Once you have written a few first drafts you realise there are some things you don’t need to waste valuable time and energy worrying about. The first stage is simply an outpouring of words onto a page. Nothing else.
Here is a list of 28 things you don’t need to worry about whilst writing your first draft.
- Title.
- First line / first paragraph.
- The impact your first draft will have on your writing career.
- What other people will think of it.
- Your first draft’s imperfections.
- Character names.
- A literary agent’s thoughts on your first 10k words.
- Structure.
- Your choice of font.
- Will there will be any free beta readers available once you finish it?
- What will your parents think of your romantic scene in the first chapter?
- The book cover design.
- Whether you are labelling the start of chapters with ‘chapter x ‘ or ‘part x.’
- Character backgrounds.
- The people who you will be dedicating your novel to once it’s finished.
- Your writing career to date.
- How does your first draft compare to the book at number one in the book charts?
- Number of big words used.
- The Hollywood actor / actress who will play the leading role when your book is turned into a film.
- Acknowledgements.
- Spelling.
- Grammar.
- POV.
- Characters.
- Your feelings towards your story in later drafts.
- How will it compare to the other stories you have written?
- Names of potential literary agents who you think would love a copy of your final book.
- Was Ernest Hemingway right about first drafts because yours sounds amazing!
As John Dufresne said:
‘The purpose of the first draft is not to get it right but to get it written.’
Have a great day!
That’s it! Get that lions share done first with no concerns… then deal with the cleanup after!!!
Oh to get it written!
Hey thx Eric 🙋🏼
Fabulous! Get it down on paper and then bring in the clean up crew 😉
Lol! That’s a great way of viewing it 😂
LOL Love number 19 as well as the last point! Could you write on 28 things you SHOULD worry about (and still make it funny!!)? I’m stuck right now at chapter 5 where I need to figure out a crucial element in the plot and it’s wrecking my head.
You’ve given me an idea for a blog post – thx 🙋🏼
You can’t edit a blank page!
True Icy 🙋🏼
Reblogged this on Kim's Author Support Blog.
Thank you Kim 🙋🏼
😀
OK, then, I’m RIGHT ON TRACK. And, thanks for asking, my first draft if amazing. :0
I knew your first draft would be amazing Mindy 🤗
Reblogged this on Don Massenzio's Blog and commented:
Check out this great post from the Blonde Write More blog on things not to worry about when you write a first draft.
I can’t NOT think about that sort of thing! I even have middle names picked out for my characters!
Wow middle names – sigh! Thank you for sharing this 🙋🏼
Oh, you’re welcome. I love the characters and story so much, but at the same time I procrastinate far too often.
This is so important. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for reading! 🙋🏼
Great ideas all new writers should know.
Thank you for reading 🙋🏼
Some of the best advice I’ve been given – just get the 1st draft on the pages and don’t worry about anything else.
Yep! I agree – thank you for reading 🙋🏼
28 things I don’t need to worry about! I’ve been worring about a lot of those lol.
Hope you’re well Lucy! 🙂
Reblogged this on Orthografia.
Reblogged this on Sleepy Book Dragon and commented:
I second this all the way!