A Writer's Woes

Plotting Along

Each author writes differently. Some authors outline their entire story first, others write their hearts out knowing it will all come together in the end. I think most of us, though, choose a middle ground. I write until I hit a snag or a plot hole, and then I have to think about where my story is going. If I find myself struggling to move forward, it tells me that I need to take a break from the writing and analyze the plot.

This is where I have been lately. I never struggle to write; writing comes easily for me. Sometimes, though, I struggle to fit all of the pieces together in the “right” way. Each scene needs to be carefully crafted. What pieces of information are parceled out in this scene that are essential to the plot? If there aren’t any, then this scene needn’t exist.

When moving forward becomes a struggle, I look back to my scene outline. Maybe I didn’t even have one up until this point, but if I find myself stalling, I create one. I look at it to see what has happened so far, what happens later in the book, and what needs to happen to bridge the gap between the present and the future.

Thus, to move from here to there, I write one line summaries of each scene. These summaries include what will happen in the scene, what information is presented that is essential to the plot, and who the POV character will be. I can then put these scenes in whatever order makes the most sense.

With a renewed sense of clarity, I write each scene according to my plot outline. Now, my story is moving forward again and I am “plotting” along.

posted by chrmisha @ 1:35 PM