There’s a small pile of chocolate wrappers on my daily log book and in front of my new plotting board, clear evidence the whole pre-plotting isn’t making the first draft completely easy-peasy, but it’s still coming along. 😉
So since I last posted, I’ve made some alterations to my plotting board, things that made it work better for me.
The first thing you might notice is that there are fewer large index cards and more little sticky notes. This was because I found, especially in the first draft stage, that I don’t know all of the details to fill in each plot point, and that some of the plot points I had on there really weren’t working for me. So, I kept only those that were working for me, and then I’ve made up the rest with sticky notes.
This time the colours matter too. Since I write romance, I made the primary romance beats (first kiss, first time they make love, etc) in pink. The great thing about the sticky notes is that although I thought one point would end up in act 1, it didn’t, but I can easily move the sticky note over to make sure I include it in act 2. The easily moveable notes also mean I can change my mind and add / delete notes as I see fit, which is fab.
Down below I’ve also included my all-important “story book.” I used to cheap out and use one notebook for whatever story ideas came to me, but especially as I’ve gotten more into series development, I’ve switched instead to having notebooks dedicated to each new WIP. This one, because it’s the first book, will also include notes that will become part of the other books in the series. Essentially, this is where I scribble down anything that occurs to me – which may or may not make it into the book. From here I may make sticky notes and add them to the plotting board. You’ll also notice the pieces of paper stuck into the book. More on those another day. 🙂
Oh, and the other addition I’ve made are the note cards spelling out general requirements for the act that I’ve got at the top of each act. This kind of helps guide me into what should be included in each act, and just as important, what I might be missing right now.
So what do you think? How’s your plotting going?
I know, super short post, but I’m supposed to be writing a new chapter. So back to the plotting board to figure out what it needs to include. 😉
Thanks for stopping by, and wishing you happy writing!! 🙂
This is so interesting! I love learning about how other people plot. I’m sort of in the middle between plotting and pantsing, but I don’t have a system that works for me 100% of the time. I’m thinking I might try to really plot my next project, though.
Thanks for stopping by. 🙂 I love hearing how others plot too. I’m totally with you on the part plotting, part pantsing. That’s why I tried the plotting board – to try and make those first drafts less crappy. But I think it’s also why I like the sticky notes – less commitment to figuring it all out first time around. 😉