Can we talk about choosing strict plot outlines over writing by the seat of your pants?

I spent two years starting and stopping a fantasy novel with zero planning. Just wrote whatever came to mind each day. Ended up with 40,000 words of scenes that went nowhere and characters with no clear goals. Last January I tried the opposite - mapped out every chapter on index cards before writing a single sentence. It felt like cheating at first but I finished a full draft in 8 months. The story actually had a beginning, middle, and end for once. Now I still do a mix but I lean hard into outlines. Has anyone else had that moment where they realized their process was completely backwards?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisa_grant1mo ago

Index cards are still pantsing just with extra steps lol.

skyler_kim151mo ago

Oh man, I have to push back a little here @lisa_grant. I actually think index cards are way more structured than real pantsing. When I lay out scenes on cards it forces me to think about pacing and cause and effect before I write a single word. Real pantsing is sitting down with nothing and seeing where the words take you, like a total blank page situation. With cards I'm still following a shape even if I rearrange them later. It's more like guided discovery than just flying blind.