B is for...Plan B
Planning is what I do for a living, so is it any surprise that in my novel writing I'm an outliner. One of the things I learned early on in my career was something very crucial, always have a Plan B! It pertains to just about anything in life. When you anticipate disruptions and prepare for it, life is so much easier.
When I outline my novels I leave enough leeway to allow for creative spontaneity to come into play, and when things don't flow as originally planned I've already mapped out options for finding my way back to the plum line.
The same is true for this A to Z Challenge. Since I'm basically winging it, I have a couple of posts in my pocket (written but not scheduled) that are generic, capable of being plugged in anywhere if things go south and I don't have enough time to really think about a post.
Some of the most famous world events were actually Plan B's. Can anybody name some? How about you? Do you regularly make back-up plans?
Great post. I think having a plan b as a backup is a good idea for whatever you do. Things can and do go wrong, so having something in the "just-in-case" folder will come in handy.
ReplyDeleteEverything I do may be a Plan B. HA!
ReplyDeleteGood topic. It's always good to have a plan B. Even my plan B's have a plan B [which I guess would make it a plan C, and that's a topic for tomorrow;)]
ReplyDeleteany plan I attempt to follow is usually trashed in seconds. LOL. Call my life organized chaos.
ReplyDeletePlan B's always take the stress off of my best laid plans. And good for you for winging these A - Z posts. Me too. It's more challenging.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm kind of prepared most of the time. I usually have a backup plan. Doesn't mean it's always a smart plan, though. lol
ReplyDeleteHaving a Plan B is like following the Boy Scouts wonderful motto: Be prepared.
ReplyDeleteMy Plan B is usually me winging things. :D
ReplyDeleteHey DL,
ReplyDeleteSorry I missed yesterday's kick-off -- I was on an anniversary getaway weekend and got back late. But I wanted to be sure to stop by and wish you a great A-to-Z!!!
And good planning always requires a plan B. Heck, there are times when you can go all the way to Z and beyond before things work out the way you plan, lol!
I have a Plan B and a Plan C but only as it relates to zombies.
ReplyDeleteLife is always having a Plan B.
ReplyDeleteJeremy [Retro-Zombie]
A to Z Co-Host
IZOMBIE: Visit the Madness
Huge fan of plans, especially B's :) I'm a pantster, though--in writing and in life. I wing it on a daily basis. I can imagine your heart rate going up just thinking about this, haha. I guess it takes all kinds to make the world go round, right? :)
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge planner in my daily life. Except when it comes to writing and then I'm a pantser. It makes absolutely no sense, but even when I force myself to outline, when I sit down to write, the story (or blog post) inevitably veers in another direction.
ReplyDeletePlan B, C, D, and E!
ReplyDeleteLove it. Having a plan B is a great way to"be!" ;)
ReplyDeletePlan B is always a good idea. I'm a planner too.
ReplyDeleteBack up plans are always a good idea, partly because I know that life changes directions regularly.
ReplyDeleteIn my life, I plan and then I plan on what could possibly go wrong to see if the original plan would still work. And then I have several plans in place just in case the whole thing blows up in my face.
ReplyDeleteGo figure that it took me months of writing to discover I work better from an outline.
I don't plan for a plan "B" but definitely go there a lot! I used to be a huge planner, now I fly by the seat of my pants...I need to find a nice middle ground. :-) Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteSadly I'm a Plan A-er. I make a plan, which then goes horribly wrong, so somehow I wind up going with plan Z. But hey, whatever works. Maybe for the next book I'll try to plan ahead with a Plan B.
ReplyDeleteHappy A-Z blogging!
I usually end thinking of my backup plans on the fly. Which usually makes Plan Q the successful one.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I wat to be in Plan B now...which is full time writer and open my own scrapbooking store, but unfortunately, it's Plan A (teaching) that pays the bills; UGH!
ReplyDeleteMy whole life is built around Plan B!
ReplyDeleteLove it DL! Sometimes you just have to wing it.
ReplyDeleteGotta have a Plan B. A really good Exit Plan is also good to have. Never know when you'll need the latter.
ReplyDeleteGreat choice for the challenge. I'm a firm believer in having a plan B, and C, and sometimes D. :)
ReplyDeleteDo I look/sound/act like I have a Plan B. Most days there is no Plan A. I know, it's drives a lot of people crazy. Maybe that's what happened.
ReplyDeleteI'm definitely a planner as well. I have several plans for everything. I also could be OCDing on a lot of things.
ReplyDeleteI'm a planner also, as you know well! It's always good to have a backup plan - that's how I live my life!
ReplyDeletePretty much my Plan A goes south for armer climates. So yeahm I always have a plan b.
ReplyDeleteI'm such a go with the flow girl, I don't even have a plan A
ReplyDeleteErm, I'm not as organized as you. I just wing it most of the time. Hehehe! Nice to meet you from the A-Z challenge. :)
ReplyDeleteI wish I had the foresight to make plan B. I don't even have a plan A, talk about winging it :)
ReplyDeleteI am at http://sulekharawat.com/2012/04/02/best-friend/
We're supposed to have a Plan A?
ReplyDeleteI think my life might be based on Plan B. :) Nothing has turned out quite like I planned, but it's all good.
ReplyDeleteGreat topic for the B post!
I make back up plans sometimes, but not often because I usually 'expect' things to go my way.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, when I have had a back-up plan and things went awry, having that Plan B did make things much easier! I should do that more often. Cheers!
I try to always have the backup plan. For some reason my entire life has been expect the unexpected. :/
ReplyDeleteI never need a Plan B, for my Plan A calls upon my OCD and never fails...
ReplyDeleteI'd like to say I'm a good planner and really organized, but yeah, not so much. I usually have a plan A, but if that doesn't work, I wing it.
ReplyDeleteThat is brilliant advice!! Most of the time I tend to wing it through life, but I can see where having a couple of plans in place would be beneficial.
ReplyDeleteKathy
http://gigglingtruckerswife.blogspot.com
I always have a Plan B. That's been true since I was a child.
ReplyDeleteMy Plan A was this, in Kindergarten: Go to med school, be a doctor, and write on the side, because writers do not make money.
Then I got to college, after telling everyone for 13 years I was going to be a doctor (and graduating valedictorian, so it looked as if it might actually happen), and I could not get into med school.
I tried for 5 years post-grad to get in, but a 3.4 gpa in Chemical Engineering won't get you into any med school I could afford.
I tried dental for a couple of years, but knew I would hate it, so I stopped trying.
You'll note I majored in Chem E, not biology. ChE was my Plan B, in case I could not get into med school.
See, even a life-long dream had a Plan B for me, and it's paid off greatly. You don't always get what you want, and so you'd better be prepared to accept the harsh reality of reality.
Still writing, though! I'm on Plan T with that one, though. I'm about to have to go double-letter and bump up to Plan AA, then Plan AB, and so on...
- Eric
My Plan B is to go with the flow...less stress that way:) Nice post, btw. Really enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteOMG you have a plan B for your plot?? Impressive. I hardly even manage Plan A in terms of plotting...
ReplyDeleteHappy A-Z!
I never have a back-up plan, tt takes me such a long time to make a decision that I am convinced that I have considered all other possible scenarios. Inevitably I haven't but thems the breaks.
ReplyDeleteI love the stories of famous movies that went with a Plan B - from the studio that famously turned down E.T. to Terry Gilliam's crazy saga of trying to get Brazil released without a sugar-coated ending in the US. (When the studio refused to release the film without the happily-ever-after ending, he managed to get a screening of it shown to the LA Screenwriter's Guild, who promptly voted it Best Picture -- putting tons of pressure on the studio to release it. Now that's drive & innovation.) It's always good to be reminded -- thanks for the wise words!
ReplyDeleteIn my job I'm a total over-planner - always have at least 1 Plan B. But my best lessons are always when I spring free from those plans and go sideways :) That's pretty much how my life goes too!
ReplyDeleteWait. There was a plan? I think I was absent that day ;-)
ReplyDeleteMy Plan B while I write is to have zombies invade.
ReplyDeleteWhy is this not a cop out?
1. Zombies could invade at any time, any location. So if my characters have been normal teens going through teen drama, and then BAM their teacher is a zombie - it's totally possible, right? That's how it would REALLY happen, right?
2. Now you have characters that have past relationships, past drama, and history that now have to fight off the undead.
3. It's a huge plot twist if you weren't already writing a sci-fi novel, and even then - someone would read that chapter and say, "Wait, what... really?!"
4. If you could pull it off well, it could be a best-seller.
I'm just saying, zombies are always my plan B. ^__^
Great topic for letter B. I don't usually have a backup plan. Sometimes my original plans aren't well thought out, LOL.
ReplyDeleteSusanne
PUTTING WORDS DOWN ON PAPER
I have only just begun converting from pantster to plotter but as far as a-z goes I picked my theme early and as of today I'm on whiskey ;)
ReplyDeleteI think I write kind of that way... pretty much know what I'm going to do, but things might change. I just signed on to the A-Z challenge, nearly at the last minute, but I'm trying to visit every blog at least once.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty good with spontaneous Plan B's but I definitely don't plan them. I have a hard enough time with Plan A.
ReplyDeleteI don't think I usually have a Plan B - I'll need to fix that. Good luck with the Challenge!
ReplyDeleteyeah i am most surely a fan of the plan b program
ReplyDeleteI am a planner too but I never thought about a Plan B for writing, although my A-Z posts are all written and scheduled :) This gives me something to think about
ReplyDeleteI almost always have a plan B. I'm a little behind the eight ball on the A-Z as I've been traveling and wanted to write about my travels in the challenge. Hoping to get a couple days ahead by the end of the week!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by!
I'm also a planner. I don't stick religiously to my outlines, but I do work from them. I also outlined my A to Z posts last week. I'm not good, or comfortable, with pantsing.
ReplyDeleteNew follower and fellow A to Z-er. I'm shamelessly overdue as a follower since I've enjoyed your comments all around the blogosphere. I'm an insufferable Plan B-er. It drives my kids crazy.
ReplyDeleteI'm a planner at heart. First I chose my words. Then I picked photos for prompts. Finally I started writing, trying to stay a week ahead. Now if nothing goes wrong... ;-)
ReplyDeleteIt goes with the writing habit of saying: what if. What if plan A goes horribly wrong? ~Miriam
ReplyDeleteI can identify 100% !
ReplyDeleteI am a plan-B specialist!
I'm winging it too. I have no theme. I am just going to go with the flow so to speak. I sometimes have a Plan B but most of the time I wing that too. LOL!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post! I'm definitely a "Plan B" (and C, and D, and...) sort of girl, too.
ReplyDeleteI am a planner - so I usually have something mapped out to Plan G - luckily I don't usually need to fall back that far!
ReplyDelete