The Writing Advice That's Been Said Wrong Over and Over Again

If you were to stand in a room of a hundred authors and ask each of them individually for their best writing advice almost 90% of them are going to give you the advice that your first draft is going to be shitty and that it's not a reason to give up. 

They're right - 

But they're also wrong. 

Your first draft will be far from perfect, this part is true and you should never give up no matter what your first draft looks like. 

But we need to stop telling writers that their first draft is automatically going to be nothing but a pile of garbage that they will have to shift through to find that ring they accidentally threw out. 

Because even though it's only your first of many drafts - you still need to try. 

Why This Advice Is (Kinda) Terrible 

For some this advice is wonderful. 

It allows the writer to get out of their head and stop seeking perfection from their first draft enough that they can get their story out of them and onto the page without reservation. 

For others, this advice is seen more as a challenge to write without thought, inhibition - or sense. 

While it's 100% okay to aim for progress over perfection it's not okay to settle for making this first draft so impossible to read or understand that even when the writer goes back through it to try and make sense of it they aren't sure if it's a story or if they sat there and just button smashed the keyboard for days, weeks, or even months on end. 

Create A Shitty (But Respectable) First Draft 

Just becuase your first draft can be shitty, doesn't mean you shouldn't put a little bit of effort into the beginning of the process to save you a lot of work in the end. 

The best way to do this? 

Plan and Outline Before Writing

No, you don't have to write down every single thing about your story, but a single sheet of paper or even a simple index card with the key points or the general ideas and character names in your story will be a monumental help in keeping your story on the rails.  

Final Lesson 

Your first draft is going to be far from perfect and there is nothing wrong with that. 

That's why the revision process is so important and such a pain in the bottom. 

Don't make things harder for yourself by writing a deliberately terrible first draft. 

Trust in your ability to tell your story.

You may still end up digging through and pulling the good parts out of the garbage, but instead of just a solitary gem, you might just be left with enough to make yourself a pretty necklace. 

Best of luck! 

With love, 

B.K. xo xo

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