Writer and photographer Emma Lord on understanding her own writing process, and moving beyond the definitions provided by others

Search online for ‘pantser or plotter’, and the results will be pages of links which include definitions, ‘what type of writer am I’ quizzes, and discussion threads about whether people consider themselves pantser or plotter. A pantser, incidentally, is somebody who does not plot their writing, but writes instinctively ‘from the seat of their pants’. Famous writers who are considered pantsers include Stephen King and Margaret Attwood. Conversely, a plotter has a clear in-depth plan of their story before they write it. John Grisham and J. K. Rowling are known to be plotters.

On my (internal) list of things I wish I’d known in my twenties, is an entry about the importance of knowing yourself. Of learning yourself. And of being yourself. Factors which combine to make each of us the unique human beings we are. My writing process has included – and continues to include – a significant amount of self-discovery, through which I know that I’m neither pantser nor plotter. Some references say that in this case, I’ll never write a novel. According to various sources, I need to be one or the other to write a large body of work.

Thinking further about my creative process, I found myself immersed in myriad rabbit holes of internet links, which in turn led to a warren of definitions about how people learn, and how they visualise. It was interesting reading, but none of the descriptions aligned completely to my own experience. So rather than seeking a definition beyond pantser or plotter, I decided I would instead explain my process.

What follows is a personal reflection on my approach, although it will likely resonate in parts with others who create in one form or another. Writing is, for me, a deeply emotional process. When an idea begins to emerge, I immerse myself within the perspective of the main character. The one who will carry the bulk of the story, alongside whatever form the supporting cast takes. The central role might be held by a character written in the first or third person, or occasionally the second person. Whatever the angle of view, I inhabit their being and see life through their eyes.

The writing flows, and my experience of being the lead character is a detailed and very visual process. If they visit a library, for example, I’m there witnessing it first-hand. I feel the warmth of the heaters as I enter the building, see the furniture, the decor, books, people, I hear computers, I can smell paper, and I understand how the character reacts to being in the library. Then I try to keep up with my stream of consciousness through the written word.

As with stop motion, there are dozens of frames within each thought or movement made by the main character, and their subsidiaries. Some things are unexpected – is that a mobile telephone vibrating somewhere? Is it important, is the phone a separate thread within the story, does the sound distract the main character, or is it irrelevant and is my imagination introducing elements which are unnecessary? Has my attention now been diverted to a minor detail, and I need to pause and reassemble my thoughts? The process is full of tangents and surprises.

Something I have always struggled with is to visualise faces. This is true in real life and when creating fiction. I can hear somebody’s voice but seeing them in my mind’s eye is another matter. However well I know the person’s features, a mental image will not come. This is one of the reasons I care about printing photographs out. There is a balance between the environmental cost of printing, against the cost of losing family history and experiences. And having a physical photograph fills the mental void when I try to see someone in my mind’s eye. Especially those whose lifetime has passed. When it is someone of my own creation, I know the physical characteristics of the character I am inhabiting, and I know the same of the other characters. But putting the descriptors together, I can't create an image of how they look. Words will describe their features, although if the lead character sees their reflection, or looks at another character, my internal visualisation glitches.

Despite this, I find writing a very immersive experience of living within the characters and the world that I'm building. I see life through their eyes – to the extent that I sometimes go shopping ‘in character’. I know and understand their motivations, including how those motivations might affect their behaviours. It’s rather like a reverse engineering process of reading a book. In place of a reader reaching a stage where they are not conscious of reading individual words, they instead watch the story develop in pictures, I see pictures in my head which materialise as words on the page. At times the emotions become so real that I laugh and cry with the character whose life and environment I inhabit while writing.

If pressed, I’d say I lean more towards being part pantser than any type of plotter. But having spent time ruminating, neither pantser nor plotter describes me fully. What I write comes from inside, through experiencing the words and the worlds I create. I think we sometimes become lost in definitions, to the detriment of our craft and even our sense of self. Although, of course, there are times when definitions can help us to understand how we operate as individuals. In the absence of finding a writing definition which works for me though, I will keep it simple; I am a writer.

Emma Lord writes short stories and poetry, which tend to focus on shadows around the edges of reality. She is also working on her first novel, which has its roots in the supernatural. Emma’s poetry has been published in various collections, including ‘Voices For The Silent’, alongside Margaret Attwood and Philip Larkin. Her short stories feature in a number of publications which include three Farnham Flash Fiction winners’ anthologies, the Poetry on the Lake ‘Haunted’ collection, and the Dialect Anthology ‘Notes From The Edge’. She is currently working towards an MA in Creative Writing with Lancaster University.

Emma’s website is www.thephotographersway.org where you will find her blog, with posts about the natural world, parenting, and life experiences. Follow her on social media through Facebook: Sagacious Cat, and Instagram: @Sagacious_Cat_Creative.

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