Gardener or Architect?

[MadisonMN]

So if you're familiar with writing, you've probably heard this analogy before. The Gardener is the type of writer that can just plant the "seed" of a story, not necessarily knowing where it will lead, and prune and nurture the creativity as it grows. The Architect plans everything in the story out ahead of time, knowing what exactly will go into the story, where the plot twists are, and how it ends.

So, which one are you?

I myself am an Architect. I find it very difficult to start writing a story (or even become motivated by the idea) before I plan out everything -- the characters, the plot, the climax. I've been making strides in my own writing practices to try to write more impulsively. As my creative writing teacher in high school said, "Motivation follows action." Not catchy, but it makes sense if you think about it .

[Newgirl Dani]

Hi Madison,
I may not be the one to give an answer to this question as I am in the midst of my first and 'only' endeavor.  I have had no training, I have read zero books on writing, so in essence know zip.  My english grammer is probably of the type which would make an english teacher cringe and secretly vow to never read again.  So needless to say, I have never heard of the gardner/architect styles of writing.  If I had to place myself into a catagory I would most definitely fall into the gardner as even I am not aware where the path will lead.  The experiences that present themselves in my day form bridges from my past to my current thought patterns and when I see them I know they are right.  It is these connections that allow the paths to form in the story, or to put it another way, my life is the story.  Hope that made sense, if your interested, I have a short collection of assorted things here in the writing section titled "By What Name".   

May your endeavors meet little resistance.   Dani

[MadisonMN]

You certainly don't need formal training to be a writer! I just got out of a four year creative writing program and, although it was fun, I'm not sure sure it was worth the money. Many things writers learn in a formal education can be learned through experience -- primarily because everybody approaches it differently. Everybody has their own tricks to motivate creativity and build a story. Heck, the only thing I've published is an article in a Tech. magazine for IBM. That being said, the "gardener" writer is a lot more uncommon from what I've seen in classes (and of course, this poll comes up in almost every creative writing course.) It's a pretty talented method of writing when you think about it -- how easy is it to just write things and trust that the connections will come to you? That's pretty awesome. I'll have to check out your writing section

[Lady Smith]

I'm definitely a gardener when it comes to writing and sometime I find a story will just plain wither and not grow anymore and other times the growth can almost be faster than I can set it down on paper.  I've tried planning and for me it doesn't work and is far more likely to stifle my creativity and turn my writing into arduous work that's no fun at all.