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Writing the first draft - what is your method?

MiniGoblin

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I seem to have fallen into the trap of writing the first few chapters thinking I have made good progress, only to then stutter. I now find myself - over three weeks later - reading what I have over and over again. This includes changing, adding and removing content because, as a “self doubter”, I am afraid that what I have is just not good enough. I’m now lost in the fear that I cannot continue until what I have is “perfect”, if that makes sense.

After doing some research I have found that one way of supposedly getting your first draft done is to forget about the finer details and just dump literally everything into the first draft - even content that’s poorly written or added for the sake of making progress. In other words, just get it done and save the finer details for the second draft/first edit.

Would anyone here recommend this approach? It would be awesome to gain insight into everyone else’s method/approach for completing their first draft :)
 

The Second Moon

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I used to do that when I wrote novels. But, my novel was so depressing at the end, I got sad whenever I went to write it because I knew I would have to write the depressing part. But, now I write happy novellas. Maybe you keep looking back because you're afraid to go forewords? Just a thought.

And as for your researched method, it works for me, but it takes some getting used to. When I wrote my first novella, I kept going back, but now a couple novellas later I just write.
 

Elle.

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The only thing you need to remember about 1st draft is this quote from Hemingway: "The first draft of everything is shit."

For me a first draft is not about getting the prose perfect, the characters completely rounded, the plot tight, it's about getting the whole story on paper. So I just keep going even when I know something I wrote is cringeworthy. Doesn't mean I never small amendments but nothing major.

Once I have the first draft done then I can go back, start to get it into shape, refine the writing, make sure the plot is coherent, the characters consistent, add layers etc... that's what revising and editing is for.

That's what works for me. Maybe experiment with a few methods and see what works for you, but it sounds like your current one might not be the right one for you.
 

Harlequin

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If you enjoy revising and polishing, try writing something new every day (100-500 words) and then reward yourself by going back to edit what you've already got. Doesn't have to be chronological or in order.
 

mrsfauthor

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I think, at least for me, it depends on what genre I'm writing about. I am a fan of plot lining to keep things moving. Even a simple outline, then write. Go back and do a close read, pick what you've written apart. I've found additional characters by doing that, more of a storyline. Everyone has their own process of course. I use Scrivener and create chapter titles as a sort of plot line. Then write the chapter and figure out how to tie it all together. I hope this helps some.
 

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I take my time, writing when I can and not worrying about word counts. I edit the previous session before starting a new one and I perform a major edit at the halfway point. It's slow going, but this method means my first draft is in good shape when I get to the end and the major work on the novel has been done. And it has been thoroughly enjoyable.
 

Maggie Maxwell

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I typically do most of my main writing during NaNoWriMo in November, so editing is slim to none. I usually let myself do minor edits/tweaks to what I wrote the day before while rereading it to reorient myself with where I was, but that's all. I've been paralyzed by "this isn't good enough, how can I keep going when I know I need to change X, Y, and Z?" before. The answer is, "X, Y, and Z are for the second draft to fix. The only goal for the first one is to write The End." After all, by the time you get to The End, you might not even need to fix Y.
 

MiniGoblin

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These are fantastic responses - thanks very much. As Elle already mentioned, my current method just isn't working, but as I'm desperate to move onto other chapters I will try my best to just simply get to "The End" before revisiting older content.
 

Devil Ledbetter

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I seem to have fallen into the trap of writing the first few chapters thinking I have made good progress, only to then stutter. I now find myself - over three weeks later - reading what I have over and over again. This includes changing, adding and removing content because, as a “self doubter”, I am afraid that what I have is just not good enough. I’m now lost in the fear that I cannot continue until what I have is “perfect”, if that makes sense.
What you're describing is a very effective method of procrastination.

After doing some research I have found that one way of supposedly getting your first draft done is to forget about the finer details and just dump literally everything into the first draft - even content that’s poorly written or added for the sake of making progress. In other words, just get it done and save the finer details for the second draft/first edit.

Would anyone here recommend this approach? It would be awesome to gain insight into everyone else’s method/approach for completing their first draft :)


Try to think of your first draft (or two) as a story and character development draft, especially if you're a "pantser." Like Maggie Maxwell above, I do Nanowrimo and save those messy drafts to redo later. I take it for granted that I am going to redraft, revise and refine a novel multiple times. I take for granted that there will be errors in word choice, punctuation, characterization, plotting, setting, etc. and also that I will absolutely fix those errors when the time comes. The first draft is not that time. Dinking around with word choice and commas in my first draft would be a complete waste of effort because probably 70% of what's in my first draft will get heavily revised or just plain scrapped later in revisions.

I take the pressure of perfection completely off my first draft and let the story flow out. However, I don't write junk that I know won't end up in the story simply for the sake of reaching a word count goal. If I'm stuck, rather than writing garbage I go for a walk, or talk out some of the story issues, or do some housework, or take a shower. There is a much better chance a plot problem or an important piece of dialogue or a scene will come to me when I'm away from my keyboard and not trying to force it.

I understand self-doubt. When it comes to writing novels, my go-to mantra is "No one is better qualified to write this novel than I am." This is the truth because I'm the one creating the story.

My secret weapon when I get really stuck is the character interview.

Good luck with your writing, and welcome to AW.
 
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Hopefully WLCT

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If you have some idea of a beginning and an end for your WIP,outline the whole thing chapter by chapter. It may seem extremely simple but I outlined my chapters on index cards with simple headings. And then I moved them around,literally on the floor, til I found a good timeline and story flow. Then I started to elaborate and I dare say,still am. It's a long process,but we wouldn't do it if we didn't love it.
 

ValerieJane

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After doing some research I have found that one way of supposedly getting your first draft done is to forget about the finer details and just dump literally everything into the first draft - even content that’s poorly written or added for the sake of making progress. In other words, just get it done and save the finer details for the second draft/first edit.

YES.

I've recently finished my first full-length novel, and the only way I got to the end was refusing to look back. Getting to the end of your story is the biggest gateway to making a complete product. I very highly recommend dumping everything into the first draft just to get it on paper, GET TO THE END, and then going back and editing. In my experience, when I edit while I go, it feels hopeless. I feel like I'll never get this phrase right no matter how many times I edit it. I'll never get this scene to work no matter how many times I rewrite it. But when I look back at the finished product and start editing and revising, it's a totally different story. I got the confidence to make this piece of junk work, because I wrote the whole thing. I made a complete story. Now the only thing to do is go back and make it a better complete story.

Self-doubt is poison for first drafts. What you write on the first draft, frankly, is not good enough. But no one sees the first draft except you. The first draft is like when you move into a new house and your living room is full of boxes and a couch that's upside down with table lamps on the floor and a TV covered in plastic. You have moved into the house. The house is yours. But you clean up before you have the housewarming party.

With all that said, I also think Harlequin's suggestion is quite good if you are itching to edit at all times.
 

nickj47

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I have to start with a really solid outline, scene by scene. Sometimes while writing I'll get carried away from the outline, which is okay when it works, but at any point in the story I pretty much know what I'm going to write next. I do start each writing session by reading and sometimes editing the previous chapter or two. Helps me get in the flow.

My problem with dumping everything quickly into the first draft is I miss things later when I'm editing, and bad stuff slips through.
 

Carrie in PA

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I go from start to finish, dumping everything in the first draft, in order. I don't worry about making it pretty at this point. I might just say, "Bob and Sue had a major fight and Bob broke three fingers when he punched the wall." When I go back, I'll add the descriptions and emotions and details. Other scenes will be fully fleshed out and need very little attention. The purpose for me is to get the story out in the first draft.



I love these questions and seeing how other writers work. It fascinates me that there are endless ways to do the same thing.
 

neandermagnon

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If you enjoy revising and polishing, try writing something new every day (100-500 words) and then reward yourself by going back to edit what you've already got. Doesn't have to be chronological or in order.

I like this suggestion. I probably spend more time re-reading and editing what I've written than moving the story forward. I sometimes have to give myself a bit of a push to start writing new stuff again. Definitely don't fall into the trap of not moving forward until what you've written is perfect. Also, don't hold back writing for fear that the new stuff you're writing won't be good enough. It won't look as good as the stuff you've rewritten and edited, because it never does when you first write it. Have faith in it and also know that you will go back and reread and edit it later on.

Personally, I find that I can't go too far forward with a story without going back and doing at least some rereading and editing, because this is how I keep everything coherent. Everyone has their own way of working. Some people work in drafts. Others (like me) prefer to go back and edit stuff before moving on. The drawback of writing a whole draft in one go is that it can be a hell of a task to reread and edit it all in one go, but plenty of writers manage just fine. The drawback of edit-as-you-go methods is that you can get too bogged down with editing whatever fraction of a manuscript you've written that you don't move the story forward and never finish - but plenty of writers find ways to avoid this pitfall and keep moving forward. Ultimately, do what works for you and you may need to try different things to find out what does and doesn't work for you. And one advantage of edit-as-you-go methods is that when you do get to the end, most of the editing's already done. As long as you do get there in the end.
 
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talktidy

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I once heard someone say to give oneself permission to write bad stuff.

Bad writing, as opposed to no writing, can be fixed. Do what you can to tell your internal editor to bugger off, and concentrate on getting your first draft done. Then I would step back for a time and come back to your draft with fresh eyes.
 

Writingthewords

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It's interesting to read that other people suffer from the same problems. I'm also a 'self-doubter' as you put it. I find myself with four or five chapters and when I get stuck, instead of writing down whatever comes into mind, I go back and edit. So now, I'm without any new chapters but I'm also starting to think the ones I have aren't good enough.
In my personal experience, I accomplish more if I don't go back.

Good luck with the writing!
 

Will Collins

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Just keep going until the full novel is complete. After that, I've gone too far not to spend the hours upon hours of edits and rewrites. :)

If you do stutter after the first few chapters, try writing chapters out of order. That's worked for me before.
 

DanielSTJ

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I'm trying, moving forward, to variate the technique of writing each novel to come up with more original and differentiated work.

Just my amateur 0.02c!
 

Helix

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For me, the first draft is made up of good ideas expressed in bad writing, plus bad ideas in good writing. (Other combinations are likely.)

It's a place to dump everything before sieving out the workable parts for the next draft.

No one else ever sees it, thank goodness!
 

AmericanaPrime

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I like to get in a "writing mode" where I concentrate and dump the topic or chapter onto the page, then while I'm tooling around throughout the day on my iPad I read it and make a change or two through casual editing. Then once it's all been vomited down, then I go through and do a full edit and rereads. Definitley not focused on perfect prose the first time around.
 

indianroads

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I do a fairly detailed outline before starting the first draft. So, for me the first draft is about linking the plot points. I still get surprised by how my characters act and react though.
 

Jersey Chick

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I usually just write. I'm a pantser by nature, so outlining rarely works for me. When I get stuck, I write whatever scene I want, and then go back later on and put it where it belongs. When all else fails, I work backwards. My philosophy is that as long as there are words on the page, I'm good because I can always fix them. I can't fix a blank page.
 

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I used to revise and revise, and I'd never get anything done. Finally, I just decided to keep writing. The story was a mess, and I'd cringe when I looked at it, but at least I had some general idea of the story, what would and wouldn't work.

The method is still painful for me, but I honestly think it works best.
 

BradCarsten

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Absolutely yes. I spent years going back and rewriting and it was a complete waste of time. Every time I finished editing my novel, I had grown so much as an author that the early chapter, that I had spent so long agonizing over, sucked. I would redo them, get to the end and they sucked again. Honestly, If I had it all to do over again, I would have moved on to another book and only gone back and edited once that learning curve had begun to plateau. In the end, I probably would have saved 4 years.
that aside, novels change all the time. you could end up having to delete whole chapters, and if you're anything like me, the more you've edited them, the more you'll try to justify keeping them in there.
 

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My first drafts are basically extremely detailed outlines. I put it all in text as quickly as I possibly can, no filter, leaving notes here and there of anything that might be important to consider when fleshing out scenes later on. I brainstorm a lot. I figure out how I want the whole story to play out from beginning to end all the while keeping an eye out for any potential plotholes/implausibilities and dealing with them as they come.

This is the time to figure out if the story is even worth your time. You don't want to invest yourself fully into a story only to realize much later that there's a gaping plothole that efficiently ruins X amount of days, weeks, potentially even months of hard work. I haven't had this happen to me yet (not to the extent of weeks and months, anyway), but I've gotten close enough to know it's possible.
 
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