Writing Words for Nerds #AtoZChallenge—O is for Outline. Do you need one?

Do you need an outline? The answer is...it depends. 

Those who write outlines are called outliners (duh!), and those who don’t are called “pantsers,” which refers to how they write by the proverbial seat of their pants.

I recently ran a survey in a Facebook writer’s group I belong to, and what I discovered surprised me. While there are more pantsers than people who consider themselves outliners, the biggest group was made up of people who consider themselves both! Sometimes they outline, and sometimes they don’t. Some will outline the beginning and then let the story work itself out from there. Others outline certain kinds of projects but not others.

Me? I’m an outliner. Not only do I need to outline the entire book before I sit down to write it, I also need to outline individual chapters before I write them. I like to outline the next thing I have to write when I finish writing for the day. It gives me something to work toward when I return to the manuscript. I have a terrible sense of direction, and the outline is my road map. I need one, so I don’t get lost. For me, being a pantser just isn’t an option.

But I don’t just need to have an outline; I LIKE having one. It means that I can always “start with dessert.” I know what all the scenes are and where they go, so I can start with the scene or conversation I’m most excited about. And I do. My full outlines have bits of dialogue and some fully fleshed out scenes in it, because those are the desserts I’ve already eaten. I only move onto the things that aren’t dessert when I’ve eaten all the desserts I can. And you know what? Very often I find the things that I’m not really excited about writing don’t need to be written at all. It’s cool how that works out.

I know that many outliners feel that pantsers should be outliners too, but I’m not one of them. I believe you should do what works for you, and if that’s writing without an outline, then you should definitely do that.

Some pantsers think that outliners should be pantser, too. Very often it’s because they see an outline as something that restricts creativity. Being a pantser gives them freedom to take their story anywhere at any time. I don’t like getting lost, but for many pantsers, that’s a part of the joy of writing. They love getting lost in their story, discovering it as they go along, and seeing where it leads. They love discovering the characters and being surprised, just like a reader would.

Again, that’s not me. I don’t enjoy getting lost. I’d rather fly straight to Orlando, check into a hotel I’ve researched well so I know what to expect, and take Disney transportation into Disney World, a detailed schedule of what I’m going to do in each of the parks tucked away in my bag. Have a great time getting lost and wrestling alligators in a Florida swamp, pantsers. It sounds exciting. It’s just not my idea of fun.

And outlines really aren’t as restrictive as many pantsers seem to think. Who says that just because you have a detailed schedule in your hand you have to pass up a better opportunity if one comes along? Outlines are flexible. They can be rewritten. And it’s a lot easier to rewrite a five page outline than it is to rewrite a 250-page book, which is what most pantsers who write novels end up having to do.

Some strict outliners and pantsers don’t see it as a choice.

Some outliners say, “I can’t write without knowing where I’m going.” Are you sure? Have you ever tried it? Who knows, it might be fun.

And some pantsers say, “How can I write an outline if I don’t know where my story is going? I don’t have a plot. I just have these characters. I don’t know what they’re going to do until they do it.” Then how do you know they’re good characters? How do you know they have a story worth telling? Of course, if it turns out they aren’t and they don’t, you can always rewrite the whole thing. Me? I have too many great characters with stories that I’ve already fully outlined in my head, and not enough time to follow around characters who may or may not get anywhere. Of course, it’s the finished result that matters, not how you get there.

The answer to what you can do if you’re an outliner who wants to be a pantser is easy: just do it! 

It may be scary, but maybe that’s a good thing. And if you find yourself stuck, just give yourself a timer and a goal. How does 500 words in an hour sound? Don’t be surprised if after the hour is up, you feel the urge to write more.  

The answer for the pantser who wants to be an outliner is a little more complicated: instead of being a long-form pantser, writing every little detail as you go along, try being a pantser of a short story.

You can write on paper, but you can also write it in your head. Just go and get lost in your story, but try not to do it for more than a page. If you need to, add another page. And another. It could be a series of short stories with the same characters and a single character arc. You can keep writing those short stories until you find a satisfying end to that character arc. And then you’re done. You’ve just pretty much pantsed your way to an outline.

I hope this helps, or at least gives you some food for thought. Again, there’s no right or wrong way. There’s only what works for you, and you won’t know what that is until you’ve tried both options.   

Writing Words for Nerds #AtoZChallenge--A is for Action

Five days left to the A to Z Challenge.

There are only five days left to the A to Z Challenge for April of this year.

What’s the point in even starting this late?

I only found out about the challenge a few days ago. I noticed this hashtag on Twitter, and so I asked one of my friends who tweeted it. “What’s the #AtoZChallenge?” She didn’t answer me, but a few days ago I saw it again. So I asked again. This time a second friend shared the link to the website. 

The A to Z Challenge is similar to the NaNoWriMo but for bloggers.

As with NaNoWriMo, people commit themselves to writing something within a month. With NaNoWriMo you commit to writing a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. With the A to Z Challenge, people commit to writing a blog post for every day in April except for Sundays. 

People sign up in March and choose one of a variety of themes. There’s a theme for pretty much everything, from animals to writing. Even humor and personal writing are options. Bloggers then go through the alphabet based on their chosen theme. For example, a blogger who chose humor could write about airplane travel on the first, boogers on the second, and California on the third.  

 And because of Passover--and the fact that I only found out about this right before Passover--I didn’t have time to start working on it until last night.

Why start at all then? 

I mean, I’m not a time traveler. (Not yet, anyway. Not that I know of. Future me might disagree.) I can’t go back to the first of April to start writing and posting an article a day.

And very strangely, this segues very nicely into my first blog post. My chosen theme is writing, specifically, "writing words for nerds." 

And my first blog post in the A to Z Challenge is about...

  

A is for Action

You can edit a page of garbage, as writers say, but you can’t edit a blank page.

Recently, my blog has been a series of blank pages. 

You see, I want to use my blog to help other people, or as Gilbert Garfinkle would put it, “fix the world.” 

If you look around you’ll find serious posts about how to write funny, whether to submit your work to traditional publishers or indie published, a step-by-step guide to publishing a picture book, and lots more. 

So when it comes to writing a new blog post, I find it hard to compete with myself. I find it hard to match that same level of helpfulness as the posts I've already done. 

Yes, I could write a hilarious blog post about cats or about my book addiction. (I blame my heritage for the latter. I grew up in a house where we used bookcases in place of wallpaper, and one of my great grandfathers died when he tried to reach a book on a high shelf and the entire bookcase collapsed on his frail old body. I also have an uncle who died when he was packing up his books to donate them to a library. My family lives by the book and dies by the book.) I guess they could fix the world in a small way by giving someone a laugh. The more laughter there is in the world, the better. 

But how does that compare to helping people publish their books or make life-altering decisions?

It doesn’t.

But neither does a blank page.

So A is for Action.

A is for doing.

A is for writing those pages, even if they’re garbage.

A is for starting the A to Z Challenge, even if it is April 26^th and you only have five days left to write 26 blog posts.

It doesn’t have to be great. It can be absolute garbage.

The only thing it can’t be is a blank page.  

~*~

Now to start working on my next Writing Words for Nerds A to Z Challenge: B is for Books.  

Three Great Graphic Novels for Tweens and Teens

At the 2015 New York ComicCon, I attended a panel called “Geeking the Stacks.” It was about libraries and graphic novels for kids and teens, and I found it very informative.

One thing I learned is that kids today LOVE graphic novels, so much so that one of the publishers at the panel said, “Send us your graphic novels. We can’t publish them fast enough!” There aren’t that many people out there who can write and draw well in the graphic novel format and who are interested in creating books for kids and teens. If that’s you, you’re in luck!

The librarians talked about what seem to be the most popular graphic novels among kids and teens. Here are just three of the ones that I also love: Smile, El Deafo, and Baba Yaga’s Assistant.

SMILE by Raina Telgemeier

1. Smile by Raina Telgemeier tells the personal story of one girl’s experience with braces. Raina explains that while she needed braces to fix an overbite, she REALLY needed braces after an accident knocked out her two front teeth!

I really liked Smile, because I could relate to Raina. Not only did I need braces, but I know what it’s like to have friends who aren’t your friends at all. I also know the courage it takes to let go of a bad situation when it’s the only one you’ve ever known so that you can find new friends, nerd friends like you who love the same things you do and will support you instead of pressuring you to be someone you're not.

Smile has won several awards, and I can see why. This is a perfect graphic novel for teens and preteens dealing with braces and negative peer pressure. I love it!

EL DEAFO by Cece Bell

2. El Deafo by Cece Bell tells Cece’s very personal story about how she became deaf and discovered her own “superpower.”

El Deafo is great, because it shows that deaf kids are just like other kids. They just want to have friends, especially a best friend. They aren’t perfect, and they don’t want to be treated differently because they’re deaf. Cece also explains some of the struggles of being deaf that most of us hearing people don’t know anything about, like the difficulty of going to a sleepover party when you can’t read lips in the dark. Cece isn’t perfect, and she doesn’t always make the right choices, but that’s okay. What real kid does? El Deafo has also won several prestigious awards, and it’s no wonder why: El Deafo rocks!

BABA YAGA'S ASSISTANT by Marika McCoola

3. While the other two books here are essentially memoirs in graphic novel form, Baba Yaga’s Assistant by Marika McCoola and illustrated by Emily Carroll is a fantasy that brings the legend of Baba Yaga into a modern-day setting.

Baba Yaga is a witch in Russian fairytales. Sometimes she's bad, but most of the time she’s scary and harmless, at least when it comes to kids who are kind and clever. The main character, Masha, is both. Her father is about to remarry, and while her future step-mother seems okay, her future step-sister is a little brat who likes to bite people. But that's not the only reason why Masha is unhappy. Recently, her beloved grandmother died, and Masha misses her a lot. Masha's grandmother used to tell her stories of her fantastic adventures with Baba Yaga, so when Masha finds a want ad from Baba Yaga,  she jumps at the chance to become the witch's assistant.

Will it turn out to be everything that Masha hopes, or will she get turned into Baba Yaga’s supper? And if Baba Yaga does like her, will Masha choose to stay, or will she change her mind and return home? You'll have to read the book to find out.

I’m familiar with Baba Yaga from other children’s books, but I really like the modern-teenage take in Baba Yaga’s Assistant. Masha is plucky, kind and resourceful, and I’d love to read more books about her. I highly recommend this book  for kids and teens who prefer graphic novels with elements of fantasy and some scares, but nothing too scary.  Masha is a great main character, the art is beautiful, and the story seems to hit all the right notes. I love it!

These aren’t the only graphic novels for kids and teens that I love, but I think these three are a good start for anyone who wants to give this genre a try.

Happy reading.

And remember: if you love something, say something!