Writing a First Draft, Creative Practices and Disciplines
WRITING AT WORDHOUSE
When You Finally Sit Down to Start Writing
Starting the writing process can sometimes feel overwhelming, but with your best laptop, and a positive mindset, you can enjoy pounding words on paper. This blog post lists the common practices in brainstorming, gathering references, journaling your experience, and writing a first draft. Hopefully, these tips will keep you on the right track from the moment you sit down to write until you finish writing the first draft.
Foremost in your mind as soon as you start writing is an understanding of your audience and purpose. Who are you writing for? What are you trying to accomplish with your writing? For fiction, the audience leans to a specific genre. Your story will resonate with a certain age group, and if you’re a conscientious writer, you cannot miss the desires of a demographic. For non-fiction, a clear idea of your audience and purpose will guide your writing structure and identify your readers' needs and interests.
You have probably been ruminating on a topic or subject to write about. You could be thinking about writing from a personal experience, a current event, or a specific area of interest. If you are passionate about something and are knowledgeable or experienced about such, then your imagination has been ignited. Writing about something you care about will not only make the process more enjoyable but also make your writing more engaging and authentic.
Once you are certain about your topic, it is crucial to gather references and do some research. You may think that all you know about the subject is enough, but research will expand your perspective on the subject and help you choose the best information and insights to include in more authoritative writing. Gather references from good books, well-cited articles, credible online sources, or even interviews with experts. Your knowledge of the subject is only as good as the type of information you get. The better the data gathered, the more equipped you will be to write a well-informed and comprehensive piece.
Journaling your experience is always helpful in the writing process. In keeping a journal, you are documenting your thoughts, ideas, and observations. This practice helps you develop a regular writing routine and allows for constant meditation and reflection on the world around you. Journaling can be therapeutic and enlightening. The wealth of material from your journal entries can fuel your imagination and creativity.
In writing your first draft, the next crucial step is to find a conducive writing environment. Situate yourself in a quiet and comfortable space where you can focus and concentrate without distractions. You may tailor that space to your liking, some like it messy and filled with what nots while some are minimalist and prefer the space to be clean. Your comfort in space is important in your writing process. Set a dedicated time for writing and establish a routine that works best for you. Some writers set a specific number of words or pages to finish in a sitting, while others prefer to write as inspiration allows and to stop when all the juices are exhausted. Find what works for you and stick to it.
Writing is a reflexive process that needs preparation, inspiration, and dedication. By understanding your audience and purpose, focusing on a topic you're passionate about, gathering valid references, journaling your experience, and creating a conducive writing environment, you can set yourself up to finish anything you begin and be rewarded and fulfilled in your writing.
Brainstorming Your Subject
Usually, although you already have a notion of your subject, you have a forest of ideas on how to go about expressing them. Brainstorming will help you generate ideas for expressions and organization. Brainstorming will group your ideas, and then direct you to the one idea you will finally decide to explore. How do you brainstorm?
By Freewriting: Set a timer for 10-15 minutes and write whatever comes to mind about your subject. Don't worry about grammar or structure; just let your thoughts flow. This technique allows you to tap into your subconscious and uncover hidden ideas or insights. You might be surprised by some novel points of view and fresh ideas that emerge during this process.
By Mind Mapping: Draw a central concept in a thought bubble and then, let this bubble branch out to related subtopics. This map will reveal key points and connections. Mind mapping is especially useful when your subject is complex and yields multiple layers of information. The map opens up to non-linear relationships, broken down into visual codes that find their way into hyperlinks of thoughts.
In Research: Choosing the articles, books, or videos you will study and access to gain a deeper understanding of your subject starts with a simple scroll through library catalogs. Take note of the details of your sources. As you get exposed to other premises, perspectives, and arguments, your brain gets used to the dialogue and becomes well-rounded.
In Discussion: Talk with people who know about your subject and who are interested in dialogue about the same. Conversations are possible online or face-to-face, and even by joining forums and chat communities. As you exchange ideas and hear other viewpoints, your assumptions are challenged. The brainstorming of insights will demand you to commit to a standpoint only after weighing and pondering all available ideas. Discussions can also help you identify the gaps in your knowledge or add details to further explicate a notion or idea.
The brainstorming techniques above yield a treasure of ideas and inspire the imagination for your next writing projects. But remember that your first goal is to explore all accessible angles and perspectives so you can write unique and engaging content. It is useful to generate a substantial amount of ideas before organizing them into a logical structure and beginning the writing.
Gathering Your References
When you have a clear direction for your writing, the references you have gathered should not only serve to support your ideas but also open doors for new reflections for the next book or writing project:
Use Reliable Sources: Make sure to use reputable sources such as academic journals, books from established authors, or trusted websites. Ensure that your writing is backed up by reliable information. When selecting sources, consider the expertise and authority of the authors, the publication or website's reputation, and whether the information is supported by evidence or research.
Cite Your Sources: When using information from other sources, always give credit to the original authors. This not only avoids plagiarism but also adds credibility to your writing. Use a consistent citation style, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago, to properly attribute the sources you use. This allows readers to verify your claims and follow up on the information if they wish.
Take Detailed Notes: From your references, take notes of key points, quotes, and other relevant information. Copying aid memory, and recording important notes in a cherished notebook will keep those memories intact. It will be easier to retrieve, reference, and incorporate the information into your writing later on. Be sure to record the source's information, including the author's name, publication date, title, and page numbers. This will save you time when you want to go back, and when creating your bibliography or works cited page.
Organize Your References: Physical note cards, digital folders, or reference management software – all are necessary for the storage and filing of information. Retrieving your own researched data should be immediate and not tedious throughout the writing process. Organize your references also to see connections between sources to identify weaknesses and fill in the gaps in your research.
Gathering references is essential in the writing process. As a result of deliberate and careful research, you will have strong, inevitable arguments. In using reliable sources, properly citing your sources, taking detailed notes, and organizing your references your writing gains more credibility and authority.
Journaling Your Experience
When you are reflecting on your experiences and identifying key moments or lessons learned, you usually write in a stream-of-consciousness method. Your thoughts flow freely onto the page and you do not worry about grammar or structure. Even your language is unedited and you have the freedom to set aside and solve later vocabulary problems. You try to capture the raw emotions and details of your experience in words and expressions you are most familiar with.
However, when journaling becomes a habit, you use more descriptive language and aim to paint vivid pictures even just for yourself. The sensory details that appeal to the five senses become paramount in recording information and you will refuse to use mere cliches but will choose expressions that satisfy the imagination. Instead of simply stating that you were scared, for example, you will describe the pounding of your heart, the sweat on your brow, and the chills running down your spine. You yearn to describe for a visual effect when you feel more connected to your story.
Journaling your experience as a therapeutic exercise is a way of getting out of some rut or struggle. Somehow, writing how you feel or what you think about an issue, a person, or an event clears up your mind and soul of clutter and gives it peace.
Writing a First Draft
Finally, when writing your first draft:
Follow a writing schedule: Dedicate specific times for writing and create a routine that works for you. Stay focused and track your progress. The calendar might have the following: A goal for the day, a goal for the week, a goal for the month, and a goal for the year. Meeting your goals depends on how much you stay glued and disciplined to a set time of writing.
For a formal starter, you may follow an outline: A rough outline of your main topic, sub-topics, and even your examples or the details you plan to put under each main part will always help. As a roadmap, the outline organizes your thoughts after brainstorming.
Avoid editing while writing: Sometimes automatic editing is a work hazard for writers who are also editors. But even for those who are used to checking other author's drafts, as a writer, the rule is to first wear your writer’s hat and not take it off. Once you're done writing, replace the hat with an editor’s hat and don that hat with glee. Avoid wearing these two hats one on top of the other, since doing this will hinder your creativity more than encourage it. Although editing yourself is also crucial to writing, finish the draft first, and edit later on.
Explore, explore, explore: The first draft is messy, but that's okay. Use all ideas going in or out, getting discovered or erased, drowning or surfacing. In short, save all those ideas, big and small, clean and messy. You will use all of them many times in your writing career. Now, perhaps, you will use just one of them. Later on, you will just file another, and in the final document, the rest will become endnotes or recommended readings. Keep track of the evolution of your ideas by writing them all down in any order on any notepad or Post-it sheet.
Keep looking at the big picture: In writing the first draft, it's easy to get caught up in the details. Remember to stay focused on the message and purpose of your piece. You can fine-tune the specifics in the editing stage.
Avoid all distractions: Concentrate. Turn off your phone, close unnecessary tabs on your computer, and close your door if you can’t stand the noise. There are different work habits, and everybody’s distraction is obvious only to that one writer. So while you’re aware of what it is that will distract you, you will be wise to avoid it at all costs for you to immerse fully in the writing process.
Take breaks: Writing a first draft can be mentally and emotionally draining. Rest can be taken for granted if you are the type that can last without resting for long periods. Nevertheless, take any length of time to pace yourself and clear your mind. Sleep, go for a walk, talk with a toddler, walk your dog, drink coffee or tea – anything that will inspire and rejuvenate you. Sometimes, this means ignoring your calendar of goals if resting will make you more creative than staying at your seat to attain a certain number of words for a day.
Experiment: The first draft will not automatically show a writing style that is authentically you. So don't be afraid to experiment with the first draft. Be conscious of how different writing styles will surface in your writing – enhance the spontaneity, imitate a style, model after what you’re reading, go beyond a famous trend, take some risks with vocabulary, and try a new approach to narrative. In the first draft, you have room to experiment. You can refine and revise a final style in subsequent drafts.
Writing a first draft can be challenging, but writing starts here. The goal of the first draft is to get your ideas out of your head and onto the page. You can refine and polish your draft in the editing stage. So, embrace the mess, focus on the big picture, and be free to experiment. Happy writing!
