 |
| Photo credit: Samyra Serin on Flickr |
Naturally, this is the part where I say every writer is
different. We all write at different speeds with different techniques. Some of
us prefer to pump out a first draft in a couple of weeks while knowing it’s
going to need massive revisions later, while other prefer to write their first
drafts more carefully. Everyone works differently and there isn’t a right or
wrong way to do it—there is only whatever works best for you.
Personally, I’m a fast-drafter. I finish my first drafts in
an average time of one to two months, depending on the WIP. But I also spend a
ridiculously long time revising and rewriting, because yes, my first drafts are
pretty terrible, but that’s just how I work best. However, I know it doesn’t
necessarily work that way for everyone else, and that’s ok.
For example, the endlessly brilliant Tahereh Mafi (author of
Shatter Me) says she writes very coherent
and careful first drafts despite being a pantser. I don’t know how she does
it, but that’s what works for her. Other writers, especially careful plotters,
tend to write very lean and detailed first drafts because they have a firm
grasp on where they’re going with their story. That’s what works for them.
In the end, there isn’t a rule that says first drafts have
to be awful. The key is that writers must be willing to accept that
sometimes the first draft will be
awful and sometimes they have to rip it apart before they can get to the real
story, and if that’s you, it’s ok. You’re not alone, because many writers work
this way. It doesn’t matter if the writing in your first draft is
horrendous—what matters is that you finish drafting so that you can make it
better later.
And if your first draft isn’t horrible? Congratulations! You
have less revision work to do than the rest of us. And that’s ok, too.
Discussion time! What is your first draft process like? Do you write
quickly then revise heavily later, or are you more careful with your first
drafts?
