100 Day Creative Challenge 73: Taking Thoughts For A Walk
There’s a terminology that most writers know: pantsers and plotters. Plotters outline in great detail and research as much as they can before they write. Pantsers tend to fly by the seat of their pants and just write.
I tend to be a hybrid. Perhaps you could call me a ‘plantser’. I have to have an outline with scene descriptions. I like the the idea of index cards, but have never really used them. I think my method is linear so I write one paragraph after another down the page — using old school pen and paper.
Recently I’ve been using use Scrivener a virtual index cards. It seems to suit my style, but I still have to handwrite in a notebook first. The reason I’m a ‘plantser’ is that I like to walk through the story with the main character. They guide me as I write. I feel like I get to know them as the plot progresses. I’m writing a novel about a woman named Laura who has been married for fifteen years, she has children and a runs a travel business. By the end of the book she will decide whether or not she will stay with her husband or leave him. I don’t know what she will do.
I’ve known Laura for ten years. She first came to me in 2010 when I was at a villa in Tuscany with my husband. I wrote about the beginnings of this novel a few months ago and explained how I have journeyed with Laura ever since. It’s been a walk with not only an idea for a novel, but with Laura.
It’s a strange process and hard to articulate. There are people I’ve walked with for many years and who have walked with me. We share stories, history, experiences, and love. My characters become friends and the way I write about them is like taking a walk with them through a period of their lives.
I’ve just finished a book about Grace. Grace is struggling with her sexual identity and isn’t sure how to deal with it. I’m not really sure how to deal with it either as there are so many questions and pressures. Confusion muddies her decision, but I walked with her through the journey. That’s how I take my thoughts for a walk!
Photo Credit: Heidi Hondema
The artist Paul Klee described drawing a picture as taking a line for a walk. I have borrowed his words to explain my approach to writing; when I write a novel it is like I am taking a thought for a walk. Aminatta Forna
