You Must Make Time For Writing Every writer I know has a list of well-refined Excuses. But if you are compelled to write your story, then you must write it. You must sit at your computer, or with your notebook and pen, and physically write out the words. It sounds obvious because it is obvious, … Continue reading Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 5
tips for writing a first draft
Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 4
Keep the Creator and the Editor Separate This is an old writers’ adage heard by everyone who has ever taken Creative Writing 101. The funny thing about this adage: it’s true. If you try to edit as you write, or if you’re too critical as you write, you’re going to stifle yourself, and your creativity … Continue reading Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 4
Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 3
Your First Draft Will Need Help If you accept that your first draft is going to need a crazy amount of rewriting, it frees you up to write, as Natalie Goldberg calls it in Writing Down the Bones, “the worst junk in the world.” If you've read Bird By Bird you know that Anne Lamott calls them … Continue reading Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 3
Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 1
A Necessary Part of the Process Every writer I've ever known, and every writer I've ever read about, says the same as Hemingway, "The only kind of writing is rewriting." Writing the first draft is a chore, but we can’t proceed to our second, third, or final draft without it. Three books that have helped … Continue reading Writing Inspiration: Writing a First Draft Part 1