Imagine a world in which witchcraft is real. In which mothers hand down power to their daughters, power that is used harmlessly and peacefully.
Then imagine that the US President is a populist demagogue who decides that all witches must be imprisoned for their own safety, as well as the safety of those around them - creating a world in which to be female is one step away from being criminal...
As witches across the world are rounded up, one young woman discovers a power she did not know she had. It's a dangerous force and it puts her top of the list in a global witch hunt.
But she - and the women around her - won't give in easily. Not while all of women's power is under threat.
The Coven is a dazzling global thriller that pays homage to the power and potential of women everywhere.
I'm delighted to welcome the author to Random Things today, she's talking about her writing process and also has one paperback copy to give away too.
Entry is simple, just fill out the competition widget in this blog post. The competition is open until 5 September, UK entries only please.
GOOD LUCK!
My Writing Process
Lizzy Fry
Plotters Vs. Pantsers
Up there with ‘where do you get your ideas from?’ is another question I hear all the time … ‘What is your writing process like?’
To answer, we first need to consider the differences between writing novels and writing screenplays. My other job is script editing for movies, so I have perspective on both.
In the author world, there’s lots of discussion about whether a writer is a ‘plotter’ or a ‘pantser’. This refers to the idea that writers either …
· Plan their book in advance using outlines, spreadsheets or something else (‘plotter’)
· Make it up as they go along (‘fly by the seat of their pants’, hence ‘pantser’)
Notable plotters include authors like J.K Rowling, whilst ‘pantsers’ can count Stephen King among their ranks.
Novel writing Versus Screenwriting
Coming from the screenwriting world, ‘pantsing’ is not really a thing. This is understandable when you think about the number of people and amount of money involved.
In contrast to a book where the novelist writes alone or with the aid of an editor, even a CHEAP movie or TV series can have tens or even hundreds of people involved in making it.
This means very few producers and investors will countenance spending money on a screenplay where even the writer doesn’t know what’s going to happen yet!
What I Do
Coming from this background, I tend to err towards being a PLOTTER. I’m used to writing outlines, treatments and in-depth character biographies for producers, so it makes sense to do the same for my novels.
As you can see in the pic below, I like to use post-it notes and index cards to do this. I like post-its the best so I can colour code my various character arcs and the various subplots!
Plotting does not have to mean losing spontaneity, like some pantsers claim … My post-it approach leaves me enough room to ensure my characters surprise even me … Very often I will plan one thing for them, but then they do something else! The cheeky gits.
So in real terms, I ‘plot my plot’ but PANTS my characters!
Lizzie Fry is a debut author of high concept thriller The Coven (published by Sphere
books), but you might know her better as LV Hay.
LV’s books previous books were crime fiction: The Other Twin, Do No Harm (Orenda Books) and Never Have I Ever (Hodder).
The Other Twin is currently being adapted for the screen by Agatha Raisin producers Free@Last
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