Just finished a first draft of my new novel, and am reminded of the Hemingway saying re same:
“First drafts are s#!t.”
Well, except he had a version of hello in the middle, where I’ve put the #!.
My first draft probably has a lot of #! in the middle, but there is a beauty to any first draft if you look at it as a starting point. You can see what you have and what you don’t have, what you need and don’t need. I’ve found it’s also very liberating if you approach first draft that way. Nothing needs to be perfect, or even necessarily good. Just get the story down on paper. Then I can shape it and make it better and, ultimately, good or maybe even great.
So I’ve been living without the editor on my shoulder as much as possible since I started this story last fall. I’m taking a short break to vacation with family, but am looking forward to asking the self-editor back into my office in the coming days. I’ve got the water off the end of the pier, and am ready to jump in when I get home. – Meg
