The Black Hole Of Pantser

[night_wrtr]

Annnd this is why I am using an outline now.

I've found it helps to just push ahead and write *something*, even if you know you're going to have to come back and rewrite.

This was my thought also. Seems like if you push on, something will click into place eventually, and all it costs you is a little extra time.

 

[Ihe]

TJ more or less said what I was thinking. When one way doesn't work, switching it up could be worth a look. I would take it a step further and summarise all big plot points in a timeline, to have a better big-picture understanding of what's happened and where the story is going. You have the start and the end, so the parts in between you do have, once clearly laid out could help you identify where the momentum is. Simplifying the equation this way can give you a new perspective.

 

[The Bluestocking]

This is why I always have two projects working. It helps.

At some point, I shall add a project codenamed "Pit Of Doom" starring @Cathbad and @Wruter and a certain homicidal Blue Giraffe and cute but deadly little kitsune.

This should get me though more Soggy Middle pits in my quest to finish my WIP...

*Evil laugh*

 

[tinkerdan]

Get a co-author and you'll have this::
Two Supermassive Black Holes observed orbiting each another
::taken from below v
v

 

[Vaz]

I "Jigsaw" my writing now.

What I mean is, jumping around and writing pieces of scenes here and there. If you get stuck it keeps you in the flow and, after jumping ahead it can sometimes reveal something about earlier scenes or chapters not yet written.

I couldn't use an outline. Tried, got extremely bored and didn't want to write. Outlines to me feel like colouring books, they keep everything neat and within the lines but I enjoy going outside the lines a little.


v

 

[night_wrtr]

I "Jigsaw" my writing now.

What I mean is, jumping around and writing pieces of scenes here and there. If you get stuck it keeps you in the flow and, after jumping ahead it can sometimes reveal something about earlier scenes or chapters not yet written.

This is a good idea, especially for some of us that have problems with endings. I don't remember who it was that talked about starting with the ending first, but that also helps to settle on a point to write toward, especially for discovery writers.

I couldn't use an outline. Tried, got extremely bored and didn't want to write. Outlines to me feel like colouring books, they keep everything neat and within the lines but I enjoy going outside the lines a little.
v

I can see that for sure, but all outlines aren't created equal! An outline with A-Z for every chapter would get stale for me too. I've found some success keeping it much looser, as in just a paragraph or two about each chapter that still gives me freedom to keep some creativity and spontaneous developments, but is enough to keep me focused on overall key points that need to be hit.

 

[Dan Jones]

I've found some success keeping it much looser, as in just a paragraph or two about each chapter that still gives me freedom to keep some creativity and spontaneous developments, but is enough to keep me focused on overall key points that need to be hit.

Yes this is the approach I take. A paragraph or so of synopsis/outline ensures I keep to the important stuff and don't lose track of the big picture, and often the little details come out organically.

 

[Vaz]

No of course some outlines may fare better than others. I'm not saying they're wrong by any means, they just don't float my boat when it comes to writing.

Part of the excitement for me is the journey of it all. Its more fun if you get a little lost along the way.

v

 

[night_wrtr]

Part of the excitement for me is the journey of it all. Its more fun if you get a little lost along the way.

Agreed. I discovery wrote my first novel and it was more than just outside the lines. It was off the page, out of the book and across the table. Still, I learned a lot from it and add that to the "win" column.

 

[Dan Jones]

Its more fun if you get a little lost along the way.

Fun. Is that a synonym for cold-sweat-inducing-panic?

 

[Vaz]

Hey, fun comes in many forms

 

[Luiglin]

Having pantsed my way into a corner I'm currently working on the elastic to ping me back out.

 

[Biskit]

I see light.
This is probably because I was writing my way around the Black Hole and accidentally backed into the Cave of Random Rubbish. I't amazing what you can find in there, and even the gloom of the Hole looks bright... Anyway, I was just getting ready to drop all the stuff I'd picked up, but it turns out what I found in the Cave is the perfect Expanding Hole Filler and there's enough to patch over the gap all the way to the ending.

Oh, and according the packet, it contains 90% Completely Bonkers, so that's perfect for me.

Can some one lend me a ladder? I don't want to be standing in the bottom of the Hole when I fill it in.

 

[Luiglin]

I see light.
This is probably because I was writing my way around the Black Hole and accidentally backed into the Cave of Random Rubbish. I't amazing what you can find in there, and even the gloom of the Hole looks bright... Anyway, I was just getting ready to drop all the stuff I'd picked up, but it turns out what I found in the Cave is the perfect Expanding Hole Filler and there's enough to patch over the gap all the way to the ending.

Oh, and according the packet, it contains 90% Completely Bonkers, so that's perfect for me.

Can some one lend me a ladder? I don't want to be standing in the bottom of the Hole when I fill it in.

I may have some elastic to spare.

 

[crystal haven]

I have writing Black Holes so often, I sometimes wonder if I should just write a ladder into my stories for times such as these, so the character can climb out again. I'm sure I've got a ladder you can borrow Biskit. Great to hear you are finding answers.

 

[tinkerdan]

An odd thing about this:at least to me:is that it might be a strong indicator of something missing.

What I mean is that in most cases the story is a reveal of the character-strength and weakness-their development and improvement-their discovery of things along the way. All these things add up to that moment when they get painted in the corner or buried in the deepest hole. If they don't have the knowledge or skill yet to get out then they will surely get hurt. So either the MC is about to get hurt, anywhere from a chipped nail to really bad; or it's a signal to go back and insert the proper learning for how to avoid or undo whatever put them in this hole.

It definitely is a challenge to the MC and it is always good to challenge them. You might need to decide how hurt they can get and how they can make some sort of narrow escape.

Usually though it does require going back and addressing something in the knowledge and skill sets that will get them out of the frying pan even if it means they end up in the fire.

 

[crystal haven]

For me, usually I find I've gone the wrong direction and a bit of back tracking helps. Or sometimes just giving myself time to think.

 

[Biskit]

or it's a signal to go back and insert the proper learning for how to avoid or undo whatever put them in this hole.

Or the hole is a learning experience in itself.

 

[ratsy]

I've been outlining a lot, and am not sure if I could go back to pantsing. I'm even thinking of micro-outlining each section of my book, rather than the general overall outline I have already made. I think if I outline each 5k + word section with 200-400 words I will write it much faster and with better focus. I don't feel like this takes the fun out of writing at all. It's still my ideas, and words, but what it does do is allow me to not spend time staring at the screen. I just wrote a short story that i had a 800 word outline for, and the short ended up being 7800 words, and I wrote it in about 5-6 short sessions, with no head-to-desk banging at all.

For a market that relies on fast production, this is the way forward for me, especially as a writer who only has limited time to write each day. (which is true for most of us)

 

[psychotick]

Hi,

What are you complaining about?! I've got at least half a dozen novels ninety percent written - most of them over 100k - which I simply can't finish! That's the joy of being a pantster!!!

Cheers, Greg.