I first learned of this notion from reading Stephen King’s “On Writing”, and it changed my life forever.

“I believe the first draft of a book — even a long one — should take no more than three months… Any longer and — for me, at least — the story begins to take on an odd foreign feel.”

— Stephen King

I’m a perfectionist, which is often a battle when it comes to writing a first draft. You doubt every word, every sentence, every chapter. You’re constantly fighting against yourself — the part of you that loves to write vs the part of you that loves to question your abilities.

Setting yourself a due date is a sure-fire way of making sure you see your project through.

As writers, we are self critical by nature. We could write and write and write the same project over and over again and never really be truly satisfied with it.

Giving yourself a limit of three months to crank out your first draft ensures that you don’t get bogged down in the details.

Writing your first draft in a short period of time ensures that:

• You stay passionate about what you’re writing
• You remain in the ‘world’ of your novel
• You continue to think about your story whilst you’re eating dinner, in the shower, falling asleep…
• The deeper and faster you delve into the project and the world you’ve created, the higher the chances are of you being able to write at fever pitch. You’ll stay invested in your process, the inspiration remains hot and your idea doesn’t risk falling stale.

If you’re writing any slower than this, if the project drags out for months or years (been there, done that), you’ll likely lose momentum.

Spending too much time on your first draft can mean that you’re spending too much time editing, adding unnecessary descriptions and finite details. These things should come in your later drafts and during your editing phase. Otherwise, you’ll lose momentum. Writing like this will make it feel almost impossible to get through the first few chapters. Avoid blocking your flow.

Writing a book is hard enough as it is, try not to make it harder for yourself.

Your first draft will likely be riddled with plot holes and one dimensional characters and descriptions. It will, to be blunt, probably suck. And that’s okay! That’s exactly what a first draft is for. Lay down your excessive expectations and then lay down the bare bones of your story — add the flesh after. As they say, write now and edit later.

#writing #books #writing-tips #authors #productivity