Note: I have joined the WriYe Blogging Circle, and have appropriated the second trivia Friday per month to use for my posts. Trivia will continue on the first Friday of every month.

Pantsing or planning? That is a damn good question.

A persnickety side of me wants to say that I’ve got spreadsheets and clipboards and corkboards and white boards and notes and stickies up the wazoo…

However…

That’d be the farthest thing from the truth.

Usually I sit down with a faint idea – sometimes it can be a really strong idea with characters and places that DEMAND in capital letters to be released from the soft gray goo that is their prison – and open Word, and just let it happen. That can be a good thing; I’ve had instances, believe it or not, where a story came out of me perfectly. No spelling issues, no typos, no plot holes or character flaws. Within ten minutes of finishing, I sent it off to a publisher and had it accepted. Ten days later I was $10 richer and some months later I saw that story in print.

Does it count that it was under 100 words? No?

Are you sure?

*sigh*

And then there are times when I’ve planned something out, detailed each character right down to the color of lint between their toes, spent months working out the world-building and universe and… splat. That’s it. Done. Somewhere in the planning, the story told itself without actually being written.

For each of those scenarios, the opposite has been equally true, as well. I’ve planned meticulously, written beautifully, been accepted after numerous rejections. I’ve written off the cuff, flying without benefit of broom or pants (as the case is pantsing after all) and had it fall flat.

It is the way of the writing life, correct?

No matter what I do, pants or plan, brew or bubble… in some manner, in some form, there are words on a page. Or sticky. Or notebook. Or whatever.

I’m actually not going to debate the pros or cons after all, I thought I would, but I’ve been pantsing this very post, and meh. I don’t feel like pulling up the podium and boring myself (and probably you) to tears.

I am simply going to tell you to do what your idea demands of you. Does it need to be hand-held and coaxed gently? Then plan it! Is it fully gestated, ready to go, bursting at the seams? Then pants it!

Either way, you’re going to end up going back and double thinking, double checking and double writing. And if you hadn’t planned on doing that – you should. In pen. Red pen. Highlight it in hot pink, so you don’t forget.

And even if you do decide to give up on something – don’t throw it away! It could come in handy somewhere down the road.

’til next time!
<3 JL