I also love having a plan. I drive my husband crazy on the weekends, asking him what his plan for the day was. You mean you're just going to sit around until something strikes your fancy? Seriously? I could shake the man.
So you would think that when I'm planning to tackle something as complex as a novel, I would obsessively outline and plot and plan some more. And I surely would. In fact, I have two blank journals sitting literally within arm's reach of me at this very second, begging me to start scribbling out a precise roadmap of exactly where my book will go.
And yet... I can't. I could. But I won't. This style of writing got me through college, when I had to punch out a dozen pages each week. It's efficient and organized and you are only limited by how fast your fingers can fly. It strips all the mystery and all the heavy-duty thinking out of the actual writing.
Yawn.
A lack of mystery is a great think for writing a historical thesis or a psychology research paper. It kills a novel. Mine, anyway. I have five finished novels to my name (or drafts of said novels, at least), and I didn't outline any of them. I have dozens of finished outlines on my computer that haven't been opened since I hit Save.
So in a way, inefficiency is the most efficient way for me to finish a book. It's also the most fun way for me to finish a book, and unless I start raking in some cash, that's all that matters.
Okay. But seriously, I've got to have a plan. Starting 100% from scratch is a good way to stare at a blank page for hours. So my goal for October is to start the foundation with:
- Character sketches
- World-building
- A one-paragraph synopsis of the plot
I won't go too in-depth because these are just the starting points and are liable to change at any moment. Got to remember that! I've done pages of world-building only to toss it all out two sentences in. Not an exaggeration.
How much planning do you do before you start a new project? Any favorite tools to recommend?
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