Shitty first drafts
Published on Jul 01, 2020
Whether it’s a thought, a short article, or something longer, the important thing is to write it down. Whatever comes to mind without holding back.
It might not be good—no one is going to see it—but without the shitty first draft, you can’t improve upon it and make it great.
Anne Lamott, author of Shitty First Drafts, wrote the following:
Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something—anything—down on paper.
Anne goes on to explain the three draft approach:
A friend of mine says that the first draft is the down draft—you just get it down. The second draft is the up draft—you fix it up. You try to say what you have to say more accurately. And the third draft is the dental draft, where you check every tooth, to see if it’s loose or cramped or decayed, or even, God help us, healthy.
And remember, nothing is original, work with the garage door open and ask for help.
