Ronald T.
Troubadour
I'm wondering about the ratio of pantsers to outliners. Which do you belong to...and why?
I'm definitely a pantser. And here's why.
I am such a visual person that I can't write a word without first seeing the scene in my mind. That's even true when I'm writing about emotions. I have to see the facial expressions and body language of the characters, as well as feel the depth of their various emotions. Otherwise, it's like seeing something in black and white instead of in color. In other words, less than it could be.
My question to outliners is this:
How do you avoid the tendency to lose interest? I know that you don't, because I've read some fantastic epic fantasy by authors who say they are outliners. And yet, it seems so limiting.
I'll explain what I mean from a pantser's POV.
I write the movie I see in my mind. I can see each scene as a 360 degree moving picture. Of course, my characters have a particular goal in mind. But most of the time they have a number of options as to which route they might take to escape a problem or to achieve that goal. Sometimes they have only one avenue of escape, as it should be. But if I've written an outline, I'd imagine I'd be somewhat predisposed to making them follow that outline. So my question is...doesn't that limit the natural and creative flow of the story?
I ask because I don't know how a writer can know the immediate and emotional needs of the character in a particular scene, especially considering that they've structured a linear storyline back at the time they wrote the outline.
But what do I know? I'm just a hermit in the woods.
As always, my best to all of you.
I'm definitely a pantser. And here's why.
I am such a visual person that I can't write a word without first seeing the scene in my mind. That's even true when I'm writing about emotions. I have to see the facial expressions and body language of the characters, as well as feel the depth of their various emotions. Otherwise, it's like seeing something in black and white instead of in color. In other words, less than it could be.
My question to outliners is this:
How do you avoid the tendency to lose interest? I know that you don't, because I've read some fantastic epic fantasy by authors who say they are outliners. And yet, it seems so limiting.
I'll explain what I mean from a pantser's POV.
I write the movie I see in my mind. I can see each scene as a 360 degree moving picture. Of course, my characters have a particular goal in mind. But most of the time they have a number of options as to which route they might take to escape a problem or to achieve that goal. Sometimes they have only one avenue of escape, as it should be. But if I've written an outline, I'd imagine I'd be somewhat predisposed to making them follow that outline. So my question is...doesn't that limit the natural and creative flow of the story?
I ask because I don't know how a writer can know the immediate and emotional needs of the character in a particular scene, especially considering that they've structured a linear storyline back at the time they wrote the outline.
But what do I know? I'm just a hermit in the woods.
As always, my best to all of you.