Everyone’s been there, having to write something for class. Now you’re not the best writer and that’s okay, but what if you want to get better at it? What if you you just can’t get that first draft? There are many ways to look at it and how to get from being an idea to putting it to paper or online. But it can always be hard, especially when it’s about a topic that you don’t like. Don’t think that your rough draft is up to par? Lamott says that’s okay!
Anne Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts”
Within her writing, she talks about how she dreads having to write a draft for anything she does. She said she’d rather die than to get the draft finished. Everyone’s felt this before! But how did she get over dreading the drafting stages? To put it simply, she just wrote even when it was bad. It’s part of the process.
I can relate to this process. Sometimes it’s best to not think and run with whatever you’re trying to write. Even if it doesn’t make a lick of sense! You can let out your ideas one moment and then go back and refine them. Though it’s not for everyone. To think that everything can be shit the first try is okay, but sometimes that can also deter you from even making progress. This isn’t a process that’s effective for everyone.
George Dila’s “Rethinking The Shitty First Draft”
George Dila had written a response to Lamott’s piece and boy did he not like it. He had a lot to say about it. In his rather passive aggressive response, he says that he “doesn’t write shitty first drafts”. This is nothing bad to think of your writing, and you should take pride in what you write but Dila’s thought process for writing can seem stressful to many.
Dila says he can’t allow himself to write a bad first draft. It all has to be perfect. Even with all the effort the first draft, as good as it is, he says that there’s more to improve and he’ll keep going back to improve it. However he does make a good point. To write however works for you.
Do What Works For You
There are many ways that you can figure out how to write first drafts. There is nothing wrong with writing a “shitty” first draft or writing as best as you can and refining. But there are things that work for some that don’t work for others. First drafts can be hard but there are several ways to circumvent this. If you can just streamline your thoughts and write as you go along with no idea where to go next, then do it! Or if you need to make sure everything is perfect before you continue, do it! It all comes down to how it will work best for you.
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