I'm an avid plotter, which is obvious if you've follwed me for long. I feel like I'm often in the minority. The local writing group likes to share quotes that concentrate solely toward pantsing (writing "by the seat of your pants", with no outlining or serious preparations). For example:
"I distrust plot for two reasons: first, because our lives are largely plotless, even when you add in all our reasonable precautions and careful planning; and second, because I believe plotting and the spontaneity of real creation aren’t compatible. ...[M]y basic belief about the making of stories is that they largely make themselves. The job of the writer is to give them a place to grow." Steven King
“If you spend enough time with your characters, plot simply happens.” Chris Baty (NaNoWriMo founder):
"I don’t plan. I don’t outline. I have hated outlines since sixth grade geography and I can't do Roman numerals... [Premeditation] kills the suspense. I just like to see where the story goes.” J.A. Jance
"Remember: Plot is no more than footprints left in the snow after your characters have run by on their way to incredible destinations.” Ray Bradbury
Personally, I find that writing an outline helps me to be more focused. When I already have a rough idea of what I want to write, my creative mind is free to figure out how and why. With the major plot taken care of, my creativity can focus on character, theme, description, and other details. Using a story structure creates milestones that help with my pacing and my progression.
Story structure and outlining don't need to happen on the first draft. Some people (mainly pantsers) have written so much that they have an instinctive feel for story structure even without an outline. Some go back and use story structure to edit a messy rough draft, whether or not they used an outline in the beginning. I did this with Mira's Griffin, which was a particularly unholy mess after I mostly pantsed it. Or you can outline in the beginning with story structure in mind, which I've done with the vast majority of my books (I suppose you could argue that most of those were based on daydreams, which are entirely pantsed, in which case I almost always fall into the middle category. The Spectra Crowns are the exception).
"Pantsing" and "Plotting" are a spectrum, with writers falling everywhere in between. I don't embrace the term "plantser" (no offense if you do), because even a small outline is still plotting. If you find a detailed outline too restrictive, consider a vague one. Most of my books have an outline less than one page. Here's a comparison of three of my works in progress. I'll share the information in Act 1.A, the first clade (roughly three chapters).
Work 1: The Captain's Dowry has a detailed 5-page outline:
Show “Sal” acting as cabin boy, doing something dangerous in the sails. Then the ship comes to port, she talks to her father, changes her disguise, and heads off to her fancy finishing school. As she changes disguises, she thinks, just for a moment, about being “the person in the middle”.
Rick is unable to get any further in his career. He is shunned by the sailors for being gentry and the gentry for being a third son. He gets news of his father’s demise and hurries to his family, but his ship and his career leave without him.
Sal’s father has serious debts. Sal offers her small savings, but he confides that he will lose the ship. She tells him she’ll do anything she can.
Rick visits his brother and learns of the will: once Rick is married, he will get enough money to cover any debts. Rick is frustrated and believes he is being punished for frugality.
Work 2: The Dream Realm (The Spectra Crowns 2)
Work 3: The Cousin Pact (The Spectra Crowns 3)
Al sneaks into the castle, desperate to see Innis’s coronation. Politics of the event set up. Glimpses the Castalia cousins arriving. Meets Innis and falls into puppy love. Establish how oaths work. Introduce major players: Al, Innis, and Viola.
It's also important to allow space to tweak things if needed. In The Cousin Pact, Viola does not come up in this clade. These first three chapters include a failed job interview, protecting Princess Innis from a theif, and an argument with Al's family. None of that was in the outline.
Obviously, everyone is different, and so is every writing process. Differences are something to celebrate! If you're a panster, awesome! It's cool that your brain can do that.
I did a twitter poll about this a few days ago. Out of 40 people, 55% were pantsers, which is a majority, but not as big as I expected. This seems to be the case in other polls I've seen: the pantsers have a small majority in numbers, but a huge majority in quotable quotes. So, we're out there, but quotes in our defense are relatively few.
Dancing, painting, singing, you name it—all art forms require structure. Writing is no different...Learning about [story structure] then allowed me to strengthen my raw instinct into purposeful knowledge. KM Weiland
So, for all of the plotters out there who don't seem to be as loud, let's tell people that our way is equally valid.
I see a void that must be filled. Ahem.
Plotting is awesome! It gives your writing direction, and hitting each milestone in your outline is a huge motivator. They can be as detailed or vague as you like. Plotting can give you a tighter throughline, a more sensible plot, perfect pacing, and a more resonant, thematic story. I recommend everyone try it out and see if it works for them. Christie Valentine Powell
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