Hello, once again, guys! Today, I'll be talking briefly about brainstorming. Now, I'm not sure how pansters do it, but I, as a plotter, like to brainstorm my ideas, before getting them on paper.
Now, my brainstorming process normally goes something like, I sit down, stare at my plot board, and force myself to think about it. Then I just progress along the story line, slowly adding stuff. Then, there are the days when my brother takes me to our local Starbucks, or to lunch, and we'll talk. Those days are the real nuggets. For example, recently me and my brother went to Starbucks, and we brainstormed. I walked away with so much extra character development in two characters I thought were underdeveloped, and now I love those two, and almost regret making one a negative character arc.
Now, not everyone brainstorms, but I, from experience, would definitely recommend it. It really is helpful to have someone as your partner, too, since there are two minds working at it. Now, I've never worked with other people, but I would think that you would also be more effective with someone you're really close to, because then you guys know each other's brain process better than most.
How you brainstorm is a tricky question, because everyone probably does it different. I like to sit down, present my brother with things I feel like there are holes in, and fill him in on my thought process and see where he runs. Today I found out that one of my characters is a nun who gets abducted right before she takes her vows. Another is a gambler who hides his age, and ends up becoming a bounty hunter. Originally, the girl was just a typical valley girl teen who didn't have anything special about her, and the other character was a 14-year old hustler, who just becomes more and more rebellious. This is why I like brainstorming so much. It morphs so many things into something you never thought of, and it's even more brilliant than the last idea you had. Now, of course, some ideas get tossed out the window, but that's all okay.
Now I said it was a brief post, so don't say I didn't warn you. How do you like to brainstorm? Do you like to brainstorm? Let me know in the comments!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Monday, June 29, 2015
Ideas, Ideas.
Hello again! So today I'll be talking about ideas, if only briefly.
Yesterday I was thinking about my newest project, and I was wondering "What could I add?" Because my biggest writer problem, is that I condense things, and need extra plot to keep the story going. So, I was sitting on my bed, commuter on lap, and I glanced off to the side, where my bed table is, and saw my Bible (If you have read the page about the blog's name, then you already know that I'm a Christian). I picked it up, deciding to try something for plot points. I flipped to a random page and chose a verse. It was Song of Soloman 8, and it said something about a pile of pomegranates. I thought "huh. What if they ran into a pile of fruit? Where would the fruit come from? Where would it go? (where would it come from Cotten-Eyed Joe)" And I brainstormed off that single verse. Now, I understand you might not be Christian, but thankfully, this method works for any book, not just the Bible. Just pick up a book and brainstorm off one random sentence you come across. It gave me 5 plot ideas for my book, so it seems a reasonable method, right?
Now, I agree with what many writers say. Don't wait around for ideas and inspiration to come say hi. You have got to sit down and write, inspired or not. But I prefer to be inspired. Another good thing to do with that method is to find an idea, mid-writing, and put the idea right where you are "blocked" (Like several other writers, I too, do not believe in Writer's Block. That's waiting for Inspiration to come to you, and sometimes it has to visit other friends. In that case, it'll be a long while before it comes around to you for you to write the second chapter of the book. That book will take FOREVER to write), then see how the characters react to your random insertion.
However, don't always make it random. You really shouldn't have a pile of fruit in one scene for no reason at all. Instead, take the pile of fruit, and let the characters take some. Maybe later they'll be absolutely famished. Hey look! They now have something to keep them from dying, which is good in most cases.
How do you get ideas or inspiration? Share (If you want) in the comments!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Yesterday I was thinking about my newest project, and I was wondering "What could I add?" Because my biggest writer problem, is that I condense things, and need extra plot to keep the story going. So, I was sitting on my bed, commuter on lap, and I glanced off to the side, where my bed table is, and saw my Bible (If you have read the page about the blog's name, then you already know that I'm a Christian). I picked it up, deciding to try something for plot points. I flipped to a random page and chose a verse. It was Song of Soloman 8, and it said something about a pile of pomegranates. I thought "huh. What if they ran into a pile of fruit? Where would the fruit come from? Where would it go? (where would it come from Cotten-Eyed Joe)" And I brainstormed off that single verse. Now, I understand you might not be Christian, but thankfully, this method works for any book, not just the Bible. Just pick up a book and brainstorm off one random sentence you come across. It gave me 5 plot ideas for my book, so it seems a reasonable method, right?
Now, I agree with what many writers say. Don't wait around for ideas and inspiration to come say hi. You have got to sit down and write, inspired or not. But I prefer to be inspired. Another good thing to do with that method is to find an idea, mid-writing, and put the idea right where you are "blocked" (Like several other writers, I too, do not believe in Writer's Block. That's waiting for Inspiration to come to you, and sometimes it has to visit other friends. In that case, it'll be a long while before it comes around to you for you to write the second chapter of the book. That book will take FOREVER to write), then see how the characters react to your random insertion.
However, don't always make it random. You really shouldn't have a pile of fruit in one scene for no reason at all. Instead, take the pile of fruit, and let the characters take some. Maybe later they'll be absolutely famished. Hey look! They now have something to keep them from dying, which is good in most cases.
How do you get ideas or inspiration? Share (If you want) in the comments!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Sunday, June 28, 2015
NaNoWriMo
So, last post I wrote about my NaNoWriMo survival kit, and said in a few places "More on that later." Well, that's why I'm here folks! This is the more on that later part, and lets get started!
So, this post is about NaNoWriMo (Obviously), and my own experiences with it.
NaNoWriMo is an annual occurrence in November. It's directed at writers, and it's goal, or challenge, is to get you to write 50,000 words in one month. Now, generally, there are 9-12 words per line in books, but that isn't an absolute. But there are about 250 words per page, sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. The Hunger Games, as a total, is about 99k, roughly, depending on who you talk to. Why am I driving this point about random word counts in a post about National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? Because if you do choose to do it, it's often a good thing to know what you're walking into. This is writing half of the Hunger Games in a month, while you still have other occurrences, like forgetting, birthday parties, tea parties, school, Thanksgiving, and a whole lot of other things that can get in the way of writing. That basically lowers the time amount by half, giving you 15 days of your choosing throughout the month, or less, or even more, depending on how much you write. The above were just certain scenarios that came to my head on the spur of the moment.
On a side note, how can you tell what the word count of a book is? Do you look it up? How can you find it for yourself? The answer is, normally I do it for myself, but yes, many people have calculated (I'm sure just at the word calculated, many of you yawned, stopped listening, or whatever, but hey, what can I say?) it and have placed their calculations on the internet. But not every book has an internet solution, so here's how you do it. One word: Average. I, personally, take five lines from one page, and count the words on each line. Then I add them together and divide the sum by five. In other words, I average the five lines together to get an average word per line. Then I multiply the average WPL (word per line) with the amount of lines on the page, then I multiply the number of words per page by the page number. I'm not sure that made any sense, but I'm sure you can figure it out.
So, in the end of November, you enter in your word count, and validate your novel, and win! Winners get special goodies from the sponsors (50% off scrivener one year) and it's really cool. If you don't win, the people at NaNoWriMo still support you and let you know that what you chose to do was actually really hard, and just deciding to do it was an achievement. Either way, they offer lots of support, and you actually get news in your inbox on the site with tips and tricks, and info on the write-ins and stuff.
Another event they have is the Young Writer's program, and that's for students and stuff, and I don't really know that much about it because I've never participated in it, but I do know it accompanies NaNoWriMo, and the students can set their own word count goal.
The last NaNoWriMo event I can think of, or there is as of right now, is Camp NaNoWriMo. This takes place in April and July and is fantastic. There is a "cabin" where you chat with several people in your cabin. I love my cabin mates, and cannot wait to start writing in July (Three days away!). In this event, you can choose your own word count goal, and wether or not you want to edit, or write a book, or what. It's also really cool, but one thing you should know, if you set a large word count (like I did), know that you can only change the word count before the winning begins. You can't change it after.
So, my own NaNo experiences are actually funny and heartwarming, now that I look back on them. My first NaNoWriMo, I ended up with 4k to write on the very last day, on which I could only write after 2 o' clock or so. That was very stressful, and once I won, my aunt bought me a venti frappuccino from Starbucks, which was a definite plus. My next NaNo, which was actually Camp NaNo in April 2015 (Yes, July will be my third NaNo) was absolutely stressful. I set a word count goal of 60k. THATS A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. Let me say it again. THAT'S A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. I thought, that since I hadn't worked every day in November for at least an hour, and still finished, I thought that I could write every day in April and finish with extra words. Fast forward through April, and you end up with me tired of my book around the 30k mark, because I didn't develop it well enough, hence why I'm a plotter, and I was bored with the story. Fast forward again, now I decide I can't write 60k and decide to go change it when, you guessed it, the winning began THAT DAY. So then, I'm writing flash fiction and working on expanding the flash fiction into short stories, because I was really bad at expansion in books. Basically, I ended up on the last day of writing, with 10k left to write. THAT'S A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. I woke up at three o'clock, A.M., and began writing. By 11 o' clock, I had finished. I then went to Physics class (home schooled) and spent three hours in a class that required brain power I didn't have.
Now here's a peek into my personality. I consider myself good at math. So, when I see numbers, and that I finished 10k in 8 hours, guess what? I begin to calculate (There's that word again). If I write for 16 hours a day, for 5 days straight, I can write 100k in 5 days. I've often read that writing fast is a good thing. So, normally, I would begin catching up on sleep, stocking up on chocolate and coffee, putting my word count goal to 100k, and any other manner of things. But instead, I'm doing the smart thing this July. I'm setting my word count goal to 10k, and I'm not gonna stress. (Though next April, 600k, here I come! Actually, just kidding, but that would be cool, wouldn't it?)
Ever tried NaNoWriMo? Do YOU like it? Let me know in the comments!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
So, this post is about NaNoWriMo (Obviously), and my own experiences with it.
NaNoWriMo is an annual occurrence in November. It's directed at writers, and it's goal, or challenge, is to get you to write 50,000 words in one month. Now, generally, there are 9-12 words per line in books, but that isn't an absolute. But there are about 250 words per page, sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less. The Hunger Games, as a total, is about 99k, roughly, depending on who you talk to. Why am I driving this point about random word counts in a post about National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)? Because if you do choose to do it, it's often a good thing to know what you're walking into. This is writing half of the Hunger Games in a month, while you still have other occurrences, like forgetting, birthday parties, tea parties, school, Thanksgiving, and a whole lot of other things that can get in the way of writing. That basically lowers the time amount by half, giving you 15 days of your choosing throughout the month, or less, or even more, depending on how much you write. The above were just certain scenarios that came to my head on the spur of the moment.
On a side note, how can you tell what the word count of a book is? Do you look it up? How can you find it for yourself? The answer is, normally I do it for myself, but yes, many people have calculated (I'm sure just at the word calculated, many of you yawned, stopped listening, or whatever, but hey, what can I say?) it and have placed their calculations on the internet. But not every book has an internet solution, so here's how you do it. One word: Average. I, personally, take five lines from one page, and count the words on each line. Then I add them together and divide the sum by five. In other words, I average the five lines together to get an average word per line. Then I multiply the average WPL (word per line) with the amount of lines on the page, then I multiply the number of words per page by the page number. I'm not sure that made any sense, but I'm sure you can figure it out.
So, in the end of November, you enter in your word count, and validate your novel, and win! Winners get special goodies from the sponsors (50% off scrivener one year) and it's really cool. If you don't win, the people at NaNoWriMo still support you and let you know that what you chose to do was actually really hard, and just deciding to do it was an achievement. Either way, they offer lots of support, and you actually get news in your inbox on the site with tips and tricks, and info on the write-ins and stuff.
Another event they have is the Young Writer's program, and that's for students and stuff, and I don't really know that much about it because I've never participated in it, but I do know it accompanies NaNoWriMo, and the students can set their own word count goal.
The last NaNoWriMo event I can think of, or there is as of right now, is Camp NaNoWriMo. This takes place in April and July and is fantastic. There is a "cabin" where you chat with several people in your cabin. I love my cabin mates, and cannot wait to start writing in July (Three days away!). In this event, you can choose your own word count goal, and wether or not you want to edit, or write a book, or what. It's also really cool, but one thing you should know, if you set a large word count (like I did), know that you can only change the word count before the winning begins. You can't change it after.
So, my own NaNo experiences are actually funny and heartwarming, now that I look back on them. My first NaNoWriMo, I ended up with 4k to write on the very last day, on which I could only write after 2 o' clock or so. That was very stressful, and once I won, my aunt bought me a venti frappuccino from Starbucks, which was a definite plus. My next NaNo, which was actually Camp NaNo in April 2015 (Yes, July will be my third NaNo) was absolutely stressful. I set a word count goal of 60k. THATS A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. Let me say it again. THAT'S A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. I thought, that since I hadn't worked every day in November for at least an hour, and still finished, I thought that I could write every day in April and finish with extra words. Fast forward through April, and you end up with me tired of my book around the 30k mark, because I didn't develop it well enough, hence why I'm a plotter, and I was bored with the story. Fast forward again, now I decide I can't write 60k and decide to go change it when, you guessed it, the winning began THAT DAY. So then, I'm writing flash fiction and working on expanding the flash fiction into short stories, because I was really bad at expansion in books. Basically, I ended up on the last day of writing, with 10k left to write. THAT'S A BIG WORDCOUNT GOAL. I woke up at three o'clock, A.M., and began writing. By 11 o' clock, I had finished. I then went to Physics class (home schooled) and spent three hours in a class that required brain power I didn't have.
Now here's a peek into my personality. I consider myself good at math. So, when I see numbers, and that I finished 10k in 8 hours, guess what? I begin to calculate (There's that word again). If I write for 16 hours a day, for 5 days straight, I can write 100k in 5 days. I've often read that writing fast is a good thing. So, normally, I would begin catching up on sleep, stocking up on chocolate and coffee, putting my word count goal to 100k, and any other manner of things. But instead, I'm doing the smart thing this July. I'm setting my word count goal to 10k, and I'm not gonna stress. (Though next April, 600k, here I come! Actually, just kidding, but that would be cool, wouldn't it?)
Ever tried NaNoWriMo? Do YOU like it? Let me know in the comments!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Saturday, June 27, 2015
My NaNoWriMo Survival kit!
Oh dear. NaNoWriMo. One of the stressful things writers do for fun. Actually, everything we do is stressful, and fun, in my opinion. Well, NaNo certainly does have its pros and cons, but I'm not here to talk about that. I'm here to talk about my personal NaNo survival kit.
Okay, before I get into what I use for it, I'll have you know a bit about it, in case you don't. NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month. It's an event that takes place in November in which you write (Or try to, but I have Yoda in the back of my head and I don't want to let him down) 50,000 words. Normally I write "50k", but seeing all five digits makes it a bit more impressive, and I think adds a bit more perspective to how hard it is. Especially since many of us procrastinate (I really TRY not to, but right now I'm in the "do not" phase. But I'm moving up!), it's hard to get in our daily word count goal. So, I won't ramble on about this, when I could be telling you about my survival kit. More on this later!
So my NaNoWriMo kit includes.
1. A Plan. Without a plan, I am hopeless, as I have said before. Maybe one of these days I'll actually go Pantser, but lets face it, I am a mess without a plan of attack. (I don't even try to say I'm a pantser anymore)
2. Chocolate. Or, chick oats, as my family likes to call it, which now that I think about it, makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, but hey! What are families for but not making sense but still being lovable?
3. Coffee. Yes, I am a coffee drinker, and tea too. I have no preference, just some days I want one more than the other. Though coffee and writing just seem to go together in America. Probably if I were British I would say tea and writing.
4. A word processor (Obviously). Because if I didn't have one, I would never be able to fill the word goal in that space of time. Writing about 1.5k a day by hand just doesn't seem appealing.
5. Connection to the Internet. So I can tell them I won! *cough cough* What are you talking about, twitter? *cough cough* Social media *cough cough*
6. Sleep. And the audience goes "What?!" Yeah yeah, I know. Of course I don't need sleep, but it's still nostalgic, okay? But still, though I've proven that I don't need sleep (More on that later), it is a nice thing to have, on occasion.
7. Support. No, really. I don't do well without people to let down, and I mean that seriously. If people put their faith in me, it helps me, because I don't want to let them down. Contrariwise, If someone says they don't think I can do it, I helps me to have an obstacle to overcome. I guess I just need people to know I'm doing something really hard, and they'll fill out the rest.
8. PEN AND PAPER. What if I have new ideas? What if I need to change a plot point? What if I accidentally change my Main Character's hair length mid book? These are all valid points, hence why I keep a notebook and pen on me at all times. At least a pen, so if push comes to shove, I can write on myself. I normally do the latter when I'm in bed, so I don't have to get up to write something down. I'll make a little note about the prompt of the idea. Say the idea was "artifact" then that led me to all these different points. All I would do is write "artifact" on my hand, or wrist, or ankle. Careful what color pen you decide to use on your wrist though. Using the wrong color can make for a few uncomfortable experiences (Yeah, that's happened to me. Also a story for another time.). I also write in code, so if people see weird words on me, they won't know what they mean. Whovians might freak out if I wrote silence, and many other instances could make for explanations I don't care to give. Code works, people! Use it (Only if you want to. Remember, it's all your own method. Spit out the parts that don't work for you.).
I think that's it, so ta ta for now! (Isn't that an acronym? Like, TTFN.)
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Okay, before I get into what I use for it, I'll have you know a bit about it, in case you don't. NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month. It's an event that takes place in November in which you write (Or try to, but I have Yoda in the back of my head and I don't want to let him down) 50,000 words. Normally I write "50k", but seeing all five digits makes it a bit more impressive, and I think adds a bit more perspective to how hard it is. Especially since many of us procrastinate (I really TRY not to, but right now I'm in the "do not" phase. But I'm moving up!), it's hard to get in our daily word count goal. So, I won't ramble on about this, when I could be telling you about my survival kit. More on this later!
So my NaNoWriMo kit includes.
1. A Plan. Without a plan, I am hopeless, as I have said before. Maybe one of these days I'll actually go Pantser, but lets face it, I am a mess without a plan of attack. (I don't even try to say I'm a pantser anymore)
2. Chocolate. Or, chick oats, as my family likes to call it, which now that I think about it, makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, but hey! What are families for but not making sense but still being lovable?
3. Coffee. Yes, I am a coffee drinker, and tea too. I have no preference, just some days I want one more than the other. Though coffee and writing just seem to go together in America. Probably if I were British I would say tea and writing.
4. A word processor (Obviously). Because if I didn't have one, I would never be able to fill the word goal in that space of time. Writing about 1.5k a day by hand just doesn't seem appealing.
5. Connection to the Internet. So I can tell them I won! *cough cough* What are you talking about, twitter? *cough cough* Social media *cough cough*
6. Sleep. And the audience goes "What?!" Yeah yeah, I know. Of course I don't need sleep, but it's still nostalgic, okay? But still, though I've proven that I don't need sleep (More on that later), it is a nice thing to have, on occasion.
7. Support. No, really. I don't do well without people to let down, and I mean that seriously. If people put their faith in me, it helps me, because I don't want to let them down. Contrariwise, If someone says they don't think I can do it, I helps me to have an obstacle to overcome. I guess I just need people to know I'm doing something really hard, and they'll fill out the rest.
8. PEN AND PAPER. What if I have new ideas? What if I need to change a plot point? What if I accidentally change my Main Character's hair length mid book? These are all valid points, hence why I keep a notebook and pen on me at all times. At least a pen, so if push comes to shove, I can write on myself. I normally do the latter when I'm in bed, so I don't have to get up to write something down. I'll make a little note about the prompt of the idea. Say the idea was "artifact" then that led me to all these different points. All I would do is write "artifact" on my hand, or wrist, or ankle. Careful what color pen you decide to use on your wrist though. Using the wrong color can make for a few uncomfortable experiences (Yeah, that's happened to me. Also a story for another time.). I also write in code, so if people see weird words on me, they won't know what they mean. Whovians might freak out if I wrote silence, and many other instances could make for explanations I don't care to give. Code works, people! Use it (Only if you want to. Remember, it's all your own method. Spit out the parts that don't work for you.).
I think that's it, so ta ta for now! (Isn't that an acronym? Like, TTFN.)
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Friday, June 26, 2015
What Tools Do I Use to Write?
Hey guys! Okay, so everybody has different tools they use for writing and sometimes it's fun to see if anyone does something different. That's what I'm doing, showing you the tools I use to write.
The question is "what tools do I write?" And the answer is: Well, for plotting, I like to use permanent marker and post its. I'll add a pen in too, occasionally. I've also used white board to easily write things down and change them if I don't like them. Then I'll transfer the notes on that to my sticky notes.
Something else I like to use for plotting is just good ol' pen and paper, but that's not as fun.
For the actual writing process I'll use my laptop, mostly. I really want to start writing it down in pen first, because I agree with what one blogger said and that's that if you use pen and paper for your fist draft, it's helpful for editing, and you don't have to worry about the computer deleting it. While I do want to do that, I find that I don't have enough paper right now, and no funds in my pocket to buy any, so I'm sticking to my laptop. I'll also occasionally use my phone if I'm on the go, but that's tedious sometimes. Programs I use on my laptop are:
Scrivener. This is an extremely cool AND extremely organized word processor. I bought it using the winners goodies from NaNoWriMo 2014, and as of yet, I haven't regretted it.
Pages. This is the Mac's natural word processor, and sometimes I like to skip the fancy stuff and get right down to business (anyone else singing a Disney song in their head?).
iCloud. This is really helpful. At the end of the day, I'll back my work up onto my pages on iCloud, which makes it easily accessible from anywhere that has a device and Internet.
YouTube, Pandora, and Spotify. I know YouTube is not generally a music place, but sometimes if I don't want suggested music from Spotify or Pandora and just want to listen to a single album (my spotify doesn't work on the computer sometimes) I'll use YouTube, but that is rare. Pandora and Spotify kind of speak for themselves. Music.
Alphasmart Neo. Now I don't have one of these yet, but I thought I'd put it down because I am highly anticipating getting it (I'm going to get one soon). This is a word processor that does not connect to the Internet. It's basically a digital typewriter, without the distraction from the Internet and Gallaga like the computer does. (Yes that was an obscure reference to the Avengers). Sounds cool, right?
For editing I like to use the traditional red pen and printed out manuscript, but like I said, we're low on paper, so I'm not quite sure what I'll do this time around. Guess we'll have to wait and see, eh?
Well, thanks for reading, and hope your day is excellent! Au revoir!
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Thursday, June 25, 2015
Plotting
Okay, So I'm a plotter. A really big one. If I don't plot, my story falls to bits in my hands while I mourn the death of a beloved idea.
So, the big question is, HOW IN THE WORLD DOES ONE PLOT??? Right? Well, I'm here to tell you that, just like all things in writing, there is no one right way to plot. The best thing you can do, is try someone's method and spit out the parts that don't work for you. But of course, if you're coming here to learn my method, what I just said is not helpful at all. So lets get into my own plotting process, and what I've tried, and stuff.
So, I began my serious writing journey as a plotter, and though the idea of me being a pantser (Someone who just goes where his/her ideas take him/her) seems nice, I don't think I will ever be one. The first thing I tried was what was natural. I hadn't looked at anyone else's methods, I was just left to my own devices. What I would do was I would list the chapters, and write out a certain amount of material for each chapter. Something I thought would fill ten pages (My perspective was wacky back then and I thought I could write ten pages a day) is what I would write in my little chapter slots, and I've got no clue to this day how in the world I met the quota of ten pages every time.
Ex. Character A goes to forest to gather supplies. Meets Character B. Returns. Has conversation with Character C. Goes back to forest to retrieve misplaced object. Another conversation.
And that would be one chapter's notes. Sometimes I would go further, or less.
My next method was obtained through a youtube video by Katytastic. She talked about her plotting tools, and I used them. One was the snowflake method, which I personally felt didn't cover enough ground for me, and didn't tell me enough about my book. The other was something called Phases, which was really similar to my above method, but I never actually went as in depth as it suggested and just ended up right back at my old vague method.
So, in May, I got a book called "The Art of War for Writers"by James Scott Bell (Which I would definitely recommend), and found a few helpful things about plot and such, and which all added to my expertise. At the moment, I'm adding everything I've learned together and throwing it onto a storyboard. I find the story board the most helpful, as I'm very scatter brained, and it helps me get everything in one place, rather than one idea written down in twelve different ways on twelve different pieces of paper, because I lost the last piece of paper. Plot boarding, or storyboarding helps me to get everything in one place, and the best part is, is that I can move stuff about, if I don't like something somewhere.
So, those are my plotting methods. What are yours?
-Viola June HFA-DGN
So, the big question is, HOW IN THE WORLD DOES ONE PLOT??? Right? Well, I'm here to tell you that, just like all things in writing, there is no one right way to plot. The best thing you can do, is try someone's method and spit out the parts that don't work for you. But of course, if you're coming here to learn my method, what I just said is not helpful at all. So lets get into my own plotting process, and what I've tried, and stuff.
So, I began my serious writing journey as a plotter, and though the idea of me being a pantser (Someone who just goes where his/her ideas take him/her) seems nice, I don't think I will ever be one. The first thing I tried was what was natural. I hadn't looked at anyone else's methods, I was just left to my own devices. What I would do was I would list the chapters, and write out a certain amount of material for each chapter. Something I thought would fill ten pages (My perspective was wacky back then and I thought I could write ten pages a day) is what I would write in my little chapter slots, and I've got no clue to this day how in the world I met the quota of ten pages every time.
Ex. Character A goes to forest to gather supplies. Meets Character B. Returns. Has conversation with Character C. Goes back to forest to retrieve misplaced object. Another conversation.
And that would be one chapter's notes. Sometimes I would go further, or less.
My next method was obtained through a youtube video by Katytastic. She talked about her plotting tools, and I used them. One was the snowflake method, which I personally felt didn't cover enough ground for me, and didn't tell me enough about my book. The other was something called Phases, which was really similar to my above method, but I never actually went as in depth as it suggested and just ended up right back at my old vague method.
So, in May, I got a book called "The Art of War for Writers"by James Scott Bell (Which I would definitely recommend), and found a few helpful things about plot and such, and which all added to my expertise. At the moment, I'm adding everything I've learned together and throwing it onto a storyboard. I find the story board the most helpful, as I'm very scatter brained, and it helps me get everything in one place, rather than one idea written down in twelve different ways on twelve different pieces of paper, because I lost the last piece of paper. Plot boarding, or storyboarding helps me to get everything in one place, and the best part is, is that I can move stuff about, if I don't like something somewhere.
So, those are my plotting methods. What are yours?
-Viola June HFA-DGN
Welcome!
Welcome to my blog, "the Light of Writing"! Well, I'll have you know that I'm very appreciative of you being here, and that there'll be new posts every week. (My week starts with Sunday, and ends on Saturday). But don't be surprised, should a new post pop up when I've already posted that week.
Anyways, thanks!
Anyways, thanks!
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