Two Methods of Prewriting

Question

It is taught that before beginning a draft, you need to form an outline, this according to what is called the writing process. But it seems that to formulate many thoughts and to put them in order afterward, is method which is equally as good. But are these methods completely different, or under the same category? Please discuss these methods in further detail.

Answer 1

These are the two main approaches to writing, often known informally as:

• plotting - Making a detailed outline of the work before writing. The advantage is that you know what goal you're working towards, are less likely to have serious plotholes, and may go through considerably less drafts. The disadvantage is that the writing may feel less vital and alive, and that opportunities for the story to grow and change may be lost. Some writers also use up their feeling of inspiration during the outline, and never actually get to the writing.
• pantsing - Making the story up as you go along. The advantage is that this can produce writing that feels very vital, creative and fresh. The disadvantage is that it's easy to write yourself into a corner, to go through multiple complete rewrites, to have to toss the whole thing and start again, or to have tangents and storylines that go nowhere and are never satisfactorily resolved.

You'll find plenty of writers who are zealous and evangelical about one or the other approach, but the truth is, nearly all writers have some aspect of both. The one thing that is unequivocally true is that different approaches work for different writers, and you often need to work hard to find the best approach for your own writing --someone else's magic formula may not work for you at all.

I've always thought of myself as a big planner, but I've learned that I do a lot of "pantsing" along the way. I like to start out with a lot of structure, but to stay open to happy accidents, and changes in direction. Remember, if you do want to plan your book out, there are innumerable different approaches, some of which may work better for you than others, from traditional 3-act, to the iterative, interactive "Snowflake" method, to the more organic, character-growth approaches taken by writing coaches such as Cron and Truby.

Answer 2

I recommend reading a book called "The Writing Process" by Anne Janzer. In truth, the process is a dance between having structure and being agile or dynamic.