Hello! I can’t believe it’s already my day to post on Love Bytes. I can’t hold on to the PC for long, today, as Lou Hoffmann (who might also be me) needs to focus on a YA fantasy write—book 4 in The Sun Child Chronicles. Working on that got her (and so, also, me) to thinking about plotting versus pantsing.
Actually both of us Lou’s plot like crazy. But when we write, we end up flying by the seat of our characters’ pants, so I’ve decided to call us plotting pantsers.
To clarify: plotting is essential for a number of reasons. Probably most important, it helps to have an idea what story you’re writing before you start typing. Also, it gets the wheels turning on what might make the story more intriguing, and at the same time gives you the first inklings of what might not work, forcing you to solve some problems—or at least start working on them—early on. And, in a situation where you need to let a publisher know ahead of time what’s on the agenda, they want to know the plot (of course).
But oh, the glory of pantsing once that outline is done. Sure, sometimes it turns out the plot is a bit twisted or diverted from the original plan, but mostly it just gets a lot richer. It’s all about a different kind of brainwork, you see. When you’re working out a plot it’s almost like math. Everything has to add up, and you can literally graph out a plot to make a shape. But for me, when I get inside the story, if I let my characters drive, it’s a journey of wonder and emotion and discovery. Here’s where I get to truly know the character, see not what moves them or scares them—which I’ve already decided when plotting—but why it does, and how that changes the story. Inside the writing, that’s when the characters tell me where the true story lies, the one that lies obscured between the plotlines.
And it turns out the characters lives have so many more little twists and turns, and they have days I couldn’t have imagined when calculating trajectories to create a plot. And those days and the places they take the characters need to be in the book, sometimes at least. They see sights I’ve never seen, they feel the touch of the wind and sand between their toes, and somehow, though I know how those things feel, they feel different when my character experiences them.
Pantsing inside the plot is how you end up making words on pages or screens into lives for readers to dive into. It’s the difference between plain white bread and enriched whole grain bread with seeds and nuts toasted and spread with butter and jam.
So, yeah. Lou Hoffmann and Lou Sylvre will forever remain the plotting pantser twins. 😊
Here’s a little pantsy plot-telling from the Sylvre half of the duo, from an as yet uncontracted novel: A Shot of Courage:
“Okay, I owe you an explanation. The reason I want you to go tomorrow is for your safety.”
“What the hell do you mean by that?” Jackie’s fears bubbled over into anger at that confusing and probably condescending statement, and he didn’t care that his ire came across clearly in his voice.
Brian took a deep breath and looked into the distance. “I didn’t want to tell you things had gotten a little more dangerous, but I see that if I don’t explain, we’re going to part on less than good terms.” He turned to meet Jackie’s eyes. “I can’t have that.”
“Dangerous?”
“Someone broke into the apartment last night, while I was gone. You slept through it. Also last night, someone connected to the Espen case was killed. Luki suggested you leave town—for safety, so you won’t be alone and unable to defend yourself—and I agree.”
“What if I decide I don’t want to go?”
Brian rolled his eyes, shook his head, and sighed heavily. “Jackie, let’s not have this argument.”
“Fuck you,” Jackie said. He watched hurt and frustration cross Brian’s features, but in truth, Jackie panicked at his own words. He felt as if he’d just frayed his last lifeline, and he was dangling. Not knowing what else to do, he used the surge of adrenaline that rushed in on the heels of fear to propel himself forward in his chair.He kept at it until a long hill made it almost impossible for him to move forward.
Brian stepped behind his chair. “Let go of the rims, love” he said. “I’ve got you from here.”
Why that should make him feel like crying Jackie had no idea. He let Brian push, but he didn’t cry. About a mile from the car, the trail leveled out into an open area. The path widened momentarily to a circular turnaround, and then forked in three directions. Jackie took hold of the pushrims again, and propelled himself slowly as Brian, slightly winded from pushing him uphill, walked alongside.
The wind whipped by in a strong gust, and it picked up a bag someone had littered, thin red plastic that ballooned and flattened and careened and skidded over the rough roadway.
“That’s how I feel.” Jackie said, speaking quietly at first, but his voicing rising as he continued.
“Like Los Angeles and its damned mean wind blows me all the fuck over the place. Picks me up and slams me down. I hate Los Angeles, Brian. I’m going to come back here for you, and for school. But I hope someday….” He let the words trail away, spent, tired of feeling angry, but often unable to keep the seditious emotion from boiling up if he let himself feel anything at all. Because, he knew, if I’m not angry, I have to be afraid.Brian stopped walking, and Jackie stopped rolling too. He waited while Brian downed a good portion of a bottle of water. He drank when Brian offered the bottle to him, then handed it back without a word.
Brian moved suddenly to stand in front of Jackie’s chair, looked him in the eye, and said, “Give me your fucking safewords, Jackie.”
Fear, along with its mask of anger, fled, blown away in the wind as something like purpose, like security, like order and clarity rushed in.
Yes, Jackie thought. Nothing else makes sense. Everything’s crazy. But not this. This is easy. This is right. This could save my life. He said, “Yellow, Sir, and red.”
If you’re intrigued and might like to read the rest of this pantsy plot starring Jackie and Brian, let me know in the comments below. I’d also love to hear your opinions on pantsing and plotting, if you’re a writer or aspire to be or just have an opinion about it, and all thoughts on how silly “pantsing plotter” sounds as a label are welcome. Thanks for coming along with me for the ride, and thank you once again to Dani and Love Bytes for giving me a little space to ramble.
Thank you for sharing the excerpt! good luck with the WIP =)
Thanks, H.B.!