Planning

I think the best way to do it is the way that works best for you. Try planning every little thing, try writing by the seat of your pants, and try everything in between. Pick the one that works. I think there are probably as many ways to plan as there are writers - maybe more.
Personally, I'm going for outlining the major points and pantsing the bits in between.

And now I'm going to stand back and watch the regular battle fight friendly discussion between outliners and pantsers ensue.

JimmyB27 said:

IPick the one that works. I think there are probably as many ways to plan as there are writers - maybe more.
Personally, I'm going for outlining the major points and pantsing the bits in between.

Click to expand...

Yup - any way that works for you. I barely plan, works for me. I know someone whose plan runs pretty much the length of the book, a full length sysnopsis if you like, and he goes back to put it all into show rather than tell -- I'd rather stick pins in my eyes, but it works for him.

And now I'm going to stand back and watch the regular battle fight friendly discussion between outliners and pantsers ensue.

Click to expand...

I have a mackerel, if anyone wants to fish-duel

I write short biographies of my main characters, so they stay in character no matter where the story goes. I know the general line the story will take but I like the characters to tell their own story to a certain extent. They seem to know better than I do what happened (well, it happened to them after all, didn't it?).

Hi Ronan.

Here's a link to another thread on the same topic -less than a day old. In the Basic Writing Questions sub-Forum above this one.

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=96476

It happens, Ronan. This is a huge site.

Welcome, and take time to browse around the many sub-Forums.

In this sub-Forum there's a Thread called Learn Writing with Uncle Jim. It's long, but well worth the effort of reading. There is an index to that thread at the top of the sub-Forums listing, one page back from here.

But this link will take you to the start of the thread:

http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6710

Ronan said:

Hey, my first question on here, and it's to do with the first part of writing fiction

Just trying to gather different opinions on how is a good way to plan novel writing, once the idea is in your head. Are your plans usually quite long? And are there planning elements you always include?

What I'm doing at the moment is writing several rewrites of my plot out line, pages and pages on characters (background, looks, personality etc) and collecting images of important settings

Click to expand...

If this is what works for you, then do it. I do not outline. If I outline I feel like the novel is set in stone and HAS to go that way. I lose my freedom to let the story go wherever it wants to go. Obviously some kind of mental block but that's how it is with me. I do, however, paper my walls with pictures of people, places, buildings, maps and plans. I construct my novel in my head and only put scenes on paper when I get to them. I'm loosely familiar with a beginning, middle and end but if I get there and the characters feel forced in that direction then I go their way.
Linnea

JimmyB27 said:

I think the best way to do it is the way that works best for you. Try planning every little thing, try writing by the seat of your pants, and try everything in between. Pick the one that works. I think there are probably as many ways to plan as there are writers - maybe more.

Click to expand...

Right on. And be aware that how you work may change from book to book, and even over time in your career.

I'm a jump-right-in, seat-of-the-pants guy. But recently, while working on Book X, I kept getting ideas for a Book Y. So I scribbled down short notes so I wouldn't forget the ideas/scenes. And, guess what? I ended up with something like an outline by accident.

I'm going to move tihs to basic writing questions, and ask the nice mods there to merge it with the other thread on the same topic, or otherwise deal with the duplicate

Lately, when I start a new project, I start by outlining the primary setting, the primary events that I want to happen during the story, and main characters.

Then, I expand on the story points and separate them into chapters. Once I have several chapters outlined, I start the actual writing part.

In my current WIP, I know 3 or 4 major plot points, places where the story just has to go to, but I improvise the route taken in between.

Also, listen to your characters. In my current WIP, I had Jade laugh at a remark of Ben's, but when I went over and read it, I thought, "ho, there, Jade wouldn't laugh. She would be terribly offended by Ben's remark!" and viola!, I just got a conflict going, and a new twist in the plot!