I’m mostly a pantser. I write stories without an elaborate outline. And I’ve got the unfinished stories to prove it. That was my main problem for a long time. I’d start something and then it would just die somewhere in the middle.
Eventually after looking at where they died and what was happening, I figured out why they died. The stories were missing something vital.
Now, this was when I was slogging through it on my own. I didn’t need any darned book on writing. I was already writing. You heard it here first. I admit I was completely, totally WRONG!
If I’d have been less stubborn, I wouldn’t have had to slog through unfinished manuscripts for months trying to find out where I went wrong. I could have simply opened one or two books and read a little. I’d have also learned about helpful things like character description charts and basic outlining.
Before I write anything now, I do a basic outline, nothing too involved. Just the characters’ problems, what gets in their way both personal and external conflict, and the resolution. I don’t know the exact way the book will end. I let the characters tell me that, but I know I have the basics to get there.
Now, if you’re a newbie writer, don’t be stubborn. Get the writing books. Or at least check them out from the library. You’ll find some of them very valuable.
