I just came back from a writer’s meeting. We had three guest speakers from the Fog City Divas today, Allison Brennan, Monica McCarty, and Candace Hern. The topic was Plotting.

Ah, the bug-a-boo of novice writers. How do you plot? What makes a good plot? Should you plot or not plot?

The three writers use systems that range from totally organic writing, (just dive right in, start writing, work your way from beginning to end,) to getting an idea and a short synopsis on paper before you write, to the completely anal plot everything, including genealogy and scene by scene outlining before you start.

I tend to fall closer to the anal side of the writing spectrum. I must know where my story is headed and where the turning points are before I begin. I absolutely must know everything I can possibly know about the characters and plot before I can start. If I don’t do this, I have writer’s block. Or I end up rewriting until the story dies on the vine.

I admire people who can just sit down at a keyboard and start writing. I admire people who can start with a small idea and turn it into a big novel. I admire people who are so organized that they can plot everything before they start. In short, I admire writers.

Whichever way you find that works for you, is the right way to do it. Don’t believe the writing books that tell you their way is the only way. If that were true, there wouldn’t be so many different books about writing at the bookstore.

Experiment.

Try different methods.

When you find the one that’s right for you, you’ll know it.