Summary of my findings: It’s ok to be a pantser. Be a smart plantser (Pantser who plots).
https://thewritepractice.com/plotters-pantsers/
(Source suggests get out of your comfort zone and be the opposite for a while.)
Why be a plantser? Because inching along in your story is better than not at all. I admit as a new writer, I was too scared… I discovered the 10-minute novelists facebook group and allowed myself this. If I wrote 10 minutes a day, it’s better than none at all. So what if I don’t have a path to follow? So what if my path is windy and I don’t get to my destination? At least I would have “traveled” and thus have learned something along the way.
Here’s a little about me so I can explain:
I am highly analytical (I love math and science)
I am NOT creative.
SOOO I naturally thought I would be a plotter. I like to plan ahead, and I don’t like to waste my precious time.
But actually that was ALL I DID. I JUST WASTED TIME.
I plotted my first novel, the best I could… It was excruciating. Then I tried to write it. My MC was too boring.
Now, I have an idea of the characters of my new story, with enough promise, but I could not at all PLOT IT OUT! I had an idea for the ending, and somewhat of a middle. Then I let my characters do their thing. I like the 10-minute Novelist idea. If I am stuck, I don’t kick myself, I just go back to it the next day. It gives me time to think about what my MC would do and how she would react. (So the analytical-side of me kicks in and the story progresses).
Although I don’t see the end of my tunnel, I am hacking away at the forest to clear some ground….
meltongblog 