What Type of Writer Am I?

After reading Lamott’s piece I had originally agreed and related to the ideas she had shared. Yet, after reviewing what Dila had to say, I realized I am more in the middle of these two writing processes. While Lamott spoke of just writing without revising and just letting your thoughts pour out to go back to fix errors at the end eventually, Dila countered by explaining he was more of the type to be a perfectionist, going back to revise various times before he felt content with his work to continue.

When I compared these writing processes to my own, I realized I’m rarely the type to just let myself write and write and then go back to fix all the errors at the end. When I write, at least in a professional scenario, I find that I’m the type to go back and reread what I write and try to fix my point until I feel neutral/content about it before moving on to the next point. While I have definitely followed Lamott’s strategy before, I have only really recognized it whenever in the rare occurrence I decide I want to journal. In those moments that are rather vulnerable, I just allow myself to write as I’m having many thoughts and my mind and hands are just trying to play catch up with each other as I’m trying to write all the thoughts and rush of emotions I’m feeling in the moment down. With those types of writing pieces while I may go back to try and reread what I said and make sense of it I kind of just let it be, since the purpose was to let my emotions out and it served its purpose in the moment.

However if I’m writing for a formal assignment, while I can let myself write after getting a rush of ideas and make a few spelling mistakes, I always go back to fix them after I wrote my full thought down. If anything I believe I’m more of a mix between the two in the way that I follow Lamott’s strategy in intervals, I let myself free write, and then I go back and revise right after, (as Dila would) before I continue. I definitely don’t think I’d be able to make it to the end of the paper without making any changes, yet I know I’m not perfect and definitely wouldn’t go as crazy as Dila revising.