How I plot a book -- Part 2 of 2

Today is the conclusion to last Thursday's post on How I Plot a Book.

After going through the process I described on Thursday, I now have a big, bloated Word doc of scenes, snippets, dialogue and ideas that I may or may not end up using. The file for my next book (Bewitched & Betrayed, aka Raine's fourth adventure) is a little over 100 pages. I generally print out the entire file. (What can I say? I'm an old-fashioned girl and like paper. Not to mention a hard-copy backup is always good to have -- just in case.) My next step is a careful read-thru, highlighting any elements that jump out at me. Then I go back into the computer copy and cut & paste the parts I definitely want to use and move them to the top of the file.

Then comes the "sitting/pondering/staring at the computer" part of the writing process. Apparently during this time, Lucy (our Jack Russell Terrier) doesn't think I'm working, and starts bringing me toys to throw for her. And the greyhounds Gracie & Andy want to be petted. To them (and to be honest, to any non-writer human), it probably looks like I'm about to go to sleep or have an out-of-body experience. After all, I am just sitting there staring at the screen, my only movement being to hit the Scroll key. But being a sucker for big, brown doggie eyes, I play and pet as commanded, while still sitting & pondering. It's multi-tasking at its finest.

Over the course of the next few hours/days, I decide what are the big plot points that I want to include. I make a bulleted list. Of course this list can be added to, changed, or trashed completely depending on what comes to me at 4 a.m., or in the shower, or driving home from work. The subconscious mind is a wonderful thing. It works 24/7. I don't work 24/7 (though my husband would be the first to dispute that claim). ; )

Once I've got that bulleted list, as much as it kills me, the best thing I can do is NOT sit at the computer. I want to work; but what I need to do is read, listen to music, sit in the tub (bottle of ale is optional), etc. -- any activity that doesn't require deep, conscious thought, to let my subconscious writing brain do its thing -- take the bits & pieces and turn them into the big scenes that'll form the core of the book. During this time, the first scene of the first chapter comes to me as well. Once I have that first chapter and the big scenes, I'm ready to start writing.

Coming up tomorrow: An analysis of my query letter for Magic Lost, Trouble Found (by request).

Coming up this week: Writing momentum matters, how I schedule writing a book, and when writing it's good to take it one chapter at a time.

Lisa