Roadmap for Plotters and Pantsers

Roadmap for Plotters and PantsersThe great publishing debate tends to fall into two schools: Plotters and Pantsers. Plotters tirelessly map their way from start to finish. Pantsers write by the seat of their pants, or so they say. I used to write like this. Fifteen novels later, I have tried every outline I can get my hands on and settled on one that is a mixture of many. Not every book needs one, of course. But the longer I am on a deadline, the more structure I need in order to

The great publishing debate tends to fall into two schools: Plotters and Pantsers. Plotters tirelessly map their way from start to finish. Pantsers write by the seat of their pants, or so they say. I used to write like this. Fifteen novels later, I have tried every outline I can get my hands on and settled on one that is a mixture of many. Not every book needs one, of course. But the longer I am on a deadline, the more structure I need in order to create a path of understanding what the heart of my story is. Outlines can range from detailed chapter-by-chapter breakdowns to a handful of bullet points in a simple three-act structure. Regardless of your writing style, there is a way to make an outline work for you.

Zoraida Córdova is the author of many fantasy novels for kids and teens, most recently the award-winning Brooklyn Brujas series, Incendiary, and Star Wars: A Crash of Fate. She is the co-editor of Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite. Her debut middle grade novel is The Way to Rio Luna. She is the co-host of the podcast Deadline City with Dhonielle Clayton. Zoraida was born in Ecuador and raised in Queens, New York.