Do you plot out your book?

I am afraid I am different. I always plot out the book, then do a chapter by chapter plot. I have to do this or my writing will run out of steam or I might forget an important event. Only when I have a sound plot and chapter structure do I then start writing. This has always worked for me.

 

I only plot out the Major Events in the areas, the twist and turns character backgrounds and a few complications that i might just add here and there.

the rest of it is depending on what i feel like at the time. that might not be the best way to do things, but ohwell

 

I tend to not plot out things but that's not a particularly good option fo NaNoWriMo. I'm plotting out my first speculative fiction piece and it's proving hard.
I've still got the month of October to tweak everything, but I'm going to attempt using the snowflake method so I need to get my history, characters and research in order.

 

I looked at the book that you've published on Amazon, and I think that for the kind of writing that you do, tightly controlled plots are a very, very good idea.

Congratulations on your publication, incidentally.

 

Yes, I do plot out my book or fanfictions. The only thing I plan out, however, is the plot points. I don't go through all of this detail, because too much detail is just as bad as too little detail. You have to keep in mind on what you want to do in your plot but keep it interesting and understanding.

 

I never plan anything in my novels. It's a spur of a moment if you will. But I may go back several times to redo it until i am satisfied.

 

"Snowflake Method" of plotting

For the uninformed, a quick perusal of the “Snow Flake Method” of plotting by Randy Ingermanson will reveal nothing new. In fact, his method has its roots as far back as the writings of Aristotle. It merely restates the most fundamental rules of plotting.

The one good think about his method is it encourages new writers to actively seek out and use a method of plotting to develop a story rather than just writing aimlessly and hoping that in the end you will turn out something that your readers will enjoy.

As I have said before in other post, you are going to plot whether you like it or not. You will do in either consciously or subconsciously, and the choice is yours. To do it subconsciously (or instinctual) I believe it is critical for you to have an understanding of the fundamentals of plot. Then if you create three-dimensional characters that you know inside out you can easily subconsciously create the conflict, rising action and resolution.

There are no real short cuts for the amateur, or professional. Only years of experience will allow the professional to produce a story that a reader will enjoy by instinctually plotting and without a single line of traditional plot having been put to paper.

 

I plot for the main parts, but I would never plot a book from start to finish. I know the main things that are going to happen in the book, if thats what you mean.

 

i never did plot it out, but for me, i think i might have to, cuz i never have writer's block, and after a month or so, im stuck dead. so i start over with a new story. i tried the snowflake method, and its actually quite good. but it might jsut be cuz i never even ploted before. i got good ideas when i wasnt plotting, but i couldnt motivate myself to finish writing it. i used up all my ideas, you know what i mean?

but like willow and most of the people in this topic said, you change on the way. i just need a rough frame, not like the whole story slammed in front of me...

 

I agree that you do not have to plot your story firmly, and perhaps not at all--at least consciously. The point I was trying to make is that even writers like Stephen King understand plot, and even at times use it. The idea is to have an understanding of the elements of plot so that even if you choose not to plot your story the development process may come more easily--if that makes sense.

Thanks for posting

More thoughts on plotting

https://www.writingforums.org/showpost.php?p=1038&postcount=1

Note: This is edited version of the original post.

 

I have a little notebook I cary in my back pocket. Any little idea I have I put into there. I then put numbered book marks into the little notebook that reference to specific entries in a specific order and usually that constructs a plot all by itself when I ask questions on how to connect the different ideas, thoughts, conversation, actions, and stuff like that.

I've tried to just write out a plot summary, but I find myself making the story up as I go when I do it and it has no substance. The story lacks moral and purpose. It becomes a robotic process to move from one point in the story to the next. It makes is an absolute BORE to write.

I've also tried to just write it and keep little ideas in my head as bench marks, but I hit writers block when that happens... which actually happened to me recently. Please help -- I have a threat about that right here in the "plot creation" section.

 

My weak point is structure, but I didn't write a detailed synopsis of my first two novels. As a result, "Frantic" took me years to finish. I didn't plot out "Crushed", my teen fiction novel which I wrote in a few months only. I did find that while I was writing each book, I was developing new ideas all the time. However, my publisher has now asked me to write a detailed synopsis of my new novel, chapter by chapter. What a horrible job! I suspect that writing a detailed synopsis before starting a book, tends to stifle one's creativity. And, I know I shall deviate from my pre-ordained plot when I start writing the book. Heh heh!

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Frances Lynn is a professional writer and journalist. Her two novels, "Frantic" and "Crushed" are published by Eiworth Publishing at http://yourbookstore.eiworth.se/. Her Frantic World blog can be read at http://myfranticworld.blogspot.com/. Her personal website is http://franceslynn.org

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when i was younger (that is when i was in high school) i tended to just write my stories, i wouldnt have any plotting out of the story done whatsoever. I'd know what i wanted my story to be about and few scenes i knew i wanted in there, but nothing else was planned....

then a few years ago i did an entire plan of my story, right down to plants grew near a waterfall that was in the story for five seconds.

and how do i write now. i mix a little of both. i do a detailed outline, with a writing program i have, that plots out what i want ot happen in each chapter that helps me keep the story on track, but then what actually goes into the chapters happens when i type, i dont actually plan out the paragraphs in advance they just come to me when i sit down to write them. i still have an idea of where i want things to go and what scenes i really think i need in the story, but most of it is just flow that happens.

i find that way of writing is the easiest for me.

xXLadyFrostXx

 

I'm a post-it writer haha. I literally have notebooks full of post-its that I number as i write on them and then go from those as my notes when I do more structured writing. As far as plot I tend to go with the stroy as it comes to me. I've been wrking on one that I wrote the ending first and worked from there as different elements developed.

 

The book that im writing right now, i have no idea how it's going to end. Im not even shure how im going to end each sentence. Thats the way i do a lot of things.

The one major drawback to it that i can see is that there arn't as many amazing twists. Theres no point in the story where a read will go, oh snap, he's that guy from that place with that thing. and get that uncontrolable smile of excitement that something awsome just happened.

In my storie there arnt any of those moments.

 

Christopher Paolini spent two years plotting his books - that, is evident, yet for him it didn't affect the 'flow' of it.

Shaun Hutson, on the other hand - and King, apparently - don't. Hutson is my favourite author so i'd have to say not planning the stories is the favoured approach.

 

I'd love to say I can just write on a whim and that I just let the words flow, but that's just not possible for me. I'm still in the plotting stage of trying to write my first novel. You see, I had the idea floating about my head for over a year the basic ideas, and there's been plenty of times I try to write chapter one on a whim. The problem is, I just can't do it. I can't do the start because I don't know how I'm going to make it lead to the middle, because I don't know how I'm going to do the middle.

To put it simply, I had writer's block on the first chapter.

Now that I'm making an outline, I now know the direction I want my story to go, and I have I good idea of what my characters will do in the chapters to come. It also helped me to find the true identity in my characters and I can understand a tiny bit more of how they think, feel, and act.

I really need to finish the outline come to think of it...

http://www.anti-shurtugal.com/outlines.htm

I love that article.

 

I plot vaguely, jot down some things I want to happen so I have a vague idea of what I am dong, then I write.. I think if you edit and rewrite well, then it doesn't affect flow.

 

Whenever I do outlines, my stories fail. Whenever I just write off the top of my head, they turn out fine.

Basically what I do is I get an idea. Then I throw my idea upon some victims- er, I talk to my friends- and get some ideas about what should happen. Then I get a very hazy outline in my head, consisting only of characters, locations, and main ideas of the plot. Than I write and let all the nasty little details pour out on their own.

 

The first novel I wrote I had planned it precisely for about a month. I knew where the story was going and when the main events would happen. I even had the exact events that would occur under each sub-chapter in every chapter. DON'T DO THIS! It kills any enjoyment you have as a writer because you know what will happen.

However, I found that as I wrote I tended to lean away from my focus and that's when everything started getting better. In the end I had a story that was mostly planned with a little bit of improv. - and those were the best parts.

The novel I'm writing now has absolutely no main outline and it's coming along great.

 

I usually start for an overll subject of my book, then I make characters, then there's that long period where I'm just bored to death and hesitating to begin writing, and that gives me time to plan some of the plots... and I like alot of what I think up, even if it's not in order or anything.

In any case, if you're writing something serious, I think it's very important that you have a general idea what you're story is going to be like, but certainly don't plan it, that destroys all the fun of creating a story, doesn't it? Planning every, chapter by chapter. I might even go as far as explaining what happens for every chapter, but I'd never plan out the dialogue and every single plot in the story. If not, then just let your mind run free.

 

some people plan it to the sentence (JK Rowling), others can do a novel straight off. What i am doing with my current idea is that I got the idea, got the exactly what will happen on the last line, then figured huge points in the middle then get an opening line. kinda flows out like that. Although the ending has kinda been pushed into the middle and a new ending has arisen. I just need to start it now. (as if that's ever gonna happen.)

 

I'm big on plot but only in the broader sense. I have a plot for the overall story, and then I decide what events in the story ensure plot progression. I've written scenes for my book that I really like, but edited out because they don't help the story along.

For instance, I decide that the best event for plot progression is a fight. So that's what happens in the next chapter. Maybe after that some character development is what's called for, so that goes into the chapter after next. I know what's going to happen several chapters in advance.

I also make sure that there is consistent theme in my story. I know what the book is about. I know what abstract ideas I want to portray, so I decide what plot tools will help me show them.

Any story I write or read must have direction. I keep a continuity log for my book. "This event happened back in chapter # and it's the impetus for that event in chapter ##." I can't read anything that lacks direction. In order for me to enjoy any fiction it must have conflict and direction.

 

What you do - whether you write an outline beforehand or just write on a whim - just depends on your preference. In my case, I favor writing on a whim (for the most part, at least). I figure out the general plotline on a piece of notebook paper (main characters, potential names of supporting characters... basically everything that I might forget if I try to commit it to memory). But otherwise, I leave everything else to fate. I pick out a description for a character based upon his/her personality (example: glasses for someone who is very well literate), but I don't have a very good idea how they'll look beforehand. I just let everything flow as I write, let the characters sort of tell me the story (if you know what I mean).