P is for Pantster
I was at the SCBWI Carolina's conference in 2011 when I first heard the term "pantser". The delightful Beth Revis was giving a talk on her writing process, including the years of not-so-great novels that preceded her rocking debut "Across the Universe", and she called herself a pantser.
I perked up and listened. Finally, I had found a term for the chaotic, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants style that has always been a part of my creative process.
I felt validated: here was another author who was admitting that she worked in as much of a messy way as I do. Since then, I have met many authors who consider themselves pantsers, and each encounter is liberating.
I had felt for so long that because I don't follow an outline in lock stop, because I don't know ahead of time EXACTLY what my characters will say and do, that I was somehow less than as a writer. This is not to say that I don't have structure when I work: I do, but it's loose and less linear than some people.
And that's okay. My writing process works for me. That's the whole point, right?
I am a pantser, and proud of it.
How do you write? Are you a pantser or a planner?
Visit the challenge blog and see what other people are talking about for P! Can you believe how far we've come?