Friday, October 18, 2019

My Kingdom for a Plot!


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RHYS BOWEN:  Are you a plotter of a Pantser? This is one of the great divides of mysterydom. All writers are either one or the other. Plotters look at Pantsers in horror and disbelief. How can you write without knowing where you are headed? As a Pantser myself I realize that every writer has to decide what works for him or her. Or you can be a hybrid, like today's guest. Here's Warren Easley to tell you about it:

 My Kingdom for a Plot!
      by Warren Easley

     To paraphrase one of Shakespeare’s kings—you know, the one they found under a parking lot in Leicester a few years back—A plot, a plot!  My kingdom for a plot!  I love to write, always have.  Give me a scene, any scene, and I’ll flesh it out for you.  Give me two people caught in a face to face encounter, and I’ll capture their dialogue.  Show me a setting, and I’ll bring it alive, replete with sights, sounds, smells and touch.  But put all the elements of a novel together in a coherent, believable plot?  That’s a task that gives me pause.

     Plotting a mystery, you might argue, is easier than plotting, say, literary fiction.  After all, there are some pretty clear rules in the mystery genre.  For example, unless you’re a Louise Penny or a James Lee Burke, you had better kill someone off in the first fifty pages of your book, since the patience of your readers (and publisher) is notoriously short.  And you also need to build-in an event that signals the approaching climax, and ensure that, in fact, you end with a bang, not a whimper.  This leaves the “slushy middle”, which must never be slushy, so all manner of clever devices should be inserted to not only drive the plot but keep the pace brisk, the tone engaging. 

     Easy, you say?

     One school of thought says outlining is the answer. What we have here is a need for discipline, we’re told.  Put your mind to it, and the plot will seamlessly unfold in an orderly sequence.  This group of writers proudly refer to themselves as Outliners.  I tried outlining in my early writing without much success.  The experience was a little like driving in a dense fog.  I could see a small distance ahead and very little from side to side.  Sure, I could get something down on paper, but after a short burst of writing, the outline invariably needed rewriting.  Those pesky, unruly characters of mine kept asserting themselves in ways I hadn’t anticipated.

The other school of thought says that the plot is an organic element that must be allowed to evolve as the story progresses.  In other words, the plot builds outwardly, informed primarily by what has already been written.  Enter the Pantsers, an equally proud group that flies by the seat of its pants, metaphorically speaking.  This laissez-faire approach may sound appealing, especially to those like me who dislike planning ahead.  

But the other side of that coin is that the story can easily bob and weave itself into chaos, a kind of literary proof of the law of entropy.  And I can tell you from experience, there is nothing more painful than backing out of a corner into which you have written yourself.  It invariably involves trashing a lot of good work.

     All well and good, you say, but what drives the plot for you pantsers?  Surely there are animating forces.  

For me, two things are crucial at the outset of a new book.

  First, I need an idea or situation that seems big enough to hang 100,000 words on.  For example, in the seventh book in the series, No Way to Die, I became interested in the fact that the state of Oregon allows juveniles to be tried as adults for capital crimes.  What would happen, I asked myself, if my protagonist, Cal Claxton, agreed to help a young man serving a life prison term for having been convicted of murder at age sixteen?  After all, Cal is drawn to cases involving the most vulnerable among us.  I was at once intrigued and disturbed by this practice—a good sign that the energy would be there to write a book about it.
    
The second crucial element for me is to define the principle characters who will populate the story.  I need to know their names, what they look like, what they do, and most importantly, what motivates them.  This doesn’t come all at once, but the sooner I get a handle on these rascals, the better the story goes.  For example, in No Way to Die, I envisioned the kid, a young free spirit who loved to surf the Oregon coast, his grandmother, an indie bookstore owner and committed environmental activist, the kid’s power broker stepdad, a jailhouse snitch, and his girlfriend.  I should mention that Cal’s daughter, Claire, joins him for what I thought would be a cameo, but she insisted on staying in the book.  I didn’t realize how headstrong she was!

     So, armed with a big idea and a pantheon of characters, I let the story evolve.  Did I know at the outset how or even whether Cal would be able to help the young surfer?  I did not.  But I trusted that my characters would reveal the story to me.
    
Of course, authors should adopt a strategy for plotting a novel that works best for them.  The truth is, I land somewhere between the extremes of rigid outlining and unfettered evolution, although I admit to being a Pantser most of the time.  I didn’t plan on using a hybrid strategy.  It turned out that was the only way I could get a book written and keep my sanity.

     Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to figure out how the book I’m currently writing is going to end…

REDS: So how about you, reds and readers? Writers, which camp are you in? Readers, can you imagine writing a book--would you use an outline? Or just--go for it?




Warren C. Easley is the author of the Cal Claxton Oregon Mysteries published by Poisoned Pen Press/Sourcebooks. Coming in October is book 7, No Way to Die.



 When nothing is as it seems, can the truth survive?
Attorney Cal Claxton, now well-established in his Oregon law practice after breaking off his career as a high-powered LA prosecutor, just wants to go fishing with his daughter, Claire, and he knows the best place —the coastal area south of Coos Bay. But their vacation takes a dark turn with the discovery of a body in the river.
As an investigation is launched into the suspicious death, Cal and Claire find themselves drawn into the life of the local bookshop owner and vocal environmental activist, whose grandson was convicted for murder at age sixteen. She believes he was wrongly accused and convinces Cal to reexamine the case. Together, Cal and Claire dig deep into the secrets and crumbling alliances that form the foundation of this small coastal community, and what they find could spell doom for them both...
About the Author:
Formerly a research scientist and international business executive, WARREN C. EASLEY lives in Oregon where he writes fiction, tutors GED students, fly-fishes and skis. Easley is the author of the Cal Claxton Oregon Mysteries. He received a Kay Snow National Award for fiction in 2012 and was named the Northwest’s Up and Coming Author in 2017, both honors bestowed by Willamette Writers.

Warreneasley.com


63 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your newest book, Warren. I think the idea of trying juveniles as adults for capital crimes would make quite an intriguing story and I’m looking forward to reading your book.

    As for outlining or just writing, I’m horrible at outlining so I’m certain I’d be in the “just go for it” camp . . . .

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, Joan. E L Doctorow said writing is like driving at night. You can only see as far as your headlights, but if you keep going you’ll get there...good luck!

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  2. I think I would need to outline. But boy, would the desire to just start writing and see where things lead by tempting. I'm lazy like that.

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    1. Hi Mark, if you have a big idea and your characters in mind, give it a whirl!

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  3. I'm a pantser by nature but sometimes plotting ahead a little as I'm writing can really help. And my task next week is to write the dreaded synopsis for a new book, which my editor requires. And which is my LEAST favorite part of being an author. He'd like ten single spaced pages. All he's ever gotten is five - double spaced. I have to admit, when I'm stuck in the middle of writing that book this winter, I'll remember the synopsis, go give it a look, and say to myself, "Oh, that's a good idea. Let's do that." ;^) So I'm a hybrid, like Warren.

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    1. Oh I hate those too Edith--how can write ten pages about what happened if you have no idea? John used to tell me to look at the synopsis when I was stuck. I would be shocked to see how little was in it! So congrats on your good ideas:)

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    2. Hi Edith, a synopsis is just an outline in disguise! I’m glad that it serves a purpose. One trick I’ve resorted to is writing down scenes on 3X5 cards, trying to capture the things I thought could happen in the book and then put them in order for a crude outline...

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    3. Warren I have head or that note card system--and some people love it! Whatever works, right?

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    4. Yes, Hank. It allows you to get the top of mind scenes down, not all of which ever get written, and gives some semblance of structure. I don't always use it, just when desperation sets in...

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  4. Congrats on the new book Warren. I loved this piece and I think that I'd fall into your camp of having a plot idea and defined characters. Then letting the story go on it's merry way as I write it.

    I have been toying with an idea of a story for a number of years and really only had the name of my main character and a very early idea for a title that I ripped off from a song by a Finnish symphonic metal band.

    The idea I had for the story was barely embryonic, but then I attended a book signing with Hank Phillippi Ryan and Steven Cooper. Their talk gave me a small push in terms of developing some part of the story.

    And showing that this is a bit of coincidental timing, I had a dream last night that gave me an entirely new character for the book and change the potential direction of the story. I actually pulled out a notebook when I got up this morning to write down what I remembered from the dream.

    It was actually quite a kick to have that kind of experience, if I'm being honest.

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    1. Wow Jay! That is what every author hopes for! Go for it!

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    2. wow Jay, maybe the story is taking shape! keep that notebook handy...

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    3. Thanks Hank, Lucy and Edith. I wish life came with a fast forward button so I could just have the idea, then get to the publication part. But that monstrous chasm of work in between just sits there waiting...and taunting.

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    4. Jay, start that book today! I will often go to sleep at night thinking about the scene I’m working on. I don’t dream about it, but I’ll often wake up with a good idea for how to strengthen it. Good luck!

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    5. Thanks Warren! I'm still puzzling out ideas for various plot points but I do think I finally have an opening sentence.

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    6. The fates are whispering to you...

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  5. I have little to add to the outliner/pantser discussion, but I think others will chuckle as I did when I read the description of Cal Claxton as an Oregon lawyer and immediately wondered "Hey, I wonder if he knows Barbara Holloway!" Proof, I guess, that we begin to think of the fictional characters we love as very real people.

    Also, Warren, your book sounded so good to me that I have already checked out the local library's website and confirmed that they do, in fact, have the full series. Sounds to me like a great one to begin at the beginning. I'm looking forward to it!

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    1. Hi Susan, no Cal and Barbara’s paths have not crossed! I hope you enjoy the series. You’ll see that one of the characters is the Oregon setting, from the wine country to Portland to the high desert to the coast...I love this place.

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  6. I completely agree with the way you talk about plotting... and what kind of 'idea' it takes to get going. And like you, I usually only *think* I know how it's going to end.

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    1. Hi Hallie, so great to hear from you! Your lectures at Willamette Writers have been a great inspiration to me. Thank you! It’s hard to think about a story without sending the ending, but I’m always hoping a good twist will present itself. It’s hard to pre-plan a good twist.

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  7. I'm definitely a pantser. Just ask my dissertation advisor: 'Whoa! Where'd all this come from ?' he asked upon reaching the end of my diss. Then came the rewrite, to insert the elements I'd been building in my mind. :-)

    In terms of any fiction I've written, I often go back after several chapters (when I'm stuck in that middle part) and roughly outline what I've already done. And usually, this gives me a way forward into the next few chapters or even to the ending.

    And as Susan noted, Cal brought to mind one of my favorite series--looks like I'll be heading back to Oregon soon as I can get my hands on the first of your series, Warren!

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    1. Thanks, FChurch. I like your method of getting unstuck! Outlining after the fact! My best method of getting unstuck is to go for long walks, the longer the better. The ideas start to flow after mile three or four, when my monkey mind has finally stopped chattering and I’m in a more zen state...

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  8. Congrats on the book, Warren.

    After a few books, I think I've landed in the hybrid camp. I need the main idea, I need to know who died, why, and who did it. I might have a few connected ideas. But from there, if I try to get into a firm outline, well, it falls apart.

    Especially since, like you and Hallie, I generally only *think* I know whodunit and the end. I have yet to write a book where the villain doesn't change at least once, and usually twice by the time I'm done.

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    1. Liz, we’re pretty close method-wise. Like you, I’m an equal opportunity writer—any of my characters can be the bad guy...

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  9. I haven't written very much, other than in my head. With my latest idea I know what will happen and how it will end but I cannot think of a way to make the male character not so much of an idiot! Much more thinking required. Or maybe it will come to me in a dream.

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    1. Hi Judi, maybe the book is about this idiot male character! Maybe he blunders through, somehow...keep writing.

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  10. I guess I'm in the hybrid camp as well. I'm writing my fifth Nikki Latrelle novel now. I've picked the place, Santa Anita Racetrack, the main crook, the under crooks, and the crime. I also have an idea for the ending, something I truly need to envision. An exciting end is something that motivates me and drives me through the middle. I usually start with something like Donald Maass's workbook pages which forces me to dig into each character's motivations, wants and fears. As I write, I keep a little file called "Plot, chapter by chapter," where one or two sentences describes what happens in each chapter. Every so often I stop writing, study the chapter by chapter list and then decide where I need to go next. I always am afraid and reluctant to do this, but once I do, and get that wonderful "aha" of course this is what needs to happen next, I rush forward with new enthusiasm and do what my writing mentor told me years ago, "Keep Going!"

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    1. Hi Sasscer Hill, I think you method is superb! I’m green with envy. I’m always waiting anxiously for the ending to come for me, and I try to go for something pretty dramatic. And you’re right—a good vision of the ending can drive you through the slushy middle. Good luck!

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    2. EXACTLY. It's just math. Addition. Keep going!

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  11. Hi, Warren, and congrats on the book! It sounds terrific, and very eye-catching cover, too. I say that I'm a plotter, but reading your post, I think that in reality I'm more of a hybrid. I do start a book with the what-who-where-why-how. I know the main characters and story thread, and more or less how I want the book to end. Then I outline three or four chapters at a time. But I can't do more, because by the time I get through those chapters, the story will have shifted. And sometimes, even though I know where things should end, I have no earthly idea how I'm going to get there until I write through it!

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    1. Hi Deborah, like you, I can sometimes glimpse a few chapters ahead. When this happens, my productivity sky rockets! Then I usually muddle around for a while to get a handle on what comes next. I have a big whiteboard and I do a lot of sketching and diagraming since I’m visually inclined. Good luck on your project!

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  12. This reader would definitely be Pantser, just start and see where I end up. The only reason I'm so sure of my choice is that I crochet. I find yarn and buy it, as many textile people do, and then I decide what I'm stitch I'm going to use to make the scarf or blanket. I can follow patterns created by others but seem to wonder off if I feel there needs to be a little more. If course, the no plan, Pantser person does of have to go back for more yarn to finish that blanket and then there are those leftovers, just sitting there, begging me to take up my hooks for something new.

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    1. Hi Deana, your crocheting sounds eerily like my writing! Maybe I should take it up...? And crocheting an entire blanket sounds a lot like producing a 90,000 word manuscript...😄

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  13. Shalom Reds and fans. I wrote yesterday or the day before that I don’t read much from the True Crimes genre. I completely forgot about the Podcast Criminal. When I saw Oregon in this morning’s blog, I remembered one episode which I thought was about either Oregon or Washington State. It was episode 95. I found this preface to the show in the notes. “Not long into his job as prison superintendent, Frank Thompson was asked to write the manual on lethal injection for the state of Oregon. Capital punishment had not been implemented in more than 30 years, and no one knew how to do it. Frank had to travel around the country learning how other states do it, and he asked his staff to practice.”

    I listen to Criminal whenever a new episode comes out. Its host, Phoebe Judge is a marvelous storyteller. Having a terrible memory, I forget them almost as soon as I listen to them, but this one I remembered. Frank Thompson went on to oversee the administration of the only two executions in Oregon in a very long time. He retired in 2010, and now is an advocate of eliminating the death penalty in that state and around the country. This episode is just less than 30 minutes and is worth a listen.

    I don’t often write but I do sometimes speak extemporaneously. If I don’t have an outline in my head, I will almost certainly forget a key point and what I was trying to say will be lost.

    I have a story in my head that I’ve been wanting to write as a short story for many years. It’s the retelling of a story from the Bible, so the outline is already written for me. However, getting it on to paper or into my laptop still seems very daunting, which I guess is why I don’t finish it.

    I have a special childhood friend who lives in Oregon and I often think of visiting. We grew up in Rockaway in New York City and I see on maps that there is a Rockaway on the other coast.

    Warren, I will keep my eye out for Cal Claxton.

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    1. Hello David, yes there is a Rockaway in Oregon. It’s a great little beach town. When I’m speaking, I always use an outline to keep me organized!
      Gov. Kitzhaber put a moratorium on the death penalty and the current governor is maintaining it. I’m glad to see this. I read “Surviving Justice” as part of my research for No Way to Die. The book chronicles the lives of people who have been exonerated after being convicted of murder and other major crimes. Our justice system is in need of reform...

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  14. Warren, welcome to Jungle Reds abd congratulations on your new book in October.

    Not sure which camp I am in. For me as a reader, it is being able to follow the story and recognize the characters. I cannot recall which authors of which novels I have read, which were stories where I confused two characters or could not follow the story. Perhaps it was the editing or the writing? Who knows?

    Reading this post reminded me of an article that I read by Charles Finch (author of the Lenox mysteries) about writing.

    When I was a young child, I would write stories and I made up as I wrote. Maybe that is called "panster" ?

    Diana

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  15. Thank you Diana, I think as kids we are all Pantsers! The stories just bubble out of us spontaneously. Maybe I’m trying to recapture that freedom with the way I write now. That’s an interesting perspective I hadn’t thought of. Thanks for that!

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  16. Good Morning Warren: I can say that because I am still on OR time even tho I am sitting in the opposite corner from OR. I Love mysteries set in my old stomping grounds. Thank you for creating Cal; I just ordered 2 copies of the series.

    I am still a wannabe writer.. however I envision myself as a pantzer delving into research, getting lost in the info forest, and peeking out years later thinking what book?

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    1. Thanks, Coralee, I take it you are in Vermont or thereabouts. Yes, Oregon is a character in the Cal Claxton mysteries. I was heavily influenced by James Lee Burke's Dave Robicheaux series, where Burke brings the gulf coast alive! Hope you enjoy the books, and go ahead--write your own!

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  17. Plotter here! One of my writing pals is a pantser and we both think the other is crazy! LOL. Congrats on the book release, Warren! It looks fantastic.

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    1. Thank you, Jenn! Good luck with your book. I envy you outliners. It all so orderly! Hope you enjoy No Way to Die...

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  18. Warren, congratulations on No Way to Die. It sounds like a great read, and my interest is piqued at the issue of teens convicted as adults. I admit that my mind is not settled on that issue, so this book would be an excellent read for me. In fact, I love the idea of the Oregon setting, so I will be checking out the series.

    I'm not sure if I'd be a punster or a plotter in writing fiction, but I think I'd lean towards plotter. When I worked with students on writing, I tended to emphasize organization of thoughts and outlining certain pieces. In writing reviews, I usually follow a simple pattern of first talking about the book and author and her/his writing in general, then a highlighting of the action without spoilers, and then a wrap-up paragraph extolling the value of the book and encouragement to read it.

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    1. Hi Kathy, Your review plan sounds excellent. I'm sure you would make an excellent outliner/plotter. Yes, the trying of of juveniles really caught my eye. It's a complex question of course. Some of the crimes are heinous. The science says teens brains aren't fully formed, they have a proclivity for risk taking, and they are easily manipulated once they are arrested. I challenged myself to find my way through this forest of conflicting ideas and emotions...Hope you enjoy the series!

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  19. Hi Warrren! So glad you're here. I'm a reader so I don't have to worry about the issue at all. However, back in junior high or high school, I had English teachers who insisted one had to have a detailed outline before one wrote a paper. That didn't sit well with me. I would write the paper and then write my outline before turning them both in. I think now I would make a few notes and go from there.

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    1. Hi Pat, writing the outline after the piece...That's hilarious! You are definitely a pantser. I'm thinking that when we're young, the stories kind of spring out of us. Maybe all that outlining that was drummed into us was not a good thing. At least for me, it wasn't, and you as well. Happy reading!

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    2. DEFINITELY! I'm an outline-second person, too!

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  20. Definitely a plotter! I belonged to the national committee of a women's organization for which I often had to make presentations. Not only did I write every word, I also practiced each presentation at least 4 or 5 times in order to keep it short and also to emphasize the parts of it I felt were most important. My friends would tease me about it, but that is how my brain functions. Writing a novel has to be a lot of hard work!
    Warren, I love Oregon and now your books are now on my TBR list.

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    1. Hi Judy, interestingly, I'm very outline oriented when it comes to public speaking! I've learned to not to leave my comments to chance. If you love Oregon, you'll be happy to know that the state in all its beauty and uniqueness is a key character in the series. Happy reading!

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  21. Hey, Warren, looks like you're having a busy day, with lots of great comments and perspectives! I totally get the character-driven plots, and personally feel that's what makes writing fiction fun. But I wonder: What's the hardest thing for you to NOT do when you're writing? (Lissa)

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    1. Hi Lissa, Wow, that's a question that made me think! Probably the hardest thing for me is to quit tinkering with the completed portion of the draft and forge ahead. Anne Lamott says "Get the shitty first draft down" and she's right. The draft has to be at a certain quality level before I continue, but sometimes I set the bar too high, which slows the process down. Thanks for stopping by, old friend who read the first one...

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    2. I only allow myself to go back a little each day. I always say: advance the story, advance the story--since it's SO tempting to "fix."

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    3. I do the same, but there's this little voice that, at times, says, 'you can't go forward because that issue in the last chapter was never fully resolved...

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  22. Hi, Warren: Very well said. I think, for a lot of writers, hybrid is the method that develops. I am a pantser for sure, and not by choices. How lovely to sit down with a few hours of writing time and start with, "Today I do II,v, 1-3." Very efficient. Ha, ha, ha. Usually it's more like staring at the screen and muttering "What the heck needs to happen now?" Funny thing is that in real life, I am a calendar keeper, list writer, file organizer, but as soon as I start creating a book outline, either I 1. get excited and want to go write it or 2. get bored and need to go write it. Writing it is how I find out what I think and has been my entire life. Talk further in Dallas?

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  23. PS Toni Morrison said (I heard her!) she does not have her characters all in mind when she starts. She thinks about what has to happen and asks herself, "Now what kind of a person would do that?" I find that very encouraging.If even she doesn't always know...?

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  24. Hi Triss, yeah, wouldn't it be nice to just pull up the old outline and start typing! I've discovered that the region of my brain that writes the fiction is quite distinct from the region that, say, handles any public speaking. For the latter, I'm very anal, always writing out then OUTLINING what I'm going to say. By all means, let's chat in Dallas...

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  25. FINALLY HOME!! And reading all these now...

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  26. Love that phrase "my kingdom for a plot"

    Diana

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  27. I create what I call a fluid outline, which allows for changes and diversions, but lays out a ton of stuff. It makes me kind of nuts when people call pantsing "organic," implying that outlining isn't. Outlining is also organic - you're just discovering at a different point in the process. A piece I wrote about this very issue will be in the upcoming SoCalMWA newsletter!

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    1. Hi Ellen, I think the approach we select is locked in by the way our brains operate. I bought a couple of really good books on how to outline back in the day but to no avail...whatever works.

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