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The First Draft of Anything is Shit
The Four Stages of Novel Writing
Shitty First Drafts are wonderful, terrifying things. Once you have one, you really ought to take a moment to hold that freshly printed and bound manuscript close to your tender beating heart. Because this is the fun part — Stage #1, otherwise known as The Euphoric Stage.
Embrace this stage. Caress your novel for a while, and relish in its evolution. This stage is short-lived, and when the euphoria wears off (and it will), you will find yourself struck by what a complex and volatile relationship you have shared with your story; you know, because of all those words you wrote. This is Stage #2, aka: The Fickle Stage. During this period, you will scrutinize all those words. You will:
- Love them
- Hate them
- Swear at them
- Rip them up
- Print them off and wear them
- Use them for fire starter
- Line the bottom of bird cages with them
- Sometimes have to eat them
- Misspell them
- Stick them on your bathroom mirror
- And finally… COUNT THEM
Enter Stage #3: The Post-mortem. This is when those rose-coloured glasses you never…
