The first time I heard of the term pantser, I imagined one of those rude people that will run up behind some unsuspecting person, grab their pants and pull them down to their ankles. Imagine my surprise to find out that I’M a pantser… and it has nothing to do with my skills at dropping drawers.
For the uninitiated, a pantser is someone who writes by the seat of their pants… they don’t plot anything out (okay, maybe minimally), they just go where the story takes them. We are the wanderers, the ones who will possibly follow the path for a short while, then trudge off into the underbrush, hacking and slashing our way through.
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I was going to say something campy about how we’ve all been there… but, I don’t know. It’s a common issue, I know that. But what is it really? Most people would allude to the wall that I posted up there. A solid, brick wall that stops us in our tracks. Me? Well, I like to think of it like a child hyped up on sugar (and yes, that is a wive’s tale), all excited to go somewhere, anywhere, even if it’s in a chaotic, random direction… spilling energy and ecitement when all of a sudden… nothing. A sudden cease of movement, thought… anything.
Today is all about Sprints (or WordWars, depending on how you look at it). Our little writing group has found that sprints (our generic term) work… for lots of things, especially writing. If you want to get technical, a sprint is when you set a specific time to write… say GO, then, after the time is up, everyone posts what they wrote. (Now at this time, there’s usually a ‘winner’… the one who wrote the most. But, in our fantastically wonderful group, if you wrote just ONE word… you’re a winner. And we really love to pat each other on the back because we understand how difficult it is to get words out.)
Before we trudge off into the unknown, packs loaded down, elephants fed and watered… what are we missing? How about some companions? Maybe a friend or two to enjoy the ride with? (even though it may only be through some strategic texts or chats now and again) I’m talking about a writing group. Now, before you start hissing, “My Precious!” and grabbing your supplies, it’s not all bad.
You may have decided which software to use to write that new bestseller, but have you given any thought to a helper? No, not a little guy named Shortround that’ll drive you around with blocks tied to his feet… a helper program like the ones below. These fall under the topic of Story Development Software. These will not only help you get a little more organized, but also help you expand on your story… especially if all you have is a basic idea.
Who hasn’t tried a demo before? They’re a good way to get to know some software (or a video game) without having to shuck out the bucks for the full thing. I guarantee you, anyone offering a free demo… thinks their stuff is the greatest under the sun. So what’s a person to do? Follow the yellow brick road (links), and read about what each of these is about. Then, give one or two (or all of them) a shot.
Last week I touched upon the seed of a story, and how we need to keep an eye out for them. But why the seed analogy when you’re talking about a jungle adventure, Mike? (I hear you ask.) Well… that jungle we’re about to head into? Every single tree and bush and vine that we are going to come across? THOSE are the fruition of those seeds. THEY are the finished novels… the short stories… the works of fiction and non-fiction that we are going to be inundated with.
One thing nice about the seeds that we find for our writing ideas… they will last indefinitely. Yeah, we might want to stick a little label on there… remind ourselves of just what that idea is about, but if you get in the habit of recognizing those little seeds of inspiration… you’ll get better at not having to make those labels.
