Evolving from a Pantser to a Plotter

Please welcome Melissa Westemeier, who will tell us about her change of habit as she publishes the first in her Nun the Wiser series, Old Habits Die Hard:

Evolving from a Pantser to a Plotter

Like most novice writers, I wrote by the seat of my pants. While it was fun, the process was inevitably frustrating when I’d get caught up in a knotty plot or lose my focus or waste time developing a bunch of scenes that served no function or purpose in the final draft. I didn’t know any better. I thought writing was supposed to be creative. A writer should let inspiration strike, the characters should tell the story, lead with their heart. Sure, I’d start with a vague idea of how a story would go (It’s a story about a woman who starts selling home party products to make extra money and she falls in love with man of her dreams), but the journey from opening scene to final page was bumpy and full of detours because that’s the creative process, right?

Then I attended Patricia Skalka’s Bullet Point Plotting workshop at Untitled Town in Green Bay. The author of the Dave Cubiac Door County Mysteries taught how to outline a story and clarified “Pantsers” and “Plotters” for this novice writer. I was intrigued because I use lists to keep myself organized and focused in daily life and work, and as a high school teacher my annual writing season lasted less than three months, so if outlines and lists meant efficiency, I was all in! In 2019 I developed a bullet point outline for my next book, Through the Channel, and WOW! Plotting was a game-changer! I’d never written so efficiently in my life. I had an outline, a weekly word count goal and my characters’ motivations in all-caps on the first page so I’d see it every time I opened up the document. With these tools I was UNSTOPPABLE! My focus never wavered, and I completed a first draft in one summer.

In 2021 I visited my writing partner Mariana Damon, who wanted to work on a murder mystery, but her health made the project impossible. Our other writing partner, Marni Graff, and I helped Mariana develop notes on who killed who, how, and why. We filled out worksheets we’d brought to organize Mariana’s ideas for the characters, plot, and setting. As Marni and I prepared to return home, I mentioned how sad I felt. “She has a great idea, but she can’t write it.” As I spoke those words, I suddenly thought we should write it for her and get it published with her name on the cover. A year later I found myself between projects and ran across the few notes Marni and I pulled together over breakfast that day. How hard can it be to write a murder mystery? I got to work and 30,000 words later I came up for air. Mariana’s ideas of “who killed who, how and why” provided a road map and helped me flesh out an outline to guide the story from opening scene to resolution.

I couldn’t have written Old Habits Die Hard or any other mystery as a pantser. Mysteries require thoughtful plotting of events, the motives and red herrings need to make sense. Bernie and AJ’s investigation centers around logical questions and answers in solving the puzzle of Toni Travi’s death. As a reader, I despise wild leaps because they make me feel ripped off. I want a fair shot at solving a mystery, which means all the pieces need to land in the pages of a book. I know pantsers exist in the mystery writing community (I learned of one last fall which SHOCKED me—her books are so good! It amazes me how she pulls off pantsing). If I tried writing a mystery by the seat of my pants it would end up a huge, unsatisfying mess. Even using a plot outline provides freedom for inspiration to strike—I just don’t allow all that pantsing freedom to lead me down dead-end paths.

In Old Habits Die Hard, pantsing set up a scenario for Bernie to find an important clue so she could help AJ solve Toni’s murder. Not every tiny bit can get pre-planned (writing would feel boring if that were the case!) but without knowing who killed who, why, and how in advance this writer wouldn’t get past chapter five.

Melissa Westemeier is a Sister in Crime and teacher from Wisconsin. She uses humor to explore serious subjects, and her published books include murder mysteries, rom-coms, and a trilogy loosely based on her years tending bar on the Wolf River. She likes her coffee and protagonists strong and prefers to work barefoot with natural lighting.

You can find Melissa’s delightful book at:

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/old-habits-die-hard-melissa-westemeier/1146452143

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Habits-Hard-Wiser-Mysteries-Book-ebook/dp/B0DKR171YC?s=books&tag=tulepubli-20&language=en_US

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/old-habits-die-hard-6

MIss Demeanors

Author

Marni Graff is the award-winning author of The Nora Tierney English Mysteries and The Trudy Genova Manhattan Mysteries. Her story “Quiche Alain” appears in the Anthony-winning Malice Domestic Anthology, Murder Most Edible.  Managing Editor of Bridle Path Press, she’s a member of Sisters in Crime, Triangle SinC, Mavens of Mayhem SinC, the NC Writers Network, and the International Crime Writers Association.