First Drafts Lie
Transcript:
NaNoWriMo is almost here!
If you haven't heard of NaNo before, it's short for National Novel Writing Month, which is the yearly event that takes place every November. Writers from all over the world attempt to write a 50,000 word novel in a single month. It's fun. It's terrifying. It requires a lot of snacks. A lot of snacks.
I'm still not sure if I'm participating this year, but my author YouTuber group is considering hosting some writing sprints and maybe themed videos. Subscribe and check me out on my social media channels to see what we do for that.
You might also want to join my newsletter because this month I am featuring my favorite writing tips in celebration of the start of NaNo! Though I've been writing for almost 10 years now NaNo still scares me.
That's mainly because first drafts and I don't really get along. I've talked before about how much I hate writing beginnings. I made a whole video on it. That's pretty much all a first draft is: one giant beginning.
When you write a first draft you take a beautiful idea and you pull it apart bit by bit.
Okay, it's not perfect, but it's sort of resembles what you were going for... but wait What are you doing? Did you just climb into a burning car?! Like stop. Don't do that! What's going on?! Things get very hectic, very fast.
You might think by the way things just went totally crazy there, that I go into my books with no plot, no plan whatsoever, but I'm actually a very heavy outliner. My outline is like 50 pages, it's so big. I do like being surprised.
The problem with first drafts is that they're pretty much nothing but surprises.
You'll find that your character might be completely different than you envisioned. Or that the path that you were aiming for is just not possible in this book. You will likely find that your story has a mind of its own and you aren't always on the same page. Literally!
Now, there is room for magic in a first draft.
When I started my current project, I did discover that my main character is different than I expected, but she was stronger. She's more determined. She's very confident in her ability to succeed and I have let her take the lead when appropriate. She knows her story better than I do, but not all surprises are fun.
In my first first draft, a fourth of the way in I realized that my pacing was completely off. A hard reality when you are a perfectionist is accepting fault, especially in a high-stress intense environment like NaNo. It can be very easy to second-guess yourself.
You'll notice a lot of faults in your book as you write, but the most important thing to do is keep moving forward.
If your pacing is too slow, speed it up from that point and move on. If you realize you needed to introduce a character earlier, write as if he's already been established and move on. Likewise, if you realize a character is unnecessary drop them.
Every flaw can be fixed in revision.
Say it with me: Every flaw can be fixed in revision. But you won't reach revision if you don't finish the book. First drafts lie.
They are nasty, deceitful little things.
But you're a liar, too.
That's what professional authors are. They are professional liars for a living, so be a better liar. Manipulate your manuscript before it manipulates you. First drafts are needy. They don't want you to move on. Resist the temptation to edit, edit, edit.
Editing comes later. Nitpicking a manuscript is like attacking with a butter knife. Revision is going into battle with a sword. So be nervous. Be afraid. Those feelings never really go away, no matter how practiced you are. But don't let your fear keep you from succeeding.
Good luck!
What's your best drafting tips? Let me know below.
Tell me if you're doing NaNo. Let's do something. I don't know. Friend me on NaNoWriMo.org. I will link my profile in the description. Subscribe if you want more videos on writing and books and don't forget to sign up for my newsletter for all my best writing tips on November first.
Thank you so much for watching. I hope you have a great day. See you soon!
*chewing noises* Too many snacks. I shouldn't have put so many sour patch kids in my mouth!
