Daily Five Minute Plotting
As you sit down to begin your daily writing session, take a minimum of five minutes to jot down the basics of whatever needs to come next. Maybe it's a new scene, or some dialogue, or some character development, whatever. Just brain storm and let your creative juices flow.
Use at least five minutes, but you can keep going longer if you're on a roll. This exercise gives you enough direction to make decent progress until your next writing session. It doesn't matter if you end up using what you brainstormed or if your story veers in another direction. Either way, it will help you get going and make better use of your time in the long run.
I'm a pantser. I mean yes, I have a very basic outline (in my head) with the beginning and end and a few pivotal scenes. I know my characters and their ultimate goals and their character arc, but that's about it.
Taking the time at the beginning of each writing session to analyze where I am in the story and what needs to come next really helps me get going.
Good luck NaNoers!
I am going to do this. I keep trying to outline and I hate it so much. I like creating character sketches and basic plot points first. Other than that, I can't help jotting a few lines of scenes down because I need to write to understand my story. This is a good exercise for us who don't like all the structure.
ReplyDeleteIt's definitely a good way to go if you don't like all the structure because your plotting ideas can change from day to day as your story evolves.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder! I seriously need to do this every time I sit down to write.
ReplyDeleteI like letting my characters tell my story for me so I have my basic idea written out on paper, my list of characters, what big events I want to happen, and what I want my hero to accomplish in the end. Since I am so confident in my minimal prepping for this huge task I am sure I will crash and burn hahaha. I do like your tip of taking that time before you write to get your mind right with where your story is and where you want it to go.
ReplyDeletePantser? Is that someone who enjoys pantsing people??
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