You Have to Write the Bad Stuff Before You Can Write the Good Stuff

 

If you want to write something but you aren’t sure about the right words to use, just start writing anyway. Don’t worry if they aren’t the “right” words to use; you will figure that out later. For now, just start writing what you want to write.

 

Keep in mind that once you start writing your first draft, it is only your first draft. It is not the final piece that everybody will read. It is not the final piece that will be published.

 

It is only a first draft. And every first draft sucks.

 

Why do we writers push ourselves on to write our first drafts even if we know they are not going to be so great? Because we know one truism about writing: You have to write the bad stuff before you can write the good stuff. Once you get that bad stuff (bad writing) out of the way, you can now focus on the good stuff – namely, good writing.

 

If you still struggle with trying to figure out how to get started writing, here are a few tricks I use:

 

• I pretend I am sharing this with the person I am writing it for.
• I pretend I am giving a lecture or speech.
• I pretend I am on the news reporting about the topic.

 

These usually work for nonfiction, but if you’re trying to write fiction, start with your idea. If it’s a character, then write the scene they are in. If the story comes to you with a lot of action happening, write about what’s happening.

 

The important thing is that you get started writing. Get that first draft down. Yes, it may seem long and tedious. It may seem hard to do. And if you allow yourself to get carried away, it may seem like A LOT of work and writing you will need to do. (Tip: Don’t even go there!) But once you start writing your first draft, you’ll start to figure out where to go from there.

 

And once you have that first draft written, you will have something to work with. You can trim, edit, revise, change, delete, add and elaborate all you want to when you tackle that first draft to create your second draft. And you know what? Your second draft will be better. Why? Because while creating your second draft, you were able to catch all the bad stuff in your first draft. You got rid of it and got the good stuff in your next draft. And the draft after that one will be even better.