The First, Second and Third Draft

Lamott’s Shitty First Drafts explains why it’s okay to have a shitty first draft. A shitty first draft is necessary for successful writing. The first draft can be anything. All that needs to happen is that words appear on paper. She goes on to explain that after the shitty first draft, the second draft follows.  That is when you clean up the first draft, perhaps identify new leads, and pick out sentences that have no relation to the writing. The final draft, and ultimately the end result, includes everything you perfected, as well as the right amount of writing. While George Dilia disagrees, he does not produce shitty first drafts. He feels that the only reason someone would create a shitty first draft is if they doubted themselves. He claims that he can not imagine producing a shitty first draft, let alone hundreds of shitty sentences afterwards. That is not to say that you cannot revise the writing, he does constantly. Dilia claims the beginning of a novel is so crucial you cannot start writing with a shitty first sentence. I agree with Lamott since I can not sit down and start typing while the thoughts flow. If I sat down and said, “This is it; this is what I’m writing about,” I’d end up staring at the computer screen forever.  I can’t make up my mind to begin with too, so having numerous drafts gives me more possibilities.