Plotting vs. Pantsing (Writing Community Lingo)

[@loftilofi9678]

I think I'm a plantser. I usually write down a loose premise and think about for a day so, imagining scenes and exploring characters. I tend to have many "eureka" moments that way, so I have to bullet point those ideas to keep track. They're broad and often tangential, nothing specific or technical, and when they tie together and form a theme, I can understand the story holistically and start writing.

[@joshuareid4654]

I'm definitely a plantser. I might write down a scene or something for a story but only take bits and pieces of it that work better than if I used the original scene.

[@reelbytes6447]

I think I may be one too

[@dragolia1603]

I also think I am I can imagine main characters and arcs and the ending and beginning but usually I have to spend more time with the little details but I never write (lol) I’ll try the bullet points to see if that would work for me

[@mrnnhnz]

I reckon I'm a plantser too, though the opposite sort from you Lofti. Instead of writing a premise and going from there, I just write and write until I run out of steam, then I go back and consider, "Where is this all going?" and, "What are the themes? Where will it all end?" Then I roughly map it out. Then I start writing again. But I must admit I do tend to frequently re-read what I've been writing in order to tweak (often with later themes I've since introduced, and foreshadowing and so forth.) This may not be too efficient as the longer the book is, the longer it takes to re-read stuff...

[@atatajoe3506]

"Whatever you do, keep writing." This spoke to me. I've been going through it as a Nigerian writer-the ENDSARS protest, the Lekki massacre, everything-and I stopped writing. I couldn't get myself to write a word. Thank you! Hopefully, I get my first draft ready before the year is out.

[@梨-i5l]

Go for it Joe, I believe in you :)

[@atatajoe3506]

@Maria Thiaw thank you, Maria. I'm writing again, thank goodness! I'm on my second draft which is mostly rewriting-lol-but I'm wading through. Thank you again for your kind words. I hope you enjoyed the conference session, by the way.

[@artiejoe]

How's the draft doing? And you too

[@hydevanhelsing5063]

I've subscribed to you, so be sure to make an announcement when your story it out!

[@atatajoe3506]

@@artiejoe I'm doing good. Thank you. How are you doing? The draft is no longer a draft, thankfully. But I'm unable to speak, extensively, on it because it was a ghostwriting project.

[@sunnysunshine8897]

I'm definitely a relaxed planner. I have plot, characters and their arcs written down, but small things such as dialogue, character interactions, and sometimes fight scenes are made up as I go. As long as I know how it ends.

[@bookishclara2653]

I am a thirteen year old who wants to be a writer. I think watching your videos have helped my writing style more polished and professional. Thank you!

[@Negus-maximus]

Hey! I'm 13 too

[@QuotidianWriter]

I devoured writing advice websites in my early teens, but back in my day, KZbin wasn't around, hahaha. I hope you'll keep writing throughout your life and enjoy the journey! :)

[@oldproji]

Stick with it and you will become a great writer one day. Good luck.

[@Ninxren]

Hope your writing is going well now! You got this!!

[@judiangel4173]

Extreme pantser. My whole book came out that way...I was the writer and the reader. Delightful. Thank you, Diane, you are so talented.

[@pudimdeuva1]

I envy you a lot. Seriously, i might be a sociopath, my outline goes down to the LINE. Everything is already decided from the very first letter of i type for the first (and only) draft.

[@cjpreach]

A-C-C-A-A. I jump around so much I drift back and forth between Relaxed Plotter, Plantser and Controlled Pantser.

[@user-fh1pu9os7n]

I remember, in elementary shcool, they always forced us to plan out our storys and I always hated it. Because I am almost a extreme pantser.. so I guess it makes sense😂 Love your content, really informative😍

[@AdmoreMethod]

As a pantser, have you been able to finish a novel yet?

[@user-fh1pu9os7n]

@@AdmoreMethod Yes, when I enjoy what I do, I find it easy to finish something.

[@devonrager8992]

@@user-fh1pu9os7n But did you hated the school's approach because you were a pantser, or are you a pantser because you hated the school's approach?

[@user-fh1pu9os7n]

@@devonrager8992 Idk..

[@hackerdackers8832]

my school taught me the only way to write successful stories was to plan them out, which really discouraged me from writing. years later when i discovered that other pansters exist and there's actually many successful pansters i was so relieved.

[@roseconsumption]

When I began writing as a child, I was very much a pantser but I think it's because I didn't understand story arcs, plots, character development, or senses of movement and pacing. I just had interesting ideas and wanted to explore them on the page. Ultimately my stories became muddy, pointless, just like a painting of a scene on paper with no purpose. I never finished those works, but I always enjoyed writing them. As an adult, I lean much more heavily on the side of a plotter. As was made evident in this video, knowing the ending is important, knowing the major points of contention, following an "act structure", knowing how the characters will develop over time... and I realized I can't make a story without answering these questions first. I can't trust myself to come up with these plot points on my own. So now I'm a reluctant plotter, who does feel like the whimsy of writing is waning but that the strength of my writing is growing.

[@QuotidianWriter]

That progression is exactly what happened to me. I've noticed that a lot of pantsers eventually become plotters, at least to some degree, especially if they become career authors.

[@marvellousadelaja3922]

This is so relatable!. I transformed into a plotter the very instant I took writing seriously.

[@renab.7390]

My results: A, B, B, C, A, so I'm a mix. I most closely identify with the plantser and the controlled pantser. Another writer (Ellen Brocks, in her "four types of writers" video) put it like this: You can be a plotter or a pantser. You can be methodical or explorative (I think, not sure if that was the term she used). Different writing methods work well or not, depending on what type of writer you are. However, everyone is a unique mix of those types, as they exist on a spectrum. Thanks to her video I discovered I'm a methodical pantser. This quiz pretty much confirms that.

[@midwestmatcha]

Guys this pure gold, the content is helping me a lot with my writing! Btw your voice is so calming, sometimes I just rewatch to listen to your voice😄

[@muadhquren]

I have been writing my entire life, but always isolated scenes flirting with becoming short stories. I decided this year to make the leap to attempting a novel but found myself uncertain how to continue intelligently after the first few perspective chapters, when it came time to commit to real plot moments. This video was what made it finally sink in that maybe it's okay to be a pantser and explore the plot through writing it.

[@lordcloud3087]

I've discovered this channel very recently, and it has been very encouraging for me in writing my first book (it's a murder mystery). Expecting the big reveal/climax/ending is what motivated me to keep writing, but now that I'm in the polishing stage, it's the characters that I want to explore. So I guess I went from a plantser to a pantser :) Anyway, great video as always!

[@vaughnjohnson8767]

Hmm

[@margiewinslow872]

I found the same thing. The events dominated my 1st draft but exploring my character's inner arcs is what deepened the story from a straight who done it to a mainstream novel with wider appeal. At least I hope so.

[@AbeNoSeirei]

I have mostly As and one C. I found that I need to know every beat and every scene or I'm stuck. But that doesn't mean there is no room for creativity. Sometimes scenes develop differently from what I planned them to be, and that's okay. It is more organic that way. And I know I can do as many changes as I want in the edits, too.

[@thedeadcannotdie]

Your definition of a controlled pantser sounded eerily familiar lol. You described my thought process better than I could.

[@alwaysapirateroninace443]

I'm a plotter in my head & a pantser when I write. A controlled pantser. I imagine scenes in great detail in my head, yet they always change & expand as I write them. I also tend to write a story 1st draft free writing, for me, & plot out everything in following drafts. I also tend to know the ending & important scenes, though these usually change as I continue the story. Neither type is better, it's simply how you work.

[@akgwriting9481]

Ikr, me too

[@abubakarjamro5713]

Watching all your videos is literally going through a literature course. Keep up the phenomenal work.

[@shinyary2]

I'm usually a plantser, I guess? Usually in order to write I need to know a character, a theme, a setting, and a goal. The antagonist will follow from the goal either before I write or while I am writing. I usually have a vague sense of the shape of the story, as well--some important moments along the way that may or may not end up happening, and maybe an ending. Then I just follow the character and if I ever get stuck I think about my theme and try to find a way to express it in the scene I'm stuck in. I try to get my protagonist and antagonist into conflict as fast as possible and then just sit back and watch the sparks fly. I may or may not know the ending, but often the ending develops naturally from the theme. Thanks for the video! I've seen a lot of videos on this topic but somehow you always seem to find a way to make every topic fresh. Hope your channel explodes the way it deserves.

[@ashikanwar8130]

I am a relaxed plotter it seems. I do write the scene and the plots before hand. And just flow with the dialogues that I feel like is the best to connect with the plot.

[@McD9134]

The words of Asimov spoke to me on how I enjoy writing. I feel having an idea of where you're going or something that needs to happen a goal whether it's the goal of the next scene or the goal of the book is like knowing that you're going to go to the store but not what you're going to buy. I do find it like an adventure like you get to be part of the story, and that other line about reading a book that hasn't been written. As an additional note in affirmation that I am almost certainly a controlled "pantser" is that I do in fact DM and I'm constantly thinking about my books and stories I want to tell even if my pen never touches a page (or fingers a keyboard)

[@writerducky2589]

My quiz answers were all over the place. Probably controlled pantser. I like having some idea of where I'm going, but knowing everything is such a killjoy, and it feels like I've already said what I wanted to say if I write it as a plan or reminder rather than a scene. But I like having coat hangers to work off of. The more I know about the surroundings the more ideas I can play with.

[@jorgegarciapascual5709]

I identify myself more with the term Gardener, because when I write I throw a bunch of seeds throughout the story to see if there's something to collect at the end, like walking into problems on purpose to see if I can solve them. Then comes the revision to polish everything and make it more coherent without losing the organicity that comes with that pantsing.

[@TheBeastBandit]

As a recent outliner and plotter, this video is so relevant. I’ve been a long-time pantser and am now, in my ripe old age of two decades and a sixpence, geared more towards wanting to know what I want to write. I have also started writing more complex pieces, so it makes sense that I get all of the intrigue down so that I don’t get confused.

[@victoriawatson8121]

This is remarkable. I was restlessly wandering around my minute kitchen, mulling over my first ever attempt at writing a book (38,000 words in...so far) and wondered if I was a particular type of writer, never having done this before. Low and behold I take my mind from my reflections and click the youtube app to be greeted by this amazing!!! Piece of information. Kismet? Serendipity? I know not, but I’m a controlled pantser. This made me believe in myself like no other video I have ever watched. You my dear are magnificent. Thank you x

[@mslinda4576]

Always been a Pantser. But exploring Plantsing by jotting outlines for future books. I couldn’t be a Plotter even if I tried; nothing comes to mind attempting it. Written 3 books, all of which were pantsed.

[@vaughnjohnson8767]

I definitely lean more on the plotting side of it. I’m kind of in between a extreme Plotter, and relaxed plotter. I’ve written the beginnings and endings of each act in the book down, just to play with what can happen, and whatever is in the middle of each, i write down what happens for each chapter in some sort of episodic fashion. But the writing itself is pantsing, what happens in the chapter itself is unknown. That’s just how I work. I’m exploring the moral and realistic aspects of revolution. It’s an urban fantasy story, but in a totally different world. The moral and realistic aspects are basically, ‘Is this revolution _really_ needed?’ And if they succeed, ‘Was this revolution *truly* worth it? Was the suffering and pain caused by it in search for a better future in vain?’ It’s a good concept that I don’t actually think that has been told in a TRULY realistic way. The plot of Book 1 goes like this: The overlord Zeroneus began his rule over a decade ago, and since then, the 7 Governments of Springside have been in submission. With his overwhelming power, the conquerer created 7 different governors to rule the entire known world. 13 year old, Shear Rift lives with her father, Heath, and her brother, Ethen, in the Fossil Kingdom. A few months ago, her mother was arrested for unknown reasons, and Shear has never seen her since then. But since then another revolution has started. Inspired by whatever her mother did, their leader has tried to gain supporters in all of Springside. But the Governor of the Fossil Kingdom, Earthmaster, is trying to stop them. Shear never even knew about this revolution. But now she is caught up with this group and trying to survive amid a corrupt world.

[@QuotidianWriter]

On my Ko-fi page, you'll find the full list of writing books and other resources shown in this video, along with my behind-the-scenes notes: www.ko-fi.com/post/Behind-the-Scenes-Plotting-vs-Pantsing-B0B12M6G1 You can also read a text version of this video over on Medium: quotidianwriter.medium.com/plotting-vs-pantsing-writing-community-lingo-765f5f337b56

[@samlerf]

Thank you.

[@JuliaRiversX]

I don't think I've come across a better summary of the different methods. This is sooooooo useful! I'm sharing this with my writers group now :D It'll solve so many issues for people. Thank you! Thank you so much!

[@hungoverjesus1891]

I'm literally addicted to your content 😂 needed a boost for my nano project

[@TheLPRnetwork]

Man i have no idea were i put myself on the Plotting Pantsing Chat. i almost explosively Plot-out and make whole mind-maps of where the story goes... but the plots and maps have changed so much, draft 1 looks almost nothing like draft 13. i just kept rewriting the plot so things made more and more sense. Whenever i add a new idea, it always ends up fixing an old problem i never saw before. Whole Characters & their Arcs switch and evolve with other characters while their motivations stay the same. The Cause & Effect of things say the same, but the What & How they happen have never remained constant. So Yes, i have 40 years of stories planned out on 3 maps. it's how they happen that i myself have yet to discover.

[@theepistemiccafe]

I really enjoy your voice - it's delicate, warm and clear, yet definitive and confident. It's very enjoyable to listen to

[@brettpilkington9539]

She won't plot you bro

[@kulotmentaries9241]

I've only been aspiring to write this world I built in my head until, I found you. No word can express my thanks ma'am.

[@jkalim5640]

I think I am a plantser? If I outline the whole story I feel like I have already told it. However I need some guideline to go off of, so I plan a little.

[@NathaniaDemecillo]

I have a feeling that I am a controlled pantser. I tried to outline the beginning chapters so that I had a story in mind. But as I wrote, the story changed. I think I know the ending of the story but I just want to go with the flow. You deserve more subscribers by the way. Your videos are so educational and I hope that more people will get to see that. I hope you're monetised already. God bless, Diane!

[@jocelynemrich5731]

Let there be no doubt: I am an Extreme Pantser. I DM a D&D party as well as attempt to write books. I’m always just like “Okay, now we’re off track, and the party looks bored so I’ll just throw some goblins at them”. When I write, I let the story unfold itself. I have no idea how half of my drafts are going to end.

[@lasuperagus]

A video from you is just what i needed to forget my stressful day!

[@kaylajames9334]

Oh my gosh, I want to hug you. Your advice for pantsers may be just what I need. Thank you.

[@HuongNguyen-tr5rw]

Your channel has been the most helpful one that gives out actual writing advice. Thank you 🙏

[@NicShalaty]

Relaxed plotter I think for me🙂 love your videos. Seriously some of the best on KZbin👌

[@shannonallaroundofficial]

I am a PLOTTER. Which is actually really comforting. It means that all this time I'm spending thinking about the story, I'm actually making concrete steps towards finishing the project! Thank you for making this video :)

[@surfit.]

I am an extreme pantser. I tried plotting, but I felt I wasn't in control of my creativity. Stay on the path. Don't explore. Under a dim candle light, I was writing in a box. Then how can you call it creative writing? My characters comes to life by writing heavy dialogue. The romance. The storm. The plot creeps in. The reels on a movie projector is spinning, and my mind's eye is watching the movie. I am an extreme pantser.

[@tundranone8366]

I guess I'm a plantser, because I really can't figure out where I fall. Outlining comes fairly naturally to me, but Idk if I really enjoy it. Pantsing/discovery writing looks so fun.

[@toomuchcandor3293]

not sure if anyone else mentioned this but thank you so much for the citations the compilation really helps add lot of value

[@TurboOvenMan]

I'm definitely a plantser and it's very affirming that your sample author, Brandon Sanderson, is exactly how I approach my writing too. I feel there is more structure as long as I know how I want it to end. It's more than enough to guide me. I also agree that because of this, coming up with scenes and points leading to the definite climax enables me to create ideas that are more unique and connected to my story. I'm in that moment of the story and only then can I come up with such ideas. Thank you for existing and creating this channel. You are helping us a lot!

[@dandan5928]

When I write short stories, I tend to be a pantser. It's easy in that short a form to just live on the end of each sentence, trying to surprise yourself with what comes next. Plus, a short story is much easier to edit and revise multiple times. However, now that I've tried (and failed) to write a few novels, I've found myself to be more of a plantser. I have the major events in my head, but each new chapter I only outline very briefly, usually the day before I write it or sometimes the day I write it, focusing on the characters' goal in that chapter, the obstacles they will hit on their way to that goal, and whether they succeed or fail at the end of the chapter. It's been working well for me, and I'm finally finishing up a draft of a novel without it completely falling apart!

[@AdmoreMethod]

I agree, @DanDan. I’ve found that the vast majority of people who rail against outlines are short story writers. And, it’s super easy to pants a short story. Not so easy to pants a full-length novel.

[@oldproji]

I write short stories for pleasure. I used to be a pantser but always ended up with more half-finished stories than completed stories. Too many false starts and inconsistencies made writing a bit of a chore. But I believed it was the only way forward to become a credible writer. That belief is absolute nonsense, of course. One story I really wanted to write lay half-written for a year or two. It needed a lot of work to revive it. I decided to write a cheat sheet, just a simple one-page outline in three acts showing all the main points I wanted to cover from beginning to end. And wow! It became my first experience with forward planning and I was so glad I did. There were still loose ends which needed some research, and I wished I had sorted this area out before I started to write. The story is now finished. It will be published in a short collection soon. I’m now a plotter. Plotting doesn’t mean you don’t have the excitement of building an imaginary world, or even the excitement of finding new adventures within the story. My story is pure fiction based on a real person from the early 17th century. Readers will always pick out the wrong details if we're not careful. Here’s a “for instance”: Stephen King, a successful pantser, doesn’t always get it right. His work is often filled with sticky and semi-stick sentences, or glue word percentages well above 45%. Clearly, he doesn’t believe in editing either. I’m now a pantser with a plan. I don’t have problems with my opening sentences, I don’t get writer’s block, because I know where I’m going, and I don’t worry about the small details of the period I am immersed in; the details are in my plan. If I’m stuck, I check my plan, and get back to work in seconds. My motto has become: Think it - Plan it - Write it. It makes sense, and it works.

[@perymachado6374]

How on earth doesn't this channel have a million subscribers? It's so insightful and strewn with useful examples and clear-cut facts. (Also, sharing time, I love how she always ends with "whatever you do, keep writing", as if it were a plea for the art not to perish. Combined with the music at the end, it tugs at my heartstrings). Love it!

[@itinerantpatriot1196]

I suppose I'm somewhere between a controlled and an extreme pantser. I start with a basic theme and go to my memory bank of little yarns and scenes I've thought of over the years then I marry the two together. My best story came after I found a journal my dad had kept. My sister and I found it as were going through his stuff after he passed away and we were both surprised because Dad didn't seem like the type to keep a journal. Anyway, it sparked something in me and eventually I built a story where a boy forgives his distant father after he reads a journal the father kept as a young man. I knew I wanted to write a story about healing and forgiveness and the journal seemed like the right vehicle to use. But the rest of the characters just appeared. That's the best part of writing, meeting your characters. They have unique personalities and good and bad traits but the thing is they introduce themselves to me, not the other way around. They write themselves into the story. I thought this was unique until I heard an interview where Steven King talked about that very thing, how plots and outlines are where good ideas go to die. I loved King as a kid so I thought, okay, if the big man takes that approach it must be legit. I do get spurts of inspiration talking about my ideas and they act as a springboard for me. I was a teacher for many years and I taught the same way. I had a routine, but each class was different so I was a bit different each time. And I hated outlines and formal lesson plans. Just tell me what they need to know and when they need to know it and I'll get em there was my motto. My more structured colleagues couldn't understand my methodology but then again none of them could sit down with just a bottle of water and have a conversation with 250 students either. They asked me my secret. I said I just figure out where they want to go and follow em around. That seems to work for me when I write as well. And when I get discouraged or overly critical I remember that my characters will never hate me. That keeps me going. Anyway, as you can tell I'm a bit long-winded. Why say something in five words when you can say it in 500. Or as Daniel Day Lewis put it when he played Abraham Lincoln, when I get going I'm too lazy to stop. Cool video. Thanks for posting.

[@hellopumpkin86]

I can't thank you enough for these videos. They are some of the most informative and professional writing tip videos on KZbin. Your voice is also lovely as if I could hear it in a storybook. :)

[@kuzingatia7962]

One of my new favorites of yours, thanks Diane!

[@zachindes]

You nailed me word for word when you described controlled pantser 😮

[@sherylmorris7581]

I'm a relaxed plotter cowriting with a pantser - needless to say, this can be challenging and even frustrating at times, especially because we're both working full time (teacher & teacher-librarian). It's taking much longer than we both thought to get my planned plot down into a first draft, especially since we're constatnly coediting as we pass our contributions back and forth. However, my pantsing friend is taking me on adventures I would have never thought up myself, and our characters are more rich and complex as a result.

[@paulapoetry]

I experiment. I sometimes outline, and sometimes don't. I usually need a spark, my characters, and a general direction, but can let that be my guide. When I plot, I still make changes as I go, and nothing is set in stone.

[@unsungheroes8626]

this channel is a blessing.

[@pjfurlong1]

I am a plantser which is good to know! Thank you so much for your invaluable lessons and your presentation is amazing!

[@supriyasahu2202]

Your videos are amazing, thank you so much❤.. Needed this

[@mikamaesla3210]

Your tips are different from others which means so special. Thank you

[@writethepath8354]

Primarily a pantser/gardener. I have the initial sparks, the seeds, and sometimes I dive right into a strong scene, or I start where the larger narrative seems to enter. After the first initial rush, unless it lasts more than a few days, I start a sort of stream of conscious outline. What are the others seeds that need to be connected to with what I've already written, how do I need to get there, and in that outlining character wants/needs/traits/histories are fleshed up. I listen to my characters, because if they don't have enough personhood and voice to react to the stimuli I'm applying, they can't matter. Listening is how I've gone from stand alone realistic fiction and urban fantasy and magical realism stories, to finding several stories and characters cross stories, magical people existing and interacting in another story that is purely mundane. C, B, (D), A, C

[@beggo1989]

I dubbed myself a plotter until this video... now I think I just might be a pantser..... I needed this video and I just didn't realize it until I was it. Thank you Diane

[@梨-i5l]

I find it so helpful to do the opposite of my style. I dream most of my plot, but I ran into so many dead ends that way. Now I workdbuild a little and have written a couple of outlines, but still freely write what I want with maybe one or two points I want to come up in the chapter

[@evvie01]

I watched and enjoyed Brandon Sanderson's lecture series on KZbin a few weeks ago. I lost some writing time because of it because I binged it. I binge a lot, you are helping me too. Giving my mind someplace to go without straying too far from the matter at hand. Getting the first 50,000 words of a novel on the page. November is over half over, and I feel an uncontrollable desire to side step the task and bask in the accomplishments of others and dream how I might accomplish them myself. Yes, I already know. And it makes the basking feel like I'm getting away with something...

[@mlbullbooks]

I'm pretty much a plantser, but I guess I'm kind of a relaxed plotter too as I always plot my main points/acts before writing.

[@Thais1985]

I lean towards pantsing, but I've gotten more fond of planning. I'm still very much inspired by this quote "Undoubtedly the stories about them [hard-boiled detectives] had a fantastic element. Such things happened, but not so rapidly, nor to so close-knit a group of people, nor within so narrow a frame of logic. This was inevitable because the demand was for constant action; if you stopped to think you were lost. When in doubt, have a man come through a door with a gun in his hand. " -The Simple Art of Murder, Raymond Chandler

[@TVdinnermasterchef]

Definitely an extreme plotter; currently about 10,000 words through my first book (sci-fi/horror), and I already know what's happening at each point and had developed a theoretically sound, though not yet technologically possible (if at all) faster than light engine before the 2nd chapter.

[@Bleachshugo]

My results are BBBAB. In the beginning of my writing career, I was definitely a panser (plantser?). Now, after watching this video, I see that I might be a controlled plantser. I love the freedom of writing and seeing where the characters go, but without having a clear goal, I definitely have the potential to write book after book without a good direction of an ending. Thanks so much for making this video. It is truly helpful.

[@mashedpotatoes7202]

i was born around people who write stories, so they wanted me to do so too. most of them were in the plotting category. a person showed me such detailed charts of characters and what a relationship they have to each other, etc. everytime i tried making these charts, or even writing my idea down in bullet points, it turned out bad or i just somehow went in another direction. this explains much. i am definetly a pantser. so many people tried to teach me plotting techniques, no wonder it never worked.

[@yerabbit]

I've never heard the term Plantsing, I love it. It's nice to see so many methods of outlining presented in this video, very interesting

[@johnparnham5945]

I am a plantzer. I find it easier to write out scenes before I write it out in full text or I struggle.But dialogue and other details emerge on the way. I don't plot out the whole book before hand but I have to have some idea of the ending. New ideas arrive unexpectedly sometimes and I have to check that they will fit in logically with the rest of the story.. Sometimes I write a scene that brings unexpectedl consequences and they have to be followed up, which msy change the direction of the story.This can be done so long as you don't lose your way and forget where it's ultimately going.

[@smg680]

I feel like I really needed this video. For me, I want to start writing a book series and I feel like i'm a plotter as it helps me to understand what I need to write before writing it. For example, i've got 3 and a bit pages worth of the important (for now) worldbuilding so I have an understand of the world before writing the story. However, when it comes to try and figure out what the story actually is with the plot points, mid points, climax and resolution, I have no clue. I've been trying so hard to come up with ideas that would be appealing to read but it all feels generic and predictable. I want my story to be exciting for readers where they want to keep reading but when coming up with the story, it just feels like an everyday book like this has already happened in other books or films. The things i'm trying to say is that I like to plan parts I need to put down so I have an understanding of what I need to do but when planning, I get frustrated because I just want to write. But I don't know the story and I fear it will just be so generic to the point where no one would enjoy reading it as it feels like something people have read before

[@robertkleemann1519]

I'm mostly Cs and As but recently I decided to pants a short story. It took more drafts to finish but I liked the final story. It taught me a lot. Now, whenever I see an interesting writing technique, I just give it a shot and see what happens. I _loved_ seeing all the writing books in the different plotter/pantser categories. I've read half of them and now want to add the others to my reading list.

[@simonettagenova]

Darling, my results CCABB. Incredible!

[@Andres_Y14]

Thank you for the tools, you suggested in the vid. Your esays are as bright as the sun! TEST RESULTS: Mostly A = Plotting (Even if I lean a bit thowards planting) 1.(C 2.(A 3.(C 4.(A 5.(A

[@havvaalexander9520]

I’m definitely a plantser. Thank you for this video!

[@EayuProuxm]

Probs the most comprehensive take I've seen on this topic. Thanks for this!

[@kylefields3951]

I think I'm a strange mix. I require a strong idea of what I want to do with the characters before I begin, and I need to plot out some key turning points and who fights who preferably and what led them there but honestly after I get the bullet points down I have the characters do most of the work for me if that makes sense, letting them come to life on the page and trimming or editing what I don't need. AACAB is what I answered.

[@WolfShadowmancer]

So glad to see more of your content! And I love the Vindsvept music as the background. You were the first place I heard his tunes and got me into his work. I think I started out extreme pantsing, quickly switched to extreme plotting, and then got muddled up in a mix of the two throughout the years afterward. Plotting initially killed all my interest in the story, and I swung back to pantsing, but I found that my stories got lost in the woods after only 30K words or so. For the story I'm working on during this month of NaNoWriMo, I'm using a basic outline that states the main plot points and character moments, but a lot of it is in my head and much of it is still TBD -- to be discovered.

[@Catpuff818]

Proud plantser. My outlines are bullet points of scene ideas. Usually before I write i have to imagine how the scene may play out in my head, like I'm watching a scene in a show. When I start writting I have an idea of where I want to go but as I write and I discover the minute details and several twists and turns. Scenes can always change dramatically even when I have an idea thought out just because I never try to push the characters to do something that doesn't feel organic. Playing out scenes in my head helps me play with some ideas since I think what can end up making frustrated is when I end up changing an idea I've written down too many times. Since then I realize I'm very unsure of the structure or what I want to do so I think in those instances I need to step back and revise my ideas and themes as a whole before I begin writing. When it comes to world building tho I seem like an extreme architect wich is why I haven't even started writing those stories. My quiz results: 1. A 2. A 3. C 4. C 5. Wasn't sure if I like drafting or revising more. What makes me the most excited about writing is when I'm crafting and polishing a scene that I know I've done a well enough job that it will illicit an emotional reaction out of the reader.

[@loreleimonn3220]

I thought I was doing an extreme level of plotting with my newest project, but after you outlined some examples of authors and their processes, I realized that this project is only plotting heavy by comparison to my previous projects lol. I’d say it’s about equal to what you listed Brandon Sanderson’s process to be. Whereas my previous stories have been “okay, I have characters, themes, and a setting. Now I’ll just let them grow into the story as I type.” Probably explains why my answers to the 5 questions were BCCBB

[@almaty1983]

Thank you! I was so anxious about the fact that I do not plot ahead, that I almost drew myself away from writing. Feel much calmer now.

[@novemberninth4392]

I'm early for once! Thanks for the video! I'm definitely a relaxed plotter. It's so much easier for me to write when I know what's happening and what will happen. I tried pantsing my novel... yeah, got stuck here and there many times

[@AxleBoost]

Keep giving us this GOLDEN content.

[@Titere05]

Sometimes great outlined ideas pop out of nowhere, but it isn't usually the case with me. In general I have to massage ideas in my mind for them to reveal more about themselves. I'm not an outliner though, I can begin writing a story or a scene not knowing where they fit into the grander scheme, but I have to at least know something, anything about that scene or story. Of course sometimes I just sit and write, but not when I'm working on something in particular.

[@anishawoods1029]

My first draft is pantsing but with each draft I cut and nurture to fit my story idea. Kind of like a bonsai tree.

[@ewaldsteven]

"Sometimes referred to as a *plantser*..." haha I love you! Subscribed.

[@MartinDreamsOfElectricSheep]

Very well done

[@OnlyMichaelSparrow]

Before I write a story, I craft character and what their archetypes are. Then I put them in a plotter story, and see how it unravels. If I think of something, I write it in my notes. I strive to make good characters and put them in different situations and see how each one could react. I think it’s good to have an outline of what you want to write. I take advice and critiques to heart, and it can have me rewrite characters and add new ones. I want to make people, not just characters in a book.

[@EmptyKingdoms]

I'm always amused how, in creative writing videos, here, over KZbin, there's hardly any discussion about language. Take this as a suggestion. What about writers that think _through_ language, _with_ language? It is the raw material, first and foremost. As Mallarmé replied to Degas: you do not need ideas to write, you need words.

[@QuotidianWriter]

I definitely want to make more videos that focus on prose, although tastes are so subjective that it can be difficult to choose examples. Some writers roll their eyes at what they perceive to be "purple prose," while others think an economical style is amateurish. Still, I have a half-written script on "What Makes a Writer's Style Unique?" I'll have to finish that up to appease the language lovers. ;)

[@dion789]

For me, outlining doesn't mean that I have to stick to the outline. But by plotting out the story I see the flaws in it. Because of that, my outline changes many times. JK Rowling is my greatest example to follow as a writer. My outline also looks a lot like hers. To me outlining is also not something I do because I think it's necessary. I enjoy doing it and it helps me come up with new ideas. I also don't visualize much when reading or writing and the title cards in scrivener and the table outline help me with that.

[@stephvandykeozzy]

I'm more of a relaxed planner. I plan everything about he characters, plot, and story information then I start writing the book. As I write, I work on how the characters work on the plot. During that, I tend to add more to the book say like more of the protagonists' personality, character arcs, and scene by scene for the plot. I tried the pantser method but it didn't work for me. So, I'd rather plan first and then write. It helped me better to use the plot structure first so I can visualize how the book would turn out and then write it all down. Also, at times, I do the freewriting method. Freewriting really helped me out because I wrote a scene that came to mind and I pieced it together in the book.

[@paincrusher666]

CCBCB for me and it's mostly accurate. I'm a Plantser. I always have key points or scenes that guide my story and chapters but how exactly my characters reach those points is something I leave out until I'm getting close. If I know everything already, what's the point of retelling something? If I don't know how things got to a point, that's were the fascinating things start to appear. How on earth did these characters team up? Why did my character decided to pursue a goal? what is this character thinking? how did my character end up like this and here? these are questions that I find the answers to as I write. Sometimes I get it first try sometimes I need to rethink it, but if everything is already fixed in place there no fun for me. it's just as if I was copying a text from somewhere, paragraph by paragraph, sentence by sentence and word by word.

[@shmood3000]

I think which method I use depends on what the story needs, but in general I’m a relaxed plotter/architect.

[@darthkillhoon]

I'm so much of a Controlled Pantser when I write my first draft but as I get to my second draft I turn into a planser

[@ravynxavier]

I'm a plotter. I outline characters of my main characters and their close friends that are mainly in my stories. I spend a week to a month plotting. I plot my settings/locations, like a church and a school and put the character that work in those. they are characters that are minor character. I love your videos on writing. I made a playlist for myself it's my writing.

[@joeldrummond6058]

"I just flail away at the goddamned thing!" Sounds like me regarding life. Hahaha! Great video, Diane! I have spent scores of hours watching videos and reading books and blogs on this subject but never have I seen them all lined-up and compared in such a succinct fashion---it is very helpful. I have tried just about every method you've mentioned here and, like the spokes of a bicycle wheel, they all led back to one central hub: the need for the core of the story (the underlying structure) to meld with the need for spontaneity in order to keep things interesting. Strong outlines ("plotting") for me, are crucial to having a well-balanced and well-paced story, however, since my stories tend to be character-based, even though I have written copious detailed outlines, I find that the goal-less meandering of my characters when I am writing ("pantsing it") is necessary to breathe life into the story by having the audience follow the character in a general direction for a specific purpose but in a way that allows them to put two and two together and discover the things that the character is discovering at about the same time the character is discovering them. If I just rely on an outline to keep things spontaneous and interesting the story will lack life, and if I just rely on interesting characters doing interesting things, the story will get muddled and lack focus and the audience will be left wondering "Where is this all going?" and "Why couldn't he/she have just done this/that? It would have been a better solution and would have taken half the pages to tell that part of the story." So I find formless meandering to be necessary in order to imbue the story with passion and interest and to prevent the story from becoming predictable, and I find a strong structure (outline) to be necessary in order to keep the story focused and plausible and adhering to the audience's expectations for that genre. Really helpful information here, Diane, and of course, very beautiful to watch!

[@jrzjnz7573]

I do plot a main structure but how it plays out is pantsed. More pantsing on shorter stories. Plotting on my series but pantsing the details.

[@shepaluteprez]

Diane I love the professional quality of your videos as much as the inviting quality of your voice. When I wrote my first two novels, I was a plantser. The issues I am finding with this more relaxed approach is that the final draft took me far more edits and changes to get the story up to a quality level and so I am now moving towards relaxed plotter. As every story, act, and scene requires its key components of inciting incident, midpoint turns and character arcs as laid out in Story Grid, I find that I will spend far less time changing and editing and more time enjoying the storytelling. I still leave the scenes open for discovery along the way, so this new approach is, for me, far more effective. -Gabriel Paulson, Jacob Lake series.

[@z01k1]

i haven't even started writing my thing but i watched the full video

[@malingabrian862]

I don't miss any video

[@rdjazzboy1944]

Also known as architects and gardeners. I prefer that analogy. The Night Circus was written by a gardener.

[@dougarnold7955]

Thanks. I'm recently thinking the architect approach is THE writing block I have. 15:25...my gut is telling me I'm a controlled pantser or, more likely an extreme pantser. Yes, those descriptions definitely helped. It's neat you posted this just when I was coming to the idea on my own that I may be a pantser. Years ago I wrote outlines only to hit a brick wall and the writing process would stop. Maybe the architect approach is what's keeping me from writing my first book.

[@evelynjoy4466]

Definitely a plantster. Usually I start my writing with a random scene that I really like the idea of, and then I think about how that scene would happen and then I plot out the plot points and characters in my head and then I start writing it chronologically. Eventually, when I realize the story is getting longer than intended, I write down all those plot points into a single document and go from there. Although the outline changes a lot as I go.