There is a different starting point for every project, and each writer tackles their projects in different ways. I am what they would call a “pantser” (writing by the seat of my pants), sometimes known as a discovery writer. A pantser is the opposite of a plotter, who organizes their whole plot in varying degrees of detail before they start writing anything. I like the idea of being a plotter, I’ve even done it, but it doesn’t work for me. On my current project, I’ve known from the beginning exactly where the story needed to end, because I’ve already written the next book. (After struggling with the beginning of the now second book, which was really just a big flashback, it finally dawned on me that the flashback was its own story. I was so right.) So this was a story that completely lent itself to outlining. Have I followed that outline at all? Maybe one chapter. Sort of.

So, back to the point of this essay. Eureka moments! I suppose plotters have those as well, as they are laying out their plot. But I’m sure Eureka moments are just a little more fun when you aren’t quite sure what you are going to put on the paper next, and suddenly the whole story is as clear as a bell. Rich, our Read & Critique group instructor, gets all the credit for inspiring this one. I had a chapter with a happy, rather sappy conclusion. Nothing wrong with that, it had started out stressful, so it was balanced. But he said, “you need a ‘but’” at the end of that chapter”. His suggestion sounded right. The first ‘but’ I thought of, my immediate reaction was ‘no’. And I knew that had to be it. I thought on it all weekend, and suddenly THE WHOLE book fell into place. It fixed my character arc, it added two more layers, it was perfect.

So, now, we’ll see how I do following my new outline.