Writing into the dark

Abstract

The contrasting practices of planning or ‘pantsing’ are regular topics of discussion within fiction writing circles. In a field where each writer’s practice can differ so greatly, these approaches to writing offer a rare opportunity for categorisation and insight. Australian novelist Valerie Parv states that ‘pantsers’ are known as such ‘from flying by the seat of their pants, because they like to discover the story as they write. Their opposite, plotters, prefer to work out every twist and character development before starting’ (Parv 2014). I knew little of these choices when I began writing my debut novel Carousel (2015). The decision to ‘pants’, for me, was subconscious, driven by anxiety, naivety and an obsession with daily word counts. What I discovered, both during the writing of Carousel, and the subsequent research for my PhD, was a process steeped in popularity, complexity and risk. This paper considers the definition, methodology and application of ‘pantsing’, and the reverberations of this practice within both Carousel and sequel Beyond Carousel (2016). ‘Pantsing’ not only emerges as a viable writing strategy, but a practice eliciting valuable creative outcomes.