Discussion: Are You a Planner/Plotter or a Pantser?

Assorted notepads with a few plot outlines, half-designed worlds and some character profiles are stacked in a corner of my room; each one half-filled with my almost illegible handwriting. I've attempted, multiple times, to be a planner. I've sat down with the intent to write chapter-summaries, or even plot a whole novel, but I rarely decide on more than the first handful of pages. The reason? I'm a pantser. That person who sits down at their laptop and writes whatever comes in their head; there's an idea but, no plan to follow. It's like walking with no destination. You just hope that it will all turn into a short-story at the end.

 

 

I'm impatient. Not desperately, but quite. When I've fallen head-over-heels for an idea, all I want to do is write it. I want to work through those first few chapters; rather than spend hours sorting through what will happen during them. No doubt, I'm the same with books. The wait for a sequel is always a struggle, as is the one for a book-shaped parcel to make an appearance in my letter-box. I constantly check Goodreads, and if I'm not doing that, I'm looking through the post. One thing is for sure, you don't want to be stuck in a traffic-jam with me! I find waiting a task. Holding back the urge to write - especially after weeks of struggling with writer's block - is difficult. Trying to plan during these moments makes morning or afternoon incredibly unproductive, as I want to actually be typing! I adore writing - and love how, when I don't plan, the ending comes together.

Mostly, I can blame time for my lack of planning, and how it is non-existent during the school term. If I come home and realise I haven't written a blog post in days, I normally resort to writing a short story after spending a few minutes deciding on what it will be about. It has to be quick. And, although I don't have a collection of written notes, I do think a lot about what I'm going write. Whether it's an upcoming post or new piece of writing, I spend time sorting through what I want to write in my mind, like the points I wanted to make in this discussion. Currently, I'm beginning to use Wattpad a lot more, and am writing for that; finding myself constantly thinking about the characters and their backgrounds, along with how the world it is set in came about.

 As a huge fan of Dystopia, I know I can't just expect to work out a world whilst writing, and that it needs to be thought-out. As much as I love being a pantser, writing in the spur-of-the-moment, I wish I was more of a planner. Away from my keypad, I'm always writing to-do lists and making timetables on Word; sorting out blog events and jotting down notes on post-its. Everything is so organised(most of the time). With writing, being more like this would help me, as you can really see when reading who has put the most time or effort into their work. It's crystal-clear that George R.R. Martin didn't just design the whole Song of Ice and Fire series as he went. It's too intricate. Too detailed. At the moment, I'm definitely challenging myself into becoming a plotter for longer pieces of writing, rather than just opening up a Word document immediately.

Let's see how this works out!

So, are you a planner/plotter or a pantser?
Have you ever tried to change your writing style?

Tell me in the comments!