Vinnie Hansen
Usually I write a short story and then try to find a market for it. By nature I’m more a pantzer than a plotter. I don’t trust myself to spill a good tale unless it starts from the font of inspiration.
Many of these “inspired” stories eventually found homes. But waiting for a muse can be limiting. Jack London once remarked: “You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.” Last year I got out my club. I tried writing to specific prompts and for specific markets. My success surprised me.
Thanks for your post, Vinnie! I enjoyed reading it, and I’m sure others will, too.
An honor to be here! Thank you for the opportunity. I love this site.
What a great series, B.K. Loved your breakdown of your first two pages, Vinnie!
It’s so valuable to share how one’s thought processes work! It gives me all kinds of ideas. Looking forward to reading your story. Will the anthology be coming out soon?
Thanks for dropping by, Kass. I concur that this is a great idea for a blog series!
Hi K.B.–Thanks for visiting. The anthology has been out a while. I just received my second quarterly royalty statement today.
Sometimes the “rules” other set can be freeing rather than limiting, forcing you to be more creative.
I agree, Kirsten. The Golden Donut Award has very prescriptive rules, but I find the rules and the image prompts stimulating. Rather than coming up with an idea out of the blue, I know what I have to write about and how long the piece can be. It is liberating.
Vinnie, this is wonderful! And I love the start of your short story. Meant to purchase the book it’s contained in, it all got by me, but now I’m going over to Amazon to find it. Thanks for the very worthwhile reminder.
Went to Amazon, and found Destination Mystery is only $3.99! What a deal! Glad I got it.
Heather, you are the best! Thank you for the visit and the purchase.
Good insights, Vinnie. I have a short story I’m struggling with and your piece helped.
Barbara, thanks for dropping by. It’s a good feeling to be helpful to another writer, especially one who is already accomplished, as you are.
Another great addition. Having read the whole story, I know you succeeded with this one!
Thank you, Kaye! I’m honored that you dropped by, and doubly honored that you read my whole story. 🙂
This sounds fun. I’m beginning to thing the good authors are all pantzers. I don’t hear much from the plotters. You even write a fun sounding biography. Good going.
Thanks, Linda. I was recently on a panel of 5 authors and a moderator–pantzers, one and all! We all agreed that we enjoy the process of discovery.
I am a pantser myself, but I know some plotters who are excellent authors. I gotta wonder though if they have as much fun as we do. 😉