or, Third time’s a charm
I will soon begin writing the third version of the sequel to Beckoning Blood. Not the third draft, the third VERSION. I wrote the first version at the end of last year and have nearly finished the second version, writing and compiling about 60,000 words over June. Sadly, it looks as if I will not finish the second version as an alternative has come into play.
If I was confident in the second version’s plot’s ability to sustain itself from scrutiny and be a good second book (possibly leading into a third), I wouldn’t be at the stage I am now. I’m kept awake with possibilities and permutations as my characters interrogate me about what’s going to happen next. They hold me to account when I might let things go, things that won’t serve me in the long run.
And so, I’ve embarked upon a pantser’s worst nightmare: plotting.
The sequel’s plot. Blurred to prevent spoilers 🙂
For those of you who don’t know, writers are generally divided into two categories: those who plot and those who write by the seat of their pants (i.e. pantsers). I fall into the pantser category. I start with a couple of characters, a general idea of what could happen and then I write, watching the story unfold before me. It’s an invigorating process as I discover what happens much like a reader would (though thankfully a reader will never see the rough first drafts).
The difficulty comes when working on a series. Things that happen in the first book need to be referred to in the second (or the third or the fourth etc). It all needs to be plausible. And if you’re setting something up, you’d sure as hell better make sure it works out. Being a pantser, you often don’t know.
Which is where I am at the moment. I’m a fairly laid-back, easy going kind of person so I tend not to worry about what’s going to happen later, preferring to trust my subconscious to provide all I need to get me out of a tight situation.
Unfortunately, my subconscious seems to have fallen unconscious and let me write two versions of the same book. But now, it appears to have come up with the goods. At least I hope so. And not wanting to waste any more time (though whether all the words I’ve written can actually be considered a waste), I’m doing what comes unnaturally. I’m plotting.
Yesterday I bought some coloured post-it notes. I’ve cleaned the frosted glass doors to my study of previous written musings, and I’ve plotted most of book 2. Each post-it is a scene/chapter. I’ve colour-coded them depending on which character’s point-of-view I’m in, and it’s all starting to come together.
It’s not smooth sailing though, and my brain is struggling to envisage what happens in part 3, while part 1 isn’t even written. I’m going to trust in the magic of storytelling and hope that the finer details (and a few nice, coherent surprises) emerge later.
I also had a break-through (narrowly avoiding a breakdown). One plot point was really causing me grief. In fact, it was so bad that I went back to the idea from version 2 and tried to make that work. That in itself was a good exercise to show which idea is strongest. But after staring at the walls for a while, writing questions up that need answers, I finally came up with the solution. Once I incorporated it into my plotting, a lot more makes sense and I feel happier about the new direction.
I still need to plot a bit more of book 2 and then that will hopefully lead to plotting a third book. I think there’s enough material available to make a full third book but I’m not going there without getting a better idea of it first.
So, am I a convert to plotting? Hard to say. I much prefer the discovery type of writing from an enjoyment point of view, but plotting definitely is useful when planning a series. And considering the next few ideas I have are all series, I’m going to have to get used to the coloured post-its. So for now, it’s a work in progress, much like everything else.
Next steps…
Finish plotting book two, plot book three, and perhaps write a synopsis for each. That should help keep everything together. And then, write like crazy. Wish me luck.
Are you a writer? Which do you prefer: plotting or pantsing? Leave a comment below.
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