The life of a pantster . . .
/Q: when you write a book, do you make it up as you go along or do you have it all worked out before you start writing? - Natalie
Pantster
A person who writes by 'the seat of her pants' as opposed to a plotter, one who plans or outlines her writing. Term used, and popularized, by writers, and is familiar with the writing community of the American-based writing contest NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) that started in 1999, and other such contests. A general term for a writer of this approach. Antonyms: plotter, outliner, planner.
That's just about all you need to know Natalie :)
Yep, I write by the seat of my pants. I let my characters do the walking and talking. When Mindy and I began writing Paper Planes I can tell you we had NO idea where it would go. The only plot we had down was these two teens write letters. Period. Everything came organically, and that is how most of my stuff is written.
I write out of order, too. I wrote this line from From The Wreckage first:
“Why did you wait for me?”
Jules freezes.
“At the house, when you were inside and safe,” he clarifies, in case she doesn’t know what he is asking about. “Why did you wait for me?”
If you've read the story then you know this scene is from Chapter 11. See, sometimes I can base an entire story around a line. Tyalbrook began with 'are you safe?'
Last Call grew from the wedding invitation.
Into the Fire grew from a line Dani said to West in Out of Ruins. Dani herself wasn't a planned character. She forced her way into my mind and into the book.
“I punish myself because I lived.”
That one line I never planned became a novel.
I'm a pantster. I allow the story to write itself.
And I love it. And hate it . . .
I hate it because sometimes the story doesn't want to follow the path I choose. I realize that probably sounds crazy to a non-writer. Case in point. I'm currently writing After The Fall. I thought I knew what I wanted the story to be.
Yea, no.
Austin, like the other Rutledge boy we've all come to know and love, has a mind of his own. He HATES where I want to take him. He refuses to allow me to write his story the way I planned it. So I've had to start fresh. My characters are still the same. The storyline is still basically the same, but the tone is different. Tone is HUGE in storytelling. With this change comes a new blurb.
After The Fall is already up on Goodreads and iBooks, so I will change the blurbs asap. Hopefully, those who have already pre-ordered it with the original blurb will love this one better. I know I do.
Oh the joys of pantster life. It makes writing a bit more difficult when you don't know where you're going, but then again therein lies the fun. Adventure with every tap of the key!