Category: Process

After reading “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamontt I realized that we are similar when it comes to writing. She believes that great writing starts with terrible first ideas. I definitely agree with Lamontt. I’m not great at starting my writing but after a while I get used to it and many ideas begin to pop up and it comes out great. Her writing process starts off as expressing what she notices and hears, she doesn’t mind that it doesn’t sound great, all that matters is that she has something that is being written for a start. She then crosses out her writing if she doesn’t like it and rewrites. Although she knows it’s a first draft she doesn’t care what’s being written. Lamontt adds details and goes over her writing to see what she needs in order to start her second draft. We are very similar, I say this because as I’m thinking about what to write sometimes I feel as if my brain stops working. I try my best to come up with something perfect to start off but it never works out, I stopped caring about trying to make my writing perfect. I started to write all of my ideas on paper even if it didn’t sound right and fixed it later on once I got the hang of the topic and what needed to be written. I have times where I need to cross out sentences I don’t like and I create it into something better. Writing in the beginning isn’t usually my strong suite but once I get focused and have all of my ideas written it turns out great in the end.

From the excerpt “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott, numerous references were made regarding the three steps taken to create a piece of writing. The first step entails the conceptualization process where the writer talks about how she allows all her thoughts, ideas, and visions to roam freely. By doing this, allowing the childlike part of her to come to life then pouring it all out on the surface of the pages, knowing that she will be able to perfect it later before anyone sees it.

The second draft has to do with the writer reviewing and reshaping the piece of writing, making it more coherent and saying exactly what needs to be said more accurately.

The third draft is the final step in the writing process and the writer refers to this draft as the “Dental draft”, comparing it to the final finishing of a dentist work. This basically means fine-tuning every detail, making sure that everything is grammatically correct and perfect.

My views have not changed after reading the excerpt since I’ve been using the same strategy when writing my own piece. I was just taken aback because I had no idea that professional writers went through that process.

In her article Anne Lamott breaks down the process of creating a finished writing into three steps. The first steps the author describes as a “child’s draft”, where she would let all her feelings and irrational thoughts to be typed on the paper. She admits that that first draft is always inappropriate, and only the idea that nobody would ever read it makes her write it. The second step of the writing process typically occurs some time later (next day possibly). The author goes over the first draft finding some interesting ideas and leading points. After that Lamott writes the third draft – the final version of her future article, all perfected and satisfying.

The first few paragraphs of Anne Lamott’s article took me by surprised. Before reading her article I really considered that all these professional famous writers are kissed by God and would never struggle in finding the right word or composing a perfect sentence. I’ve always been struggling with writing assignments and thought it happened to me just because it’s never been my strong point. But after reading Shitty First Drafts I’ve gained some hope and some new tools on how to improve my writing. Typically, starting a new assignment, I would gather some main facts for my first draft, and would develop them into my future essay. But I’ve never thought about the first draft as a “child’s draft” where you can write the most absurd thoughts. I would definitely use this technique in the future, as well as I would try to go as far the the third draft. Before I’ve never seen necessity and patience in it.