Outlining or Writing by the Seat-of-your-pants?
From the Bluecat blog: writing notecards and outlines comes from ” a different part of your heart and mind” than writing scenes. So, perhaps there’s something to be said for writing without a plan? Certainly it makes the rewrite more important — that’s where you shape your ideas into a cohesive whole.
Read more here: https://www.bluecatscreenplay.com/the-bluecat-screenplay-competition-blog/how-to-write-a-script-without-a-plan/
The topic also came up on the Write Along podcast. C. Robert Cargill refers to the non-planners as pantsers (as in writing by the seat of their pants). Ultimately, he says, both kinds of writers spend the same amount of time on the work. Without outlining, the burden on pantsers is they must exert more effort to fix what they write.
Listen here: https://writealongpodcast.com/2018/11/09/ep-2-planners-and-pantsers/
Meanwhile, over on the Scriptnotes podcast, last week’s episode touched on this, too. Craig and John have a different sense of when to stop planning and when to jump in. Craig plans it all out, John leaves more space for improvisation.
Listen here: https://johnaugust.com/2019/ready-to-write