Planners? Or not?

Shon

I'm just interested to know, how many of us are planners, and how many just go for it?

Im a planner, definitely. If I wasn't, I think my writing would just wander aimlessly, in circles and off the page, not making a lot of sense! I'm currently writing character profiles for all of my main characters, and have pages of chapter summaries, subplots, main events and their order, etc.

I think non-planners are very brave!

Phots Moll

Planner for novels and articles. With short stories I tend to just go for it.

Waylander

I plan a very rough stream of events I want to happen in each writing session. Usually takes about 5 mins to think it up. Then I just develop the idea for the scene as I go along. I find it a refreshing release to "write in the moment".

Carol

I have a basic plan for the whole thing, character bios etc for longer length stuff, and find the bits in-between develop or expand as I write.
Short stories I have an idea and know a few bits about my lead character and write from that.

C2

When I first started to write, I just wrote, then when I sent my stories away for critique I had a honest reply and realised planning and a lot more though was required, and I stopped just plonking down what came into my head. My last critique proved the point, that for me, planning was essential, I had a more positive response and was told my story was more rich and rounded, to be told that really gave my confidence a boost. I know planning isn't for all but I now know it is the way for me.

heather

I don't ever deliberately plan my stories. Sometimes I have an idea that I expand very roughly in note form before I write the story, but that's usually because I haven't got time to write it there and then and don't want to forget what's in my head.
However, my stories are not usually very long. When I wrote my novel I had a list of 'scenes' that were going to be in each chapter that I added to and fleshed out as I wrote. It ended up not very good anyway, so whether just pantsing it would have been better we will never know!

Shon

Thanks for the replies folks. It's interesting to see what works for other people. At the rate I'm going, the planning is going to take longer than actually writing the novel!

C2

...pantsing it, ) I like that.

SilverLinings

You can over plan. I'm a planner, I like to have an idea of what I am 'pitching'. By which I mean the overall flow of things, a leads to b, it must pass m, which eventually leads to x, y and z.
Everything else, you know has to be there, just not to well defined. Over thinking a plot is better known as procrastination

snailmale

I fit brief periods of writing in among long bouts of procrastination, nothing is planned

Liz

I research very thoroughly. and scribble a lot, thinking round ideas. And quite often what i want to say flows out after a few days of this without having been consciously planned.

But actually, it has been planned, my mind has been at work at night and in the day and without realising it has encompasses the nitty gritty. All I need do is polish.

And I write poetry.

I suspect that some of those that don't think they plan that much have minds like mine.

Shon

I can't imagine not planning, but I do wonder if I over think it too much. I've done a lot of research on the subject of this novel, which I would expect to need for anything like this, but I also have sheets and sheets of notes on character bios, chapter by chapter plans, event notes and sequences, character/plot arcs, character development, plot development, sub plots etc, as well as notes on the structure/tense/pov etc. I'm not sure how much of it will even be useful, but I don't think I could comfortably start writing without having it all I'm black and white to refer to.

For those of you who don't like to plan too much, what would you consider as the bare minimum of planning you need? And those of you that like to plan - how much is too much?

Onlinegenie

Both. I'm currently putting the finishing touches to a comedy play (how I've dreamed of being able to say that!) which I planned in a certain amount of detail, with just one exception - how am I going to end it?

I just got on with writing it, full of confidence that I would think of an ending eventually - fortunately I was right. Meanwhile, I have added lots of things to it as new situations or jokes occurred to me.

Tiny Nell

Wow - that's a lot of planning, Shon (and I'm a prolific listmaker)!

NOVELS
In a notebook:
I make brief chapter outlines and jot down a few relevant notes regarding character background only if the reader needs to know that information. I have already created the protagonist/s in my head so don't need visual markers about them to inform myself.

As I write, I add extra detail to my notes regarding events/objects/dialogue which will have impact later in the book.

Once each chapter is complete, I write one sentence to sum it up so that if I have to find something, I know where it is.

On the computer:
I use the highlighting facility in Word to draw my attention to details which need to be referred back to.

I use red font to ask myself questions at various points.

SHORT STORIES
I just steam ahead from start to finish and then edit at the end.

Shon

Hmmm. Maybe I am over-planning. I'll stick with this now that I've started, and if it turns out to be good, and I write another, I might try with less planning and see how it goes.

Carol

It's worth trying different methods. You will find what works for you fairly quickly.

Last year I tried pantsing and it drove me crazy, just couldn't work that way. Had to stop and go back to doing my plan and other info. Once I did that I had no problem.

SneakyOregano

I like to plan. But I know they aren't set in stone. And if I do go off the original plan, I definitely plan before editing, so I know what to do!