Plotters, Pantsers, and Plantsers, Oh My!
Writing style may not seem like something important to consider, but the way you write naturally will help you customize your writing experience to best fit you. We all have strengths and weaknesses as writers. If we learn how to even out the two, we can get more accomplished.
In the group of writers I belong to, we all have different ways to go about our craft. Some of my friends are so strict that they feel the need to plan out every detail in advance and follow it to a T. On the other hand, I have friends that can’t follow a straight line and often let spontaneity lead them.
Personally, I find myself in the middle of both these styles. I make plans and try to follow them, but if I find that things aren’t working as I’d hoped, I’m not afraid to consider other options that may work better.
There are between 600,000 to 1,000,000 books published each year in the United States. All the authors who write and publish books fall into one of three categories: Plotters, pantsers, or plantsers.
Plotters, Pantsers, and Plantsers, Oh My!
Plotters:
Plotters create a plotline or detailed outline to follow like a map when they sit down to write their novels. In R.L. Stine’s MasterClass, he explains how he uses an outline to quicken his writing process to get more books out. Dan Brown explains that he uses an outline to keep track of all the promises he makes with his readers to make sure to answer all of the questions he poses by the end of the book.
Pantsers:
Pantser are the writers that write from the seat of their pants and let their characters guide them through the story.
Plantsers:
Plantsers fall somewhere in between the plotters and pantsers. These folks plot out just the main points of the story and freely write the rest.
Additional Information:
A survey completed between 2017 and 2018 showed that of the top ten authors, 5 of the authors were plotters, 2 were pantsers, 2 were plantsers, and 1 was unknown.
Best-selling Plotters:
James Patterson
J.K. Rowling
R.L. Stine
Dan Brown
Neil Gaiman
Best Selling Pantser:
Stephen King
Nora Roberts
Margret Atwood
Best Selling Plantsers
Danielle Steel
E. L. James
Ways to Determine Which One You Are:
If you do this than you’re a Pantser:
Do you prefer to let emotion lead you through the story?
Do you prefer to stick to a structured outline to use as a map to follow through the story?
If you do this than you’re a Plotter:
Do you feel the need to research every little detail that will be in your story before you can get started?
Do you let your characters lead you through the story?
Do you follow a road map through your writing until it doesn’t work but are willing to take a detour to make the story work?
If you do this than you’re a Plantser:
Do you research until you have just enough information to start your story, but do more research when needed?
Do you stick to the story’s structure but consult your characters on certain choices as you move through your story?
There are many other ways that can determine if you are a plotter, pantser, or planster.
I will link to a quiz you can take in this week’s action steps below.
The Pros and Cons of Being a Plotter or Pantser:
Pro’s to Being a Plotter:
Plotters are known for their outlines, so they have a road map to what will happen in their story.
With an outline, a plotter has less of an opportunity to get stuck when writing their story.
When a plotter outlines, they also outline their characters, so they have a deeper understanding of their characters.
Outlining a book is supposed to help a plotter to have fewer rewrites, but I haven’t found this to be true yet. It does make the writing and rewriting process go faster.
Cons of Being a Plotter:
The hardest part of writing as a plotter is that they have to do a lot of prep work upfront before starting their first draft.
Plotters can get so stuck in the structure of their story that they don’t allow themselves to add emotion where it is needed.
Plotters can become so blind to the flaws in their outlines and try to force themselves to write through them rather than fix them as they go along. This can have devastating effects on both their story and their readers.
Blindly following an outline can make their scenes too vague and make them feel like it’s just an extended outline. It can also leave scenes void of emotions crucial to keeping their readers from disconnecting from the story.
Pros to Being a Pantser:
You can be freely creative with your writing which doesn’t have to connect to any plotline you previously set out. Pantsers get to free write and just let the story reveal itself over time.
Because a plantser gets to freely write out their stories without any prior outlining or prepping, pantsers have the opportunity to be completely surprised by their characters.
Pantsers have complete flexibility to experiment with their story’s plot because they aren’t confined to an outline. Doing this allows a writer to go down rabbit holes they never thought they would and discover a great story that may not have been discovered otherwise.
Cons to Being a Pantser:
Pantsers get writer’s blocked more often when they don’t know where their story is leading or write themselves into a corner.
The progress of a written piece of work is influenced by a pantser’s inspiration. Inspiration can come in highs where a writer can write feverishly, but it can also come in lows where they struggle to even write a few words.
Pantsers often do not consider everything and will have more to fix when starting the rewrite process because their free writing might lack certain explanations. Some ideas might be disconnected or have plot holes to fill in.
The In-Between of the Plotter and the Pantser:
The Plantser (sometimes called the Plotser) is in between the Plotter and the pantser.
This kind of writer takes pieces from both writing methods to fill in the weaknesses of the writing style they choose to use.
I believe that every successful published author falls somewhere on the spectrum of a Plantser.
Plotter 1 2 3 4 5 Planster 6 7 8 9 10 Pantser
I’m a Pantser that leans a little more towards the Plotter end of the scale.
I write very detailed outlines for my stories and characters, but if I get stuck at some point because my outline doesn’t work in practicality, I am always willing to go down a different path to make the story work.
Final Thoughts:
Both Plotters and Pantsers have weaknesses in their writing methods. If a writer wants to be successful, they have to be willing to think outside the box and fill the weakness of their methods with the other methods’ strengths.
This Weeks Action Steps:
Take the quiz linked below to determine if you’re a plotter, pantser, or plantser.
Comment below and let me know the results of your quiz!! I can’t wait to see what you come up with! I will see you next time.
Link to quiz
https://www.tckpublishing.com/writing-quiz-plotter-or-pantser/
Sources
https://www.statista.com/topics/1177/book-market/
https://www.masterclass.com/classes/rl-stine-teaches-writing-for-young-audiences
https://www.masterclass.com/classes/dan-brown-teaches-writing-thrillers
Animated picture credit goes to ©kryshiggins
©All writing property of R. M. McDermott LLC