My Transformation to a Plotter by Elise Hart Kipness

LUCY BURDETTE: It's always a pleasure to welcome my friend Elise Hart Kipness to the blog, this time with the third book in her Kate Green series. I love hearing about how authors evolve as they write and Elise has a fascinating story--she's gone from working from the seat of her pants to planning out her plot. Read on to read about this, and about her third Kate Green adventure, CLOSE CALL!

ELISE HART KIPNESS: One of the most common questions authors get is whether you are a plotter or a pantser. Are you someone who outlines before you begin your manuscript? Or are you someone who dives in not knowing where your story is going? Hence, flying by the seat of your pants—a pantster. I began very much as a pantser. And with each new book, I find myself becoming more and more of a plotter. 

For LIGHTS OUT, my debut novel, I definitely was, if we are going to lean into the analogy, someone who tried on many, many pairs of pants. I rewrote that manuscript a lot of times. From speaking with other author friends, that seems typical of first novels. There’s a lot to master with a first book—suspense, plot, characters, setting, on and on. And then, there is weaving those elements into a story so you aren’t presenting readers with blocks of information. Hence, the hefty wardrobe changes. For the sequel, DANGEROUS PLAY, I dipped my toe into plotting in a number of ways. I made sure I knew the ending. I thought through red herrings and clues (even color coding them). And I created storyboards on poster board, Excel spreadsheets and even tried Scrivener. Maybe I was a little bit more organized, but I still found myself somewhere between pantsing and plotting. I still deviated from my plot in different parts of the manuscript.  

CLOSE CALL, the third in the Kate Green series, was a different animal. I chose the Excel spreadsheet, making one column for chapters and the other for plot points. It wasn’t a traditional outline. I wrote a short paragraph for each chapter, highlighting how the plot point connected to the crime. I stuck to it for about eighty-percent of the story and kept the ending I had envisioned.

As I continue with my next book, I’m finding that the spreadsheet method is working even better this time around. I think part of my progression has to do with the natural learning curve we undertake as writers. I find I’m able to see the arc of my story more clearly in my brain. I am able to hold more information. It’s like I’ve finally memorized my multiplication tables so I can now attempt more complicated math without stopping to count on my fingers. 

Not to say that I don’t love discovering character traits and actions as I write. With only a short paragraph on my spreadsheet, I do find myself learning many new things about my story as I go. In fact, having my roadmap gives me a sense of confidence to lean into new twists and predicaments. 

So, my question to all the writers out there is this. Has your process evolved? Or do you stay with the same strategy you’ve always used? And to our wonderful readers, have you noticed an evolution in an author’s plotting as they publish more books?  

ABOUT THE BOOK: With a hard-won Emmy now gracing her mantel, sports reporter and former Olympian Kate Green turns her energy to the action unfolding in Flushing Meadows. Working on a feature for her weekly TV show, she spotlights two of today’s biggest female tennis stars: the sunny up-and-comer and the brash veteran. But the project goes sideways when one turns up missing.

 Following an interview with Kate, one player receives a sinister text with a disturbing photo of the other woman, bound and gagged. Kate calls on her estranged father, an NYPD detective, for help in launching a search. Although wary he’s hiding something, she’s not sure where else to turn.

Their investigation leads to the victim’s hometown—and a growing list of suspects. The kidnapper threatens to spill secrets that could destroy lives. Tangled up in a deadly web of deceit, Kate races to connect the dots and find the missing player…before it’s too late.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Elise Hart Kipness is a national TV sports reporter turned bestselling author of the Kate Green Series, which has been optioned by Universal Television and Mary J. Blige’s Blue Butterfly for TV development. 

The series has received widespread acclaim, earning recognition as a Men’s Journal Top 10 Book of the Year, Woman’s Day Must-Read Selection, and Scripps News Beach Read Pick. 

Like her protagonist, Elise chased marquee athletes at the US Open and stood under glaring lights at Madison Square Garden reporting for Fox Sports Network and WNBC-TV (New York). In addition to writing, Elise teachers crime fiction at Westport Writers’ Workshop.