Planning Ahead or Free-Wheeling #mfrwauthor

It's Friday again. Wow, we're at week 18. One word in the topic caught my attention - profile. In many parts of the country, being accused of profiling can get you beaten up or sued. At the start, let me admit that I am a plotter. In my book of tools are numerous templates for character profiles. Many of which are twenty to thirty pages long. A piece of writing advice that never worked for me was to fill out complete character profiles for all my main characters before I wrote word one. The form I use the most is a handful of questions on a single page.

While I agree that some pre-planning can help me get to know my characters, I don't need much to start with. Just a physical description, a name, and a statement of the hero's journey. Although I don't complete an extensive profile, I do have an abbreviated form of a few questions that include the previous mentioned items and things like preferred weapons and possibly favorite food. But those are filled out as the story and characters develop.

The second part of the prompt relates to setting. I write fantasy so the world is in my head. I start off my world-building with photographs of possible places my characters will go to. A south sea island, a cave, a mountain city, or an alpine meadow.

As the book (or books) progresses, I jot down specific items. Curses, measurements of time, local legends and traditions all get jotted down. But the main use of a setting profile is keeping names straight. The names of towns and regions, mountains and lakes are tracked as are items in their area. Ships and inns are tracked in the world profile.

I've dished on how much I plan ahead, and about my profiling. This is a challenge so there are other authors who are revealing whether or not they profile. You might find a technique that works for you.  ~ till next time, Helen

Here's a correction for the gremlins. Holly Bargo