So, there are my two methods. (The pictures, of course.)
I’m trying very hard to use the plotting board. My version is a scaled-down version due to space limitations, using sticky flags instead of sticky notes. And I just keep moving those puppies around…and around and around and around.
The sketchbook method came from a friend of mine. She said she used a sketchbook, so I thought at this point I’ll try anything. There’s a good chance hers is very neat and flow-charty, but this is what’s been working for me lately.
My new plan is to use the sketchpad for big, brainstorming stuff, and then, from that, list scenes I need to illustrate the stuff on the sketchpad onto sticky flags, then try to organize them on the board.
I think there might be a Mike’s Hard Lemonade in the back of the fridge left there by company two years ago or so. If I drink it with a straw, it might be enough to make me not care that I have two green flags, one pink flag, and one yellow flag in the first chapter. That means something.
I’m almost sure of it
Comment
4 Comments:
Jaci Burton said…
ummmm…..errr…..that stuff looks scary *g*
Best advice I can give…do what WORKS for you and don’t get bogged down in the details and how-tos’.
I write a messy, ugly-as-hell plotting synopsis before I write the book….peppered with lots of ‘annnnnnnnnnnnnnnd dennnnnnnnnnnnnnn’s’ *snicker*
I use it as a guideline, but the characters invariably end up careening off in another direction. I’ve learned that it’s best to let them tell their story. They know it better than I do anyway.
But seriously…just find something that works for you and isn’t so complex you need to be a Mensa member to figure it out. Then just write the damn story and don’t overthink it *g*
Jaci
12:04 PM
Anna Lucia said…
Now I know why at times I’m convinced I’m going insane. And why when I get OUT of a book, it takes so long to get back IN to it.
I try and keep all that stuff (and I mean ALL of it) in my head.
I MUST be insane to even try….
12:11 PM
Breezy said…
As Jaci said, find what works for you. I know a lot of authors have success with a tabbed notebook, using each section for a character or a major plot arc.
Above all, just write. The rest will fall into place at some point!
9:19 AM
Shannon said…
Since the cat ran off with the hero’s reaction to the heroine’s resistance to him, the husband used a major plot point to jot down a number, and I found the secondary character’s black moment marking a page in the tall kid’s book, I’m thinking the sticky flags aren’t going to work.
I can can threated the boys of the house, but the cats just don’t listen.
The notebook idea sounds intriguing. I think for me it’s a matter of patience, though. With the sketchpad I can scribble as fast as the ideas form and merge. With paper, spreadsheets, etc, I feel a need to be neat.
But I could put what I’ve scribbled into an organized notebook. Hmmmmmmmmm……
10:44 AM