Plotting vs Pantsing

I’ve always been a pantser,  typing away and never knowing where the plot was going, often ending up dead ends which need heavy editing to get back to the main storyline.  I’ve been using this method on my current project and have been up so many blind alleys it’s driven me mad.  So after a lot of research I’m going to have a go at plotting it all out first.  It’s not going to be hard and fast, there’ll be room to alter things as I go BUT I think I’ll get along with writing the novel a great deal faster if I have a good idea of what’s going where.

I read some advice on the net which suggests writing down the main elements of each scene/chapter on separate pieces of paper.  You then lay them all out on the floor and move them around/group them together until they look right.  What a great idea … no guessing what I’ll be doing this weekend J

The long road starts here

Dreaming about being a published writer isn't enough, I need to get out there and do it..... however long it takes.  I've had my name in print via a column for Knitting Magazine and have also had a short story published in our local Adult Education Centre magazine.  Since then I've been concentrating on writing a novel.  I'm now on my fifth, having consigned my earlier attempts to the room 101 folder on my hard drive. 
I'm a member of the brilliant local writing group Tring Writers Circle where there's no shortage of feedback, advice and encouragement which has made a huge improvement to my writing.
My current novel is going really well, I'm having a lot of fun writing it and think it's going to be worth submitting when it's finished.  I recently pitched the basic plot at the Get Writing Conference and had a very positive response which has spurred me on to start pounding the keyboard at every opportunity.  With a day job, an allotment and chauffeur to our children to keep me busy there's not a lot of spare time left so I'm setting myself a goal to complete one chapter a week .....