The Basics – Plotting

If you’ve never put a story together before then it is very easy to (literally *snort*) lose the plot. Even though most of us have a basic understanding of “beginning, middle, end” it can be surprisingly difficult to recognise the different parts, and to see if certain parts would be better in different places. You’re creating a puzzle with the end image in mind and trying to cut out the pieces on the way. This can be challenging, frustrating, and frequently exciting.

Pantser vs Plotter

If you haven’t heard the above terms then let me give you the quick low-down. 

Plotter – someone who plans their books out.

Pantser – someone who doesn’t plot, but instead “flies by the seat of their pants” and completely allows the characters to lead them.

In all honesty, writers are usually a bit of both. Very rarely will you have a writer who is such a complete pantser that they don’t have the slightest clue what happens at the end of their tale. As whimsical and fun as declaring yourself a “pantser” might be, it does give rise to ever increasing anxiety if the muses aren’t speaking to you but your deadline is. And the same goes for plotting, while you may have plotted your story out to the point of scene by scene, there’s a fairly good chance at some point along the way your characters will turn the tides on you and change their route.

The method I prefer, having written my first book entirely “pantser”, my second kinda plotted and my third definitely plotted, is to plot. With my book AfterBurn I plotted it so well that when it came to writing the story I blasted the first draft out in just one month. A month for my longest novel, 150k+ words. Not bad at all! (Though I should preface – the plotting took a couple of years, sometimes you just gotta let things percolate).

Below is a screenshot of the excel sheet I use to initially develop my plot.

To use this successfully I suggest the following steps. Now please keep in mind, unless you’re intending to pop out a book a month (more power to you, I personally can’t stand the thought but many, many successful indies are doing this), you will want to plot, then ponder, then revise your plot. 

What do I mean by this?

Get your rough plot notched out using the steps below. Then DON’T START WRITING YET. Take time to think about your plot. Really envision it in your mind as if you’re watching a movie. Discuss it with a trusted someone (someone who isn’t a downer, but ideally has a good feeling for plots. Probably an avid reader and movie watcher – someone you think would be a “great” movie critic). My trusted someone (my other-half) is great to discuss ideas with. He’ll frequently shoot stuff down, or go off on other tangents, but his open thoughts always, always cause exciting breakthroughs for me.

This is also the perfect time to watch documentaries or movies on similar topics to what you’re plotting, or to create Pinterest boards and trawl YouTube for ideas. The beginning plotting stage is the MOST EXCITING stage of writing (until the next most exciting stage *grin* there’s always times to cherish!). Once you’ve done a week/month/year or even more of this (writing should be inspired, if you’re not inspired then take a little more time to find that inspiration) you’ll find your plot will probably change. Sometimes a little, more often a lot! I find that by plotting this way I have less of a first draft/second draft/eighth draft situation, and more of a single draft, with edits. This, when you’ve got a pile of books in your head waiting to be written, helps in the long run.

Steps to consider before using my plotting spreadsheet.

1. Characters and their relationships – current AND future (giving you space to plan in those future relationships)
2. Timeline – how old is your character and what age are they by the end of the story?
3. Both your protagonist and antagonists timelines – I’d suggest using different colours so you know that while your protagonist is off levelling up their training, you know your antagonist is pottering around <insert location> up to <insert evil deeds>. While the reader might never know the particulars, it will allow you as the creator to make sense of those later times where the antagonist appears, allowing for a more in-depth reader experience when your timeline/experiences etc all line up

I could make this list a mile long with extra things to think about, but there are other in-depth plotting books out there – here are a few that come highly recommended on Amazon (these are affiliate links). Personally, I find the only way to really learn plotting, is to do it. Again and again. 

Good luck!

Recommended Books

Fool Proof Outline: A No-Nonsense System for Productive Brainstorming, Outlining, & Drafting Novels (Fool Proof Writer Book 1) 

Rock Your Plot: A Simple System for Plotting Your Novel (Rock Your Writing Book 1)

Outlining Your Novel: Map Your Way to Success (Helping Writers Become Authors Book 1)

So you’ve got a great idea …

So you’ve got an idea for a story (or a partial/full draft).

Congrats! It is a super thrilling sensation to have a developing idea that is so strong in your mind you find yourself driven to put it down in words. Rather like realising a sudden overwhelming desire to compete in a marathon, (*laughs* not that that’s ever occurred to me, but I assume this must be a similar desire given the outcome is a very tedious slog until the delicious sensation of passing the finish line), you are in for a journey. You need to pace yourself and be kind to yourself to complete this journey in a way that won’t leave you swearing off it for life.

When I began writing I didn’t intend on sharing it. It was simply an interesting experience to see if I could write a story. About half-way through said story, I began to think others might enjoy it too.

You may be debating whether or not you should share your tale. And this really is an important question to consider. Once you’ve written and published your work it is then out there for all to see. In a later post I’ll discuss reviews, but right now you just need to think “would I be upset if Joe Blog from next door read my book?”

Keep in mind, that your story is a part of you. And people may read your tale and see you through very different eyes after that. This is not intended to put you off publishing, merely to remind you of the very real PUBLIC reality of book publishing. Sure, maybe only three people will read it. But maybe, just maybe, thousands or even millions will read it. It may not be fame aka Kim Kardashian style, but it still can amount to a massive audience of strangers clinging to words you’ve created.

SO the very first question in this Indie Author journey is: do you want to share your story with the world?

If yes, then watch out for the next article. Below is the list of the posts I will be sharing.

• The basics – you’ve got an idea (or even a partial/full draft) and you’re thinking of publishing it
• The basics – plotting
• The basics – how to plan a trilogy, or serial
• The basics – editing
• The basics – covers (ebook & paperback) and all that jazz
• The basics – copyrights, do you have one/need one/want one?
• Why self-publishing is preferable (for some) over traditional routes
• How to format an ebook, including: ISBN’s – what they are and where to find them – Mobi/Epub and Smashwords – future thinking (i.e paperback)
• Exclusivity – what does that mean for an indie author, and should you do it?
• Print books – what are your options, and why consider one?
• How to – formatting for Print, tips, tricks, and great links!
• Audio – should you? Shouldn’t you? And if you want to, some great tips and links
• Book Marketing – the basics
• Book Marketing – 52 sites in 52 weeks, an experiment
• Book Marketing – the email list
• Book Marketing – Instagram
• Book Marketing – Pinstagram
• Book Marketing – Facebook
• Book Marketing – Those author “courses” every writer and their dog is selling
• Book Marketing – reviews: the good, the bad, and the ugly

The journey to becoming a self-published author – How to and how NOT to

I began my journey as an indie (independent, aka self-published) author in 2008. Having begun a new job that was a definite step back in chaos, I found myself bored. But I refused to be one of “those” front desk girls: looking bored while flipping through a magazine etc.

Instead it occurred to me, given I was already chained to a computer — why not make the most of it? And that is how my foray into self-publishing began.

Over ten years later and there are many things I would do differently now. Aside from the fact that I was ahead of the game (Amazon started accepting self-published ebooks in 2007, with the introduction of its nifty new device, the Kindle) so had it easy in many aspects (not hard to be #1 when the pool of books was minimal…), I didn’t approach anything particularly logically; as you discover once you’ve muddled your way through something new a couple of times.

The Indie Chronicles is going to be a series of blog posts designed for people who:

• Want to write and self-publish
• Are writing and ready to self-publish
• Have self-published but would like to look at their methods
• Are self-published and are interested in seeing different approaches to it

Each month I’ll be aiming to publish at least one blog piece that will ideally assist any of the above creators in making logical and practical decisions for themselves in this ever evolving indie world.

The key mantra being: Keep it Simple