This week we’re going to talk ‘plans for the “pantser.”’ No, not plans for someone who likes pulling people’s pants down, but rather, plans for someone who is writing or marketing by the seat of their pants. Now it may seem counterintuitive to think that if you’re doing something by the seat of your pants that you’d have any sort of plan at all, but it doesn’t have to be! Sometimes we’re forced to write by the seat of our pants because life is so busy, thus we need to plan around our busy lives to make time for our writing.
So, how is it that we can plan as we go when writing or marketing our newly published book? First off, set aside time for writing or marketing every day. If you only have five minutes, so be it. Make a social media post, pat yourself on the back and call it a day. If you have multiple hours, make some serious progress on that chapter or blog you’re working on.
If you haven’t begun writing yet, start by researching to get an idea for your story. Once you have a story idea, write a 100-word synopsis–one you’ll find on the back cover of your book when you successfully publish it in the future!
When you finally get the ball rolling and start having regular writing sessions, always finish them by making a plan for where you’re going next. This can be bullet-pointing the next scene, deciding which character you’re going to develop in the coming chapters, or maybe you have a hole in your plot that needs to be filled.
Ask yourself questions at the end of each writing session about where your time could be used most productively next time you sit down to get to it. Write this down. Give yourself enough detail so that when you come back to it, you won’t be stuck wondering where to start. That way if it’s a week from now, you won’t forget what seemed like a pressing issue today.
The thing is, having a plan makes you accountable to yourself and yourself only. If you’ve written out your goals, it is you who sees whether or not you’ve followed through with them. A mental note is a lot easier to shove into the dark recesses of your mind when you’re feeling unmotivated after a long day’s work. So whether you write it on a word document that you’re working on and will open up next time, or you do it the old fashioned way with pen and paper, keep yourself accountable, and keep yourself writing!
Thank you for reading! If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, or contributions, please use the comment field below or drop us a line at selfpublishingadvice@gmail.com. And remember to check back each Wednesday for your weekly dose of marketing musings from one indie, hybrid, and self-published author to another. ♠
Self Publishing Advisor 