First Draft Shocker

AnneMarble · Nov 1, 2007

Have you ever looked at your first draft and then realized... you liked parts of it better than the revised version?! Uh-oh.
:Wha:

What happened?! :scared:

I thought the first draft was supposed to be sh*t. Now when I look at it, I wonder if some parts of it were better. (Overall, the first draft was sh*t, but so was the second draft. :tongue

)

Azure Skye · Nov 1, 2007

The only thing I thought about my very first first draft was that the narrative voice was stronger than in subsequent drafts. Other than that, it was pure stinky poo.

Toothpaste · Nov 1, 2007

My first drafts tend not to vary much from the final ones. And for some reason I am always rather shocked by that. You would think I would be getting used to it.

Shadow_Ferret · Nov 1, 2007

Um, I never reread my first draft once it becomes the second or subsequent draft.

(I originally thought this was going to be a sports thread.)

ebrillblaiddes · Nov 1, 2007

When I'm actively writing, since I use a computer, I do what you're not supposed to do and edit right in the draft. I really should train myself out of that at some point...

KTC · Nov 1, 2007

I actually don't keep changes. I edit and save from the first draft. Which is probably insane, but I don't have the patience for saving multiple versions and trying to keep track of them. So I can't even answer the question, having never compared a first draft with a second.

TheIT · Nov 1, 2007

Yes, sometimes I like pieces of my original draft better. I've noticed something similar when I draw. Sometimes my sketches have a vitality or freshness which is lacking when I'm done with the finished drawing.

melaniehoo · Nov 1, 2007

Shhhhh! I'm days away from finishing my first draft. Do you mean to tell me it's not perfect? lol.

I already know how I plan to rewrite the first couple chapters, which is the very first stuff I wrote, but some of it I like and plan to leave more or less 'as is'.

Namatu · Nov 1, 2007

I'm reworking a WIP, third draft. The second draft added a lot of very good material, but the tone suffered badly (no fun anymore). The third draft is filling in the remaining details and returning more to the original tone. That is, when my computer isn't swallowing my saved changes and pretending they never happened.

ebrillblaiddes · Nov 2, 2007

Oh, I just remembered, I don't quite just do everything to one file. When I take out big sections of stuff I cut-and-paste it into a separate file instead of obliterating it entirely, even though most of the time I don't miss it.

I probably should turn on change tracking or something.

First Draft Shocker

AnneMarble

Nefarious Ghost Fan

Azure Skye

Huh?

Toothpaste

THE RECKLESS RESCUE is out now!

Shadow_Ferret

Court Jester

ebrillblaiddes

KTC

Stand in the Place Where You Live

TheIT

Infuriatingly Theoretical

melaniehoo

And thus we begin the edits

Namatu

Lost in mental space.

ebrillblaiddes