Plotter? Pantser?

Ah, the age-old question writers love to ask each other: Are you a plotter or a pantser?

Me? I’m a proud, messy, ever-evolving plantser.

I wasn’t always this way. Once upon a time, I was a die-hard pantser. I’d open a blank document with nothing more than a whisper of an idea—no outline, no plan, just vibes—and let the characters take the reins. Unfortunately… those early manuscripts never even made it to beta reader stage. Or critique partner stage. Or, let’s be real, “worth revisiting” stage. They were a hot mess. Lovingly created, yes. But messes all the same.

Then came evolution.

Beauregard and the Beast—the first book I ever published? I had a two-paragraph blurb. That was it. The rest came together through sheer dumb luck and relentless character chaos. (They really love to run the show.)

He Owns My Heart—the second book? I took a baby step toward plotting. I created a chapter-by-chapter… thing. Not an outline, exactly. More like a jumbled, half-formed thought dump written in broken fragments. But hey, it got me from point A to point B. Sorta. I had to redo it constantly because my characters, once again, refused to behave. They were on the page doing whatever the hell they wanted while I stood on the sidelines yelling, “That’s not the direction I gave you!” And they were like, “Shh, we’re having a moment.”

Fast-forward to book three—Cinderellis, the second in my queer fairy tale retelling series—and the stakes (and structure) ramped way up. Since I was retelling a classic, I couldn’t be quite as loosey-goosey as before. I had to weave in the original fairy tale beats while still building a compelling romance. It required a level of planning that Past Stevie would have broken out in hives over. But I survived. I adapted. I kind of… liked it?

Which brings us to now.

Ashes of Aekos—my current sci-fi romance series—is my most ambitious project to date. Ashes of Desire (book one) is where all my previous chaos and hard-won lessons come together. If you could see the graveyard of Word docs, Scrivener files, Excel spreadsheets, Pinterest boards, image inspo folders, and real-life notebooks dedicated to this series? You’d either be wildly impressed or sprinting in the other direction. Especially if you’re a pantser.

I’ve been working on this universe for nearly a decade. It started as two separate story ideas that slowly merged into one epic saga. The direction may have changed, but the heart? That stayed the same. And because of that, I’ve been able to repurpose a lot of the character development and worldbuilding I did years ago. Some of the character profiles I’m using today were built in 2018—and they still hold up. A few tweaks here and there to fit the updated world, but honestly? These characters live in my head rent-free. And they have for a long, long time.

So, where am I now?

Well, I’ve got five more books mapped out in the Ashes of Aekos series. Each couple’s romance arc is fully fleshed out and waiting for its spotlight. Which means I get to sneak in delicious little hints and foreshadowing in the earlier books. (So pay attention! Easter eggs abound!)

I may never be a full-on plotter with color-coded index cards and scene-by-scene breakdowns (kudos to you beautiful unicorns who are), but I’m definitely not the chaotic pantser I once was either. I’ve found my balance. Somewhere between structure and spontaneity—between spreadsheets and soulflare—I’ve carved out a method that works for me.

At least for now.