to write.
Except for the most stringent rule followers, here’s a little secret. Most of us, even those who outline, have no clue where a story will go. Most of the time, we know the story for the first time when we type THE END. That’s my method. I go with a loose outline, an idea of how things might play out. I use that as a framework, but as I write, I find new things present themselves; oddly, characters seem to present exciting options that need to be explored, and though I have a loose working outline, I may not follow it. I am then both a hybrid: a plotter and a pantser. Others are solid plotters, but when they go back to rewrite, they find that they must find the creativity of a pantser to keep it from seeming formulaic. Others are solid pantsers, but when they go back to rewriting, they need to create an after-the-fact outline to make the manuscript coherent. We are all hybrids, one way or another, and at different parts of the process. The joy of discovery in the writing process is what keeps us going, and it's a feeling you'll come to cherish as a writer.
For a creative person, a messy desk is nothing. Look inside your head. Things are messy in there. I get asked, “How can I be more creative?” I almost want to say, “Throw everything you’ve got in the middle of the floor of your brain and then pick them up like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and start putting them together where they seem to fit. In whatever order you pick them up and start to assemble, there is your story.” Is it simple? No. Does it make sense? No. Does creativity make sense? No, not even to the experts. But it works. You’ll write beautiful prose, poetry, and essays following this. Give it a shot and see how it plays out.
I will say that creativity, from what I’ve seen, is a lot like stories: it is full of conflict. So are the ideas. Make sure your ideas are replete with conflict. Where there is no conflict, there is no creativity. The “What if…” model is good. What if something normal was not? What if x does not equal x? Or, you have blue and yellow; what would happen if we mixed those two so they are no longer blue or yellow? This thinking has prompted some of the best in literature and film. Every writer has many interests, and we come at it in different ways and at various stages and times as we write each manuscript individually.
I think Whitman was right: we contain multitudes that change for every project we work on. There is a reason people don’t understand creative people or what they do: creative people, in my observation, don’t even understand themselves; thus, there is a constant effort to try to define oneself as a plotter or pantser. You are both. You are multitudes. Accept that and appreciate it. How can anyone else if we don’t know who we are or how we work? Creative people, also like good writing, are full of contradictions. So, instead of concentrating on what you are, write. That will determine everything. And you’ll see the full complexity and originality of what you do by embracing both when each is needed. The writing process is a journey of self-discovery, and it's a feeling you'll experience as you embrace your unique creative process.
We, as creators, are so conflicted that we’re looking for relief. We’re looking for some peace. We are looking for an order. We’re looking to define ourselves. Accept it; we are undefinable. We are just writers; each day we get up and try to find our way, some days wearing a pantser’s hat and others wearing a plotter’s hat. If we are looking to define ourselves, I hate to say, as creators, we will never do it satisfactorily, which is why the discussion always continues, but at least we know what might be motivating us: the completion of a great story. However, it takes time to get there, so embrace that. Embrace the story, not the method. As a writer, you defy all definitions. Explore every street and back alleyway. You’ll find the richness that will set your writing apart.
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