I’ve been with ROW80 since it’s beginning, and I can’t tell you how much it’s helped me learn discipline in writing. I’ve published three novellas and am about to publish…well, it’s either a short novel or long novella. Anyway, I feel like I’ve accomplished a lot.
So my goals for this round? Since I’m shooting for a novel instead of a novella, I’m going to up my word count goal from 500 to 700 words per day. We’ll see how that goes and if I need to change it or not. Okay, this thing starts today, right? I sort of feel lost because I don’t have a good outline. I’ve always been a pantser, so the ideas come as my fingers fly across the keyboard. Since I was going to try to be a plotter this time, I’m full of anxiety. Because I can’t THINK of an outline. I have a vague idea of what’s going to happen in the book, but it’s not concrete. Okay, so I need to outline my vague ideas, right? I may end up being a pantser/plotter hybrid. LOL
Exercise goals are going to start out at 30 minutes five days a week. That’s actually what I’m doing right now, getting up at dark-thirty every morning and walking on the treadmill. (I actually did some light running on it once.) I plan on upping that goal as my body gets used to the exercise.
Those are my two main goals for this round. I may add something later, but these are the two I’m focused on right now. I’m going to do some writing on my Christian romance, but I’m not setting goals for that. It will happen as it happens.
Good luck everyone!
lauralynnelliott.com 
Good word count goal! And I love the plotter/pantser hybrid idea…lol.
Don’t know if this will help with your outlining, but I use Weiland’s idea of a ‘What-If’ page and put all my thoughts there…
‘What if the hero becomes crazy for a short part of the book?’
‘What if the heo has siblings he doesn’t know about?’
….anyway…you get the idea. My outline sort of takes shape around these questions. Hope it gives you an epiphany of how you want to mix your plotting and pantsing…ha!
Thanks, Nadja, that gives me something to think about. My biggest problem with plotting is that I do most of my thinking while I’m typing. So maybe my outline will come together when I’m actually typing it out. 🙂
I completely understand the nerves trying a new process. Each story seems to come together differently so no one thing works for me every time, LOL. Wishing you luck with your goals this round 🙂
Thanks, Raelyn. If I don’t try plotting, Kait Nolan and Susan Bischoff will come hunting for me. LOL
Feel like you have? You *have* accomplished a lot. Good goals 🙂 Best of luck! I know you can do it.
Thank you so much, Ryan! 🙂
I consider myself a pantser, as well. My outlines (if they exist) are very, very minimal. Part of the fun for me is the discovery along the way.
When I feel lost or hesitant, I try to make a timeline. Different from an outline, I swear! It’s like the old, crappy timelines I used to make in grade school when studying for a history exam: Crazy bad taxes -> written protests -> tea party -> form militias -> big epic battle!
(My history grades were always so-so.)
The timeline helps me visualize sequential events, but it’s also something I can pants-out (yes, this is a term now) in like a half hour (and has plenty of room for things to surprise me). I suppose this makes me a bit of a hybrid, but it helps avoid the dreaded Writer’s Block.
I’ve always been a pantser. I love the discovery, too. But what Kait and Susan pointed out to me is if I can outline my main points, I can pants everything in between. I’m going to try it this time and see how that works. I think I’m going to use Scrivener to do it.
The timeline idea actually makes sense to me. And it’s KIND of a outline. The one thing I do want to make sure I get done is character profiles. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to go back and see what color eyes I said a minor character had or even what their NAME was. LOL
I was a panster, but I’m reforming. This new novel is pretty complicated, and not having an outline just wouldn’t have worked. That said, I’ve got a great crit partner that has helped every step of the way. Without her, no way would I have an outline.
You can do it, though. Just stick with what you know works, and a timeline is a good idea. Good luck on the exercise!
Thanks, Stacy. I’m trying to reform, too. We’ll see how that goes. 🙂
Your post made me chuckle. This is how I sound in my head before I edit myself LOL. It sounds like your attempts at outlining are similar to mine. I actually cannot outline first. I kind of word vomit as a pantser until the big ideas are worked out, then plot and outline, then write. I learned I need that exploration phase or nothing works. It’s like my brain says no sorry you can’t make decisions yet because I want to play.
Good luck with the increased word count and the exercise goals! We know you can do it, even if it is dark-thirty which is just a wrong time of day to be conscious for 😀
I’m usually good for a chuckle or two. LOL. Pantsing has always worked for me, but I’m trying to plot this time because I was told it makes a better story. We shall see. I’m always up for trying new things anyway, so I’m giving it a shot.
I don’t know how that new word count will go, but I think I can do it. I usually went over my 500 anyway. And, yes, dark-thirty is hard to deal with. But I feel so much better when I exercise in the mornings! 🙂
Hm, I might be able to help, see *looks around* I’m a plantser – a hybrid. My first draft is actually a pantsed version of the story taking my characters and my opening situation – locking in an ending and then writing out the journey in between without an outline. THEN, I take that pantsed version and dissect it to create the outline, refine characters, lock in turning points and twists, etc. Every writer is a bit different, take from all this what works for you and I hope it helps.
Have a fantastic round, Lauralynn – you’re gonna do great 🙂
Wow, it amazes how many different ways people write. I’ve heard so many different versions of plotting, pantsing, and everything in between.
Thanks for the words of encouragement, Gene!
I’m a pantser/plotter hybrid! Welcome to the club lol
Nice goals! I’m sure you’re gonna do great!
Hmmm, lots of hybrids out there. I didn’t realize there were so many. LOL
Thanks for your encouragement!
Don’t forget my idea! Pop! Pop! 😀
Ha ha. I loved the graphic you sent me. And I hate plotting. It’s taking the fun out of writing for me. 😦
Good luck this round, Lauralynn!
Thanks, J.R.!
Good luck this round and thank you for visiting my blog to wish me luck. I used to be a pantser, but I’m now a plotter. I think plotting is the experiment all pantser do.
Gloria, I worked on an outline last night, and I HATED it. It just didn’t feel right and took all the joy out of writing. Now I have to decide whether to plod on, trying to plot and hate what I’m doing, or to do what’s worked for me in the past.
I totally get where you are coming from, Lauralynn. The first few outlines I did totally killed projects for me. After tons of flip-flopping and nail chewing, I found the outlining method that seems to work for me.
You might be a pantser for life or you have yet to find your way. Good luck with that.
Well, from one Panster-in-rehabilition to another, what I’m finding works for me (and I do use Scrivener for it) is to make a HUGE pile of sub-documents in the Binder, all scenes I know “have to happen”. Then I pants my way through each scene and see if they work where I have them or if I need to move them around, and what segues I need to include.
Sometimes I end up throwing out whole sections of scenes (I actually move them off to a research folder in case they come in handy later), but more often than not, I’m finding that this type of outline is loose enough to let me just write.
Hope that helps. It’s been a life-saver for me. Like you, I was just locking up when trying to write an outline before.
500-700 btw is a good smooth jump. You’ll do great with it.
Hi Eden. Thanks for your input. I was actually using Scrivener, and it seems a little “busy” to me. But I see how you are doing it…scene by scene. I think what’s really working best for me is a general idea of what’s going to happen. In the past, I’ve always just kept that in my head. But I need to write it down. Maybe I just need to write a synopsis of the basics and change that as needed. It’s kind of like an outline, but looser. An outline doesn’t have to take a certain form, I don’t think, and that’s what was bugging me. I was trying to outline like I thought it “should” be done instead of what was comfortable for me.
I managed 795 words last night. That puts me a little behind because I was counting on writing the first day, but all I did was outline. So I’m not sure whether or not to count that first day in my word count spreadsheet or not. (I’m all about spreadsheets. LOL)
No outline, but spreadsheets! Wow… There really are so many ways we work on things.
You are right that Scrivener can seem a bit busy… have you tried closing out everything except the Binder and the editor window? Then it’s just typing and hopping from scene to scene. The other pieces (I like being able to add in hyperlinks directly into a piece of story, but that may not work for some people) are really just extras that you will either come to use in your own time or never touch.
Glad you’re almost caught up. 😀
Actually, I don’t hop from scene to scene, and that might be why Scrivener isn’t really working for me. I’m a very linear writer; I have to write everything in order. I may add things later in the editing process, but I usually have a pretty clean first draft. I’ve never had to throw scenes out. I have the opposite problem. I end up having to flesh things out more.