I recently came to this realization and it has been a game changer. Years and years of writing with nothing to show for it because I kept getting caught up in the perfect prose and experiencing "first draft dysmorphia". Great video, extremely relevant and well made thanks ❤
Wow. Thank you, Hilary. I’ve always dreaded going back over first drafts specifically for the reasons you mentioned. But a comment you made, comparing the first draft to the skeleton of a house, has completely clicked for me. You can’t start putting up drywall until the frame of the house is complete. And you don’t start decorating the drywall until it’s been painted. Each room of a house has multiple layers to it, just like the drafts of a book. 🤯 The prose and witty dialogue are the pictures and artwork and curtains hanging on a wall. It takes time and multiple steps to get there. Thank you.
Yes exactly! Very well put! Thinking of a book as layers really takes the pressure off each individual step. There's so much more room to work when you're only focused on what that layer needs, whether it's the frame, the drywall, or the paint. Taking it all one step at a time is so much less intimidating. I hope your writing goes well! This helped me so much, I hope it helps you, too! Thank you for watching!
I am *so* glad I found your channel. I've heard others refer to the type of draft you're talking about as the 'zero draft' - just info dumping all the story as it currently exists in your head, in whatever form it takes to do it, and then dissecting it later. I'm a habitual note-taker (because I come from the distant past, in the days before the advent of home computers), and used to have scraps of paper upon which I'd scribbled bits of dialogue and various story ideas that eventually went into a giant red 3-ring binder that I called The Big Red Book of How and Why, which would later be transcribed onto typewritten sheets. It was not a practical method. Now I take notes on my phone and plug them into an on-going Scrivener document to mull over later. That, to some extent, is my version of the zero draft. Although I have to admit I'm still trying to overcome the desire to edit and revise things even at this stage, as if it somehow matters. Thanks for the great content!
Your Big Red Book of How and Why sounds incredible, actually. I'm also a habitual note-taker. I keep a journal during each book because I'm still rather in love with the analog ways, even though I do still use and love Scrivener. Stopping yourself from revising as you go is really helpful. So many times in the past I would revise at the halfway point. And then I'd have to revise again when I changed something else. And then again. It was an endless loop. But if you wait till you're done, you can handle all the revisions at once. Thank you so much for watching!
"The first draft is telling the story to yourself." That actually reframed the process really well for me. The first draft isn't just a hurdle, it's a pole vault and the pole is missing, lol. Although I knew no one was going to see it, I guess there was some sort of hidden pressure to do well in it. Thanks for clearing that up! I also love, love, love the writing examples you give. The music paired with the sheriff segment pulled me in instantly and put my brain into high gear. The mini-arc paragraphs were super helpful in understanding what a mini-climax would look like. Like some sort of revelation, right? But also the story itself is intriguing. Have you ever thought about doing a video where you do a short story utilizing these tips? (I definitely don't have ulterior motives to see more of your writing, trust me. ^.^)
I had the same attitude. First drafts were SUCH a chore, especially because I was putting so much pressure on myself to get every word just right. I hope approaching things this way helps you as much as it did me! Thank you! I try to make my examples a little interesting, or maybe even inspiring, if others wanted to use them as seeds for stories. The mini-climax does work a lot like a little revelation. Sometimes it can be a twist, too. Mainly it's the conclusion of a mini chunk of action that then carries the story to the next mini chunk of action. Someone else mentioned doing a video series in which I take a story from start to finish. I think it's a really good idea, but I'd have to think about it a while to figure out the best and most helpful way to do it. I'm sure I'll figure something out. It's such a good suggestion, thank you! Thank you very much for watching, and for commenting! I really enjoy reading how my videos help people, it means a lot, thank you!
@@The-Second-Story Glad to be of service! Especially after how you've helped us so much. Take all the time you need if you decide to do a video like that. I don't think I speak for just myself when saying that quality over quantity is well worth the wait. Especially when it comes to helpful content. I've already re-watched your videos 3 times so it'll cement in my head, lol. I really appreciate how you take the time to come up with scenarios AND reply so thoughtfully. Thank you and many blessings on your writing journey! :D
You had me at "metaphor casserole." Truly, you are a gem, and this is my new favorite writing channel. You are funny, helpful, and make me feel good about my writing messes. I can't wait for your next one.
Really helpful video. I did NaNo last year (first time attempting long form fiction) and faithfully followed the don't edit principle, but in a more freeform "just type whatever dialogue etc seems to flow without much thought for where it's going" way, with the result that I'm now editing/rewriting and facing a big chunk that just says "insert plot here" (my own personal "here be monsters" :D). The approach of writing each scene as a paragraph first, with its own arc, makes a lot of sense (much more solid architectural premise than ending up with a bunch of curtain fabric randomly thrown into the corner of a muddy field). Thanks!
It sounds to me like you have a really good approach to start with, in the sense that you're using your first draft to focus less on the prose and more on the content. And that you don't edit! All that you need now is to develop a technique that works for you to incorporate story planning into the process as well. Good luck with your writing, and thank you for watching!
Wow I just discovered you! I’ve watched countless videos and followed so many authors, read every book on writing out there, and you explained it so well that I’ve actually had a huge breakthrough moment. I’ve been trying to get my first draft as perfect as possible, and have rewritten it countless times before finishing! It’s been years! And I have several friends and my husband who keep asking to read sections of it just to see the tone or what it’s going to be like, and I haven’t let them read any of it because it isn’t ready and then I second guess everything and can’t get a single draft finished. My friend even said she’ll help me with it as I write, but I just cannot let her read it and start adding her input before I’ve even gotten my story down. Stresses me out! I’m swatting them away like flies and I know they think I’m crazy. So glad to know it’s not just me struggling with this! Telling the story to yourself is a great way to put it. This first draft is only for me, they can read parts of a later draft. And then I won’t get so obsessed with making perfect prose while I’m still trying to figure out the plot. I read somewhere that writing and editing are two completely different author brains/ skills and we should never try to do both at the same time or we’ll block ourselves. But I think we have more like 5 brains competing at a time! Now on to check out your other videos 😊
That's completely true, the first draft is just for you. It takes so much pressure off to think of it this way, I find. You tend to think of it more like really useful material, rather than writing that should be judged and assessed. Good luck with your writing! I hope this idea can help you. And thank you for watching!
A well-informed and well-edited video, as always. I have one point to add. I once read someone compare re-drafting to re-reading: because a writer has to draft a story multiple times, a reader should read it multiple times. Few people re-read stories they like. They don't truly know how shallow an experience it is to read a story for the first time. That's why when turning to writing they expect something deep on a first draft.
Loved the conversation approach to describing the work. I’m currently finishing my first draft to my first book. I had the “conversation” of what my book is about- in my own head as if I’m being interviewed by someone. I even sat with a friend specifically to describe my book, before I really started writing it, in my own way of “making my story real”. This process actually helped me guide my work in the direction I wished for it, and away from what I didn’t want, once I began writing.
It's so strange how that works. I do that, too. When I'm struggling with a knot in my plot I'll ask myself questions about the story as if I know nothing. And rearranging my imagination like that makes me see the story differently and the questions I ask lead to answers I hadn't even known I was looking for.
You always give unique perspectives and actually useful advice. I've honestly learned more from your three videos than the tens of other videos that only give formulas and rules.
That's wonderful! Taking that pressure off yourself is such a help. Plus, now you can enjoy the process of figuring out the story without being hung up on the prose. Happy writing!
This is hands down the best story writing channel I've seen. Every video is really just great advice and insight that resonates with me so clearly. Thank you.
I'm really glad my videos are so much help! I hope I can continue to make helpful videos! In the meantime, thank you for watching, and for your support!
That last tip is so important. I have a friend who used to chase me down so he could tell me about this new idea he had after failing to finish every single project he's ever started. He will spend hours telling me every detail of the story to the point where I could literally put the phone on mute while he's talking and he would still be talking by the time I came back however many minutes later. I used to tell him not to tell me anything until he's finished a chapter at least... He would just go silent, and the next time I hear from him, he's started a new project he wants to tell me about (when I say started, I mean only in his mind).
your advice is so good, truly thank and please keep making videos. I just watched your others, and for the first time i do not feel overwhelmed on how to write characters or my first draft. I’m not dreading to finally start, i’m excited now and really think i can do this!
That is one of the exact life-changing breakthroughs this gave me, not to be overdramatic. I was finally excited about writing again and no longer dreaded it. And you can absolutely do this! Just be patient with yourself and never give up! Thank you for watching!
A great video also! I used the tip of no editing as I wrote and found myself writing faster and enjoying the process more because I am no longer micro-managing any words, phrases or prose. The mini-arcs are amazing. I am now so much clearer about the middle and was able to work out some kinks and plot points that make no sense! My friend asked me about the story and I replied you'll read it when I'm done 🤣🤣🤣 Now I am pumped to finish it so she can read it!
Yes! I also really enjoy the process so much more this way! And that also helps me write. It's so much easier to write a draft when I'm enjoying the process. I'm so glad your writing is going well! Keep going and good luck! Thank you for watching!
I'm currently working on a short novella project that I plan to send to a contest. I found this video just after I started prototype drafting the story and desided to try this no-prose methods and I'm blown away of how eyeopening it's been. I was able to finish a complete draft in a couple of days instead of maybe weeks for a similar project in scope. I'm already in a process of revising and planing a second draft that is slightly richer and structured. This format of video made all these concepts I have heard in other ways, finally "clicked" for me. Thank you for making and sharing this video.
That's so wonderful! Sometimes racing through like that, especially for shorter stories, is the best way to get it all down initially. And now you can actually enjoy the second draft. Good luck in the contest! Thank you for watching!
I get very excited every time you upload a video. Your advice is very practical, not preachy and basicaly all the good writing theory I've ever read combined in one place. Also, I'm one of those longhand writers who somehow hasn't gotten carpal tunel. It's very zen and grounding to write with paper and ink.
You are one of them! How?? It is very zen and wonderful, I agree. Unfortunately I'm a pen death-gripper. So if I write anything longer than a letter my hand is all but crippled for the rest of the week. Thank you for watching my videos! I'm really glad they're helpful and I hope they continue to be. Happy writing! (longhand! madness!)
This was fantastic, i hadn't considered approaching the first draft this way and have been bogged down in prose and research mode. Thank you, I will start with this method today!
I find that when I do it this way it's almost liberating. There's something really freeing about being able to only focus on the story. I really hope it works for you, too! Thank you for watching!
Hilary, thank you. I have searched long and hard for simple (as in uncomplicated) advice on how to do this whole "write a story" thing, and at long last, you popped up, seemingly out of nowhere, am I am hooked. Thank you, and please keep up the excellent work.
Every. Video. That. You. Make. Is. HELPFUL! Omg. My background is in visual art. When starting a drawing or painting, I begin with basic geometric shapes that gradually build up into sketches . Then, I begin rendering the image only after mapping everything out. I need to approach writing in a similar way. I WAS TRYING TO WRITE THE FIRST DRAFT PERFECTLY! Ahhhhhh. "You can't do this? Then you can't be a writer. You can't do it." But actual writers don't write like that. LOL. Eeeeek. Thank you, once again, for the reminder.
Your art analogy works perfectly for this. Because not only is it the same idea, it's for exactly the same reasons. Imagine getting a face perfectly drawn with photo-realistic detail only to realize that you need to move it to the other side of the canvas, or you need to change the angle. Or remove it altogether. The same logic applies to story-building. And there's nothing worse than that inner critic using this opportunity to try to convince you that you have no idea what you're doing. When the reality is that even da Vinci didn't know where Mona Lisa's hands went until he'd blocked in the whole painting. Good luck with your writing, I hope it goes more smoothly for you now! Thank you for watching (and for the comment, it's very encouraging to know that my videos are helping other writers)!
I want to say this video helped save my novel of two years! Thank you so much for your channel, Hilary! (PS. I liked your original title better 🤭definitely made me click on it faster than others with "X Tips" in the name)
Recently found your channel & I have to say -- I love your content! You have a direct & entertaining way to deliver actionable advice that is easy to digest. That's not easy to do for a subject like creative writing, let alone novel writing. Can't wait to see what else you have in store for us!
Great stuff. I like the way you make each point so easy and clear to understand in your videos. I am loving them and learning a lot! Thank you so much!
I am thoroughly convimced that your videos are the only ones available in the internet actually holding any valuable and implementable advice for new writers. Others stay too abstract or use advice and insights that feel more suitable for someone who has actually delved a decent amount into the art of writing. I am always happy to see another one of your videos pop up in my feed and always felt capable of immediately using your advice the next time I sat down to write. For that I want to thank you a lot. Your videos really brought me the courage to not look at the product if my work in disgust as if it were spoiled but to look at it as a raw material I still need to refine.
I'm so glad my videos could help you with your writing! I've spent too much time myself looking at my projects with disgust. It's a hard and painful hurdle to get over. But once you figure out some tricks that can help you understand the beauty of the whole, difficult, and often messy process, then writing can be a joy again. I really hope my videos can keep helping you in the future. Thank you so much for watching and for this lovely comment!
Hi, first of all thank you, this is the most helpful video i've seen on the writting subject. You're so skilled at explaining stuff for actual beginners, your explanation about what a first draft really is is the most helpfull information i got in weeks of trying to learn to write. Thanks a lot, you might have saved might me weeks or month of struggle with my first draft.
That's wonderful! Anything to prevent struggle is a good thing! Writing is already plenty hard without adding more difficulty on top of it. I wish you luck with your first draft! Just remember to keep going no matter what. You'll probably reach a point in there somewhere (I always do) when it feels pointless and you're absolutely certain it's horrible. But you must keep going! When you're all done you'll realize that it's not horrible at all!
Thank you. I've always been very meticulous from the very beginning, no wonder I'm always wrecked at the 3rd draft. We all should just make our life easier.
Writing a book is already so hard. If any part of it can be made a little simpler, I think we should try to do so. I hope this helps you as much as it did me! Thank you for watching!
Dam, I'm loving your videos. I never thought of my first draft like this. It's almost like a really detailed outline. This has me excited and now you're my new favourite. :)
It is, yes. That's a good way to think of it, like a very detailed outline. I'm always happy to help people get excited about writing again! I really find it helpful to just focus on the story. I feel like the resulting story tends to be better, too. Anyway, thank you for watching and for your support! Happy writing!
It really makes my day when someone tells me that a video of mine has helped them get excited about writing. I know what you mean, too. Using this method I find that I'm able to immerse myself in the story much more easily. And that's always really fun and exciting. Thank you for watching! And good luck with your writing!
Subscribed immediately. IMMEDIATELY!!! I keep overexplaining things then I bore myself before I get to the story bit. Ugh, thank you so much for showing the example cause it really helped me to understand what I was doing wrong.
I'm so glad I could help you so much! I don't know about you, but stopping myself from getting in my own way is practically a full time job, especially during the first draft. Avoiding getting bored is almost as hard. But if you keep it simple and focused, you can often dodge all that, or most of it. Good luck with your writing! Thank you so much for watching and for your support!
@@The-Second-Story after I finished the video, I turned my internet off and got to the complicated bit of my story that I had been stalling for weeks. Omg, I am so grateful, thank you again 🥹 I hope I can finish it before the year ends.
Hilary, I was delighted to see a new post from you and it did not disappoint. Thank you for your wisdom and humor. I am in the final third of my first draft and wish I'd gotten your sage advice a year ago! I've been erecting walls of my house then drywalling, wallpapering and trying to hang artwork on them before the next wall has even gone up. But I am going to apply your smart method to the rest of this draft to get me over the finish line. Maybe I'll even meet my goal! Thank you!
That might work out perfectly for you. I don't know about you, but I always really start to struggle as I get to the end. Hopefully you can get there without too much hardship! I'm glad my video could help you, and I hope your writing goes well! Good luck!
Not sure why but your videos are HITTING me, love it. Definitely one of my favorite new writing youtubers. You boil it down in a way that's solid in pacing, doesn't feel shallow, and has lots of clear useful knowledge and caveats so it doesn't feel like dogma. I know it's cliche...but your videos have great pacing, haha. Not editing is huge, wasted a lot of time "refining" chapters I needed to delete anyway. Not to mention it distracts from forward momentum of the work and doesn't require you to ask further questions to get to the next step. You're better off not writing at all and thinking or researching on a first draft than editing, imo you need to stay as close to the "next page" as possible in your mind. Get it on the page. If you are hitting a WALL and just can't get it out, you're better just trying to ruminate with your mind or generating the ideas away from the page. I think blank page writing with nothing to work towards has done nothing but produce a hole I have to then dig out of later. My first novel is first draft which took me a year and a half (not terrible given the context) and will spend time making it more concrete in language once I get the "plot" betaread, for now I'm working on my second novel and workshopping refining the process to make it more fluid. This was great, I think for me I'm trying outlining. Not to stick to it, but just to think of the plot in terms of getting to the next point and not simply finding that point. Having points floating for where it should go helps a TON, whether you do connect to that point or not. I did successfully produce an outline for the next novel but haven't tested how much it will help since I haven't finished that draft, but trying to find new ways to outline and to build a framework. I definitely think I need to spend more time on characters this time, finding them in the process was tough for me. They all felt similar which would never have been a hole I had to dig out of if I just built them prior. I spent far more time detaching characters from being similar to other characters than I would have just building them at the getgo. A lot of my initial feedback was "two of these three characters is the same person" and it was confusing even when I literally made it 1 chapter = 1 new POV as a clear rule. A new chapter meant a new name and space and world...but because they were coming from such similar places it still confused people. For me this idea of zerodrafting fully and not even touching prose till the book is done may be my best bet. I think there is a case for trying to build prose for a character to find tone/character itself if you can't...but do that only in the beginning and then stop. I may try to just full on zero draft the second novel and not touch prose at all, especially as I use this first novel to hammer out the lessons I need to learn so I dont make the same mistakes twice in two different novels. I found as I went through the first novel the most productive method was zerodrafting the next chapter as I saw it coming, just jotting down paragraphs, sentences, lines, phrases, and things I could use as I went through to mold my steps through it. Plotting them down in the chapter and then writing the chapter from scratch behind it and pushing them forward, deleting them as I addressed them or changed them. Sometimes zero drafting many chapters or entire Acts before I actually sat with the page and wrote the prose and events. Obviously, for my first draft, the prose was terrible. Too abstract, which works in part for the world, but imo, unweildly and nauseating if you were coming in fresh. Balancing that wax and wane from abstract to concrete is my biggest battle. Would love to see a video from you on balancing "show dont tell" moreso when to utilize abstract and concrete. I think the dominant adage is never use abstractions because writers overly use them so if you are supressing it entirely you'll balance it out to a normal amount, but imo, my favorite books in part were my favorite because of the abstractions and observations of the author outside of the concrete mechaninations of the plot. So I wont want to kill that, because I love it, I just need to figure out when an abstraction is motivated vs distracting. When is an abstraction a quirk of the character's judgement of the world and themselves and when it is also just losing the reader in the mush of stagnation. For me, I just love really smart authors with big bold interesting observations and takes on the world, and while I don't know if I have the intelligence to make those, I can't know if I dont try. Those things can and do and will happen in the concrete...but for me the most memorable were the abstract.
"Show don't tell" is an interesting writing tip I hear a lot. I understand what it's trying to say, but I'm not sure it's always interpreted quite correctly. Abstract vs. concrete is extremely stylistic, with almost infinite variations. But it is a very interesting area of study. By abstraction I imagine you mean those moments when the character observes the world or people or events and has opinions that they relate usually in their minds. That is highly stylistic, but certainly an interesting study for a video. I'll put it on the list! Daphne du Maurier once said that a writer should be read and not seen or heard. As beautiful as a novel is that's full of the author's observations and intelligence (when done right), the key there is to pack all of that into the persons of the characters. And sometimes that means letting your characters disagree with you, or hold a slightly different perspective or opinion, or even be wrong. Audiences are more receptive to the opinions and observations of fictional characters than those of the person doing the writing. Almost all instances of such abstraction that I have seen to be tiresome, boring, or even irritating (and other critical readers would agree) is because it is apparent that the writer is attempting to use the character as a random mouthpiece. But, one might ask, how else do you find the opinions for the character's thoughts but from your own mind? How to prevent that from becoming tiresome? Threading that needle is extremely difficult, but certainly possible. I'm already enjoying thinking about it, so I think I'll enjoy making a video about it. Thank you for the suggestion! And thank you for watching, and for taking the time to write a comment!
This technique already came in handy just a few hours after watching your video. I had spent the last few days mulling over a theme I'm interested in, and just as I went to bed, I came up with a fitting story, a modern fairy tale, if you like. So I got back up and I and kind of "vomited" it on paper, in one go. The whole story, compressed in five pages. I use the term vomited cause I'm not used to neglecting the language so badly. Feels awkward but it's great for making sure you get as much of the actual storyline/plot on paper. I'm quite new at writing (fiction) so I'm super excited. The story might not be good or even salvable when I go back to it, but I had fun, and feel a sense of accomplishment, and for a beginner that's important. thanks!
That's wonderful! Sometimes that's what you have to do, just pour it all out and let it be what it is, no matter what. Some of my first drafts are a lot like that. But just the feeling of having the whole story down is incredible. You feel like you've taken the first step, or you've started moving and now it's just a matter of staying the course till the end. Good luck and happy writing!
I do this thing where I interview my characters and what happens during this interview, is nothing short of magic. They tell me their stories. I never thought about it, but that is really my first draft.
You've been dropping valuable advice one after another! I definitely look forward to more of your videos. I'm new to writing and want to do it just as a hobby, so I'm not well familiar with the drafting process. I have a question about the implementation of mini-arcs. So from my understanding, this first draft is basically making a basic synopsis of how the mini-arcs are going to play out, so are you supposed to 'expand' these sort of summaries out in the later drafts? As in describing it in greater, more specific details like the prose and the dialogue. Would you also add in more, tiny mini-arcs into that expansion then as a result? Like from what I've observed, the mini-arcs have these even tinier arcs that carry the plot towards its climax and end, I think. I'm basically wondering if I should draw up the bigger picture first, then get smaller with the details in the next draft, like the larger mini-arcs' children mini-arcs! Sorry, I'm kind of struggling to articulate this, so this might seem unclear!
Everytime I think your next video could not possibly be more helpful (and funny) than the last, and everytime you prove me wrong. The only way I had heard this tip so far was in the form "Allow your first draft to be terrible", and that was about as unhelpful as advice gets. Thank you for putting it into context.
I heard that exact thing so often, too, and I never understood it. And then one day I was so annoyed that I couldn't figure out how to describe a scene that I just made a series of notes describing what I wanted to happen and the next thing I knew I was a third of the way through the whole story, just "describing" it like that. And suddenly it all made sense (finally). I'm so glad my videos are helpful! I hope they continue to be! And thank you for watching!
Hilariously, I just released a video today saying the exact opposite of this. Not as advice. Just, this is why my daily word counts aren’t very high :) Love your videos. All the best 😊
What you wrote at 4:40 is what I consider my outline. Its bullet points, but not fragments. You should be able to read the outline and get the whole story. I'm awful with describing characters and scenes. Whenever it happens in my story, it halts me for at least an hour. At these points, I think it's good to just write something random and come back later. Only then though. I don't like the idea of writing my whole first draft the way you describe because it's not much better than an outline. I think writing is like cooking from scratch. Each item I gather or make, is being added to the final meal. This outline you show, is not adding anything to my dish, it's like if I made the dish without knowing the measurements. Now I can't use whatever ingredients we're used in that dish for the real one. What I'm saying is, your first draft here doesn't feel like it was a stepping stone to the next part of the journey. I like to write something that feels like it could be the final line, but needs fixing with the wording or phrasing. That is left for later since I can see what I'm going for and hopefully jump right back into that mindset when I come back around to edit. My main issue with this idea of just writing to get it all down is that you feel like you accomplished something, but the dread of knowing that what you made is, going back to the meal talk, inedible, hurts. I lose all drive when I know now I have 300+ pages to edit and nearly all of it is unusable. That to me sets me back far more than it does to write 30 pages that I feel are "edible". Of course they will still need revision, but those feel like touch ups, not remodels.
The tricky part there, I think, is the idea of "usable" and "unusable." I personally find it more helpful to think of writing as making a sculpture from clay. If you've ever done that or watched someone do it then you know that one of the first steps is to pack a lot of clay firmly onto your form with the general shape present. Then, when you're done with that, you carefully sculpt out the shape of your piece. When you're done with that you smooth and polish. No sculptor would ever dream of showing that initial packed clay clump to the world. But it's an essential step, without which they can't ever complete the masterpiece. If you've put the whole story onto the page, even if it's 300 pages of story, that's all usable. If you have an idea of what happens in each scene already established, in your second draft you can write each of those scenes into something beautiful. Realizing at that point that all that's left is to rewrite the hard clump of data into a beautiful polished chapter makes you realize that all 300 pages aren't just usable, they're invaluable. To use your meal analogy, your first draft isn't cooking. It's studying the recipe and going to the grocery story and collecting all the ingredients. It's measuring out all the ingredients and arranging them in the order you'll need them. It's chopping the vegetables and preparing the marinade and so and so on. It's making sure your pot is hot and your oven is preheated. Then, when you start your second draft, everything is there ready for you to use. It's all usable. (Sometimes it helps to write a very rough outline before your start the first draft. In which case writing the outline is like deciding which recipe to cook before you make your list and go to the store.) But maybe what works for you could be a combination of your method and mine. You just have to be open to trying new ways to get through the first draft. It's okay for the prose and descriptions to not be "usable." The story is what you should focus on in the first draft. After that's down, you can have a lot more room and freedom to work on the prose and descriptions. Thanks for watching! And good luck with your writing!
@@The-Second-Story Thanks for the response. A lot of what you are saying I get behind. My biggest issue by far is that I'm much better at tackling hundreds of small issues over one large one so a large edit of hundreds of pages would never get done, but doing five pages a day would be easy. Like you say, it's all about finding what works for you. I appreciate your videos regardless. Please keep it up!
Going with your dish analogy, the process described in this video (which feels to me more like a zero draft instead of first) is like you getting all your ingredients out and in front of you so you don't have to pull them out of the pantry or the fridge while you're juggling 3 different pots on the stove. Which is actually very helpful in cooking. Anyw, I think the point is that sometimes you do need to let yourself write placeholders so you keep your momentum and don't end up re-editing the same 50 first pages.
@Mothsaam I think you're write and this feels more like a zero draft which I think is just an outline, but the video specifically said it's not that. I don't really agree with that. My outline, looks exactly like what the first draft in the video looks like. I can't just copy and paste that on the novel doc and then edit it to work. It's too basic and fast paced since it's an outline. I don't think it's like getting the ingredients and prep ready, that be the outline. The way the video shows a first draft to me is like trying to make the dish off of vibes and getting it wrong and learning from that. It can be helpful, sure, but it itself can't now be used for the final dish. I think a good first draft should be usable and able to be copy and pasted into the novel doc and reedited as is. It's the chopped up ingredients that you now have to measure out. Though I 100% you should do placeholder to keep your momentum going and actually make progress. HOWEVER, some things are not placeholder issues, but proper issues. The example of changing the location from one state to another is a placeholder issue. Writing a scene to bridge two other scenes together is not a place holder issue. That's a proper scene that will be needed, what reason do you have to not write it right now? Don't make extra work for your future self, thinking you are saving yourself time now. Think of it like this. I don't have to clean my gutters right now. Rain season just passed. I should put that on the to do list and work on the hole in the wall first since whether it's summer or winter, I want to keep my heat or AC in my house.
Thank you! That's Otto. He's been with me... from the beginning. I mean the one on my desk is Otto. I didn't randomly name the skull on my neck. That would be... a little weird I think. (Thank you for watching!)
I love your videos, and I am always watching for the next one. I'm about 100 pages into my scifi story. As I watched this video, I began to realize that the kind of writing you are describing as the first draft sounds like what I was calling my 'outline.' And when your on-screen text said "to be clear: I do not mean 'outline,'" it made me want to hear your thoughts about outlining, and what you would say about the differences between these in your process. Would you please make a video on this topic? Please don't stop making videos! Thank you!
I actually have a video idea on my list that has to do with outlining. Although, I will say that outlining tends to depend a lot on the person doing the outlining. I tend to think of it as the old school style of outlining. With a nice neat hierarchy of bullet points arranged logically in a kind of list. Others might think of something like a synopsis as being an outline. Others might combine the two. For the sake of clarity, outlining, to my mind, is the absolute barest of bare bones approach to planning a plot. Very little information, very concise, very brief, very orderly. Once you start describing the scenes I feel like we're getting into draft territory. But, again, definitions like this tend to be a little subjective. I do intend to make that video at some point! Thank you for watching! And for your support!
👍🏻 This is helpful! As I was watching I really wanted to know - roughly how many pages long is your idea of a typical first draft? (As in five pages ... fifty pages?) And how long would it typically / ideally take you? (Days .. weeks ... months?) Let's say we are envisioning a final, finished narrative of roughly one hundred thousand words, perhaps 300 book pages. This might give me a better appreciation of how much my process actually differs from the one you are describing. If I were to make a first draft of my own story, telling it to myself briskly (not stopping to ponder or elaborate) as I imagine this process, I think I would have around twenty pages, and it would take less than a week to do. The framework would not be thick with details or description. And I would already have spent a large amount of time thinking about my story and making copious notes. My outline is a thirty-page document. It doesn't forage into description territory, but it does contain details, bulleted structure, and complete sentences where useful. Maybe others would say it is something in between an outline and a draft. Two of my English teachers labeled me an "eeker," and they were the ones insisting on multiple drafts. Your advice about writing the first draft as though telling the story to yourself is making me stop in my tracks here. It gives me doubts about my process! I identify strongly with the idea of making a framework first, and then decorating it. Big picture, then details - zooming in progressively. I do think this is what I have going on. But, as an eeker, it is very hard not to edit as I write. Though people are always saying "don't do this," I am taking your video more seriously, because (quite unlike others' discussions about writing) so much of your content has made sense and resonated with me. So I am considering whether I should make changes. Again, thank you very much!
Everything about the entire writing process is subjective. No two people will write a story in the same way. So it's quite hard to answer your questions. A first draft, to me, is however long it needs to be. Naturally, books come in all lengths, so that will effect the length of your first draft. A draft for a fantasy book in which a lot of the worldbuilding, customs, lore, etc. has to be explained as well will be longer than a draft for, say, a murder mystery. If you summarize very loosely and broadly in your first draft rather than describe the scenes as thoroughly as you could, the first draft might be half or even a quarter the length of what your final book ends up being. Because I can't speak in generalities with this, all I can tell you is how I personally work. Please know that everyone is different and what works for me might not work for you at all. I write books that are around 150k usually. The draft I'm working on now is a book that will probably come in right around there when it's all done. The first draft is about three-quarters to four-fifths of the way done and it is roughly 60k. That seems about right to me, based on how I work. I've got some parts of the first draft that are very broad ("these two characters argue about this for a bit here") and some that are basically whole scenes written out in full. That word count includes three separate subplots which I've outlined and drafted separately. As for time, it takes as long as it takes. Ideally with this method, it shouldn't take too long. I've spent about three months on this draft and I'll probably be done in a few weeks. I took a bit of time off in the middle there to work on the draft of another story I'm working on. So, all told, I'm at about two or three months on this one. When you describe your idea of a first draft and your existing outline, these sound very similar to me. If you already write an outline then perhaps you could make your first draft a bit more detailed and thorough. You've got an idea of your plot, so now you could write out the basic idea of each scene, or each mini-arc, not thinking about the prose but focusing instead on the story events that occur. You'll probably find that such a draft would be a bit longer than your twenty-page outline, I'd say. Since the idea of gradually zooming in appeals to you, think of it like this. Your twenty-page outline is the big picture. Then you can do a first draft describing each scene or mini-arc, which would be like zooming in enough to see the rooms and the layout. And that might be longer, but you still shouldn't edit, because, again, this is just the story. And you should finish putting all the rooms and walls and doors in the house before you start moving them around. Once you're done with the first draft, you can go back through and make sure the story progresses as you want it to. When you're satisfied with that, your next draft will be prose and description, that is, zooming in to see the paint colors, the stain on the wood furniture, the throw pillows. This one you can edit all you want. But I'll think you'll find doing so a lot easier and more rewarding because you've already spent quite a lot of effort getting the framework of the story very solid. So now you can decorate it. I hope that helps! And remember, everyone has a different way of working. You just have to find the method that works best for you.
@@The-Second-Story I appreciate your thoughtful responses to my questions! Thank you. 🙏🏻 I agree, everyone has to find what works for them. My process works for me, but I try to improve it. It is interesting to hear what works for others. It would be great to get to read your writing. If you have titles to search, links, or a site, I would read. Thank you again!
I'm working on trying to find a way to put some of my shorter writing out there while I finish writing the book I'm working on. Thank you for your interest! Happy writing to you in the meantime!
You can certainly think of it that way! But you don't have to restrict yourself to summarizing. As you go along you might find that in places the synopsis becomes a kind of prose. That happens to me. There are several sections of simple summarizing and then a few chapters of actual prose and then I continue again in more of a synopsis form. The point, for me, is to maintain momentum. And stopping because I'm not sure what the right words are will arrest my momentum faster than anything. So if I can't think of the right words, I simply describe what's happening and nothing more. I can find the right words later. I'm glad this was helpful! Thank you for watching!
OMG! The Orpheus metaphor! Makes perfect sense! So… um… I got about 10k words into a story and then I was like, this should actually be the first scene. But of course I have no clue how to move on.
I'm sure the answer to that is in your first scene! Just ask yourself what would happen as a result of the events of that first scene and see what seems like the best path for the story. My video on pacing has a few tips on figuring out story and plot paths, maybe it can help you there. Good luck with your writing! And thank you for watching!
I didn't know this is what a draft looks like 🤯 I was wondering how detailed an outline needs to be. I have a short one that looks like a list, and then... I guess I already have a couple of chapters drafted and didn't know 😂 I thought it was just a long outline... I read another writer's advice that said in every writing session, he starts by reading and editing what he wrote the previous day, and then just drafting the remaining time. I guess I gotta find what works for me, but definately worry less about editing at this stage!
Your outline sounds perfect. If it's clear to you and if it helps you understand the story structure you're building, then it's doing everything it's supposed to be doing. My outlines do that to. Sometimes I just need half a sentence to explain the plot point. Sometimes I need a whole page. Re-reading and editing at the beginning of every writing session might work well once you're into the second or third draft. But I highly recommend avoiding that for the first draft. Just keep experimenting until you find your own method! And happy writing!
@The-Second-Story I'll try it!! 🥰 Thank you so much for replying!! And I love your advice! It's very different from what's found in other places, and I think it makes a lot of sense!
I’ve been looking for new inspiration and motivation to help finish my first draft. Thank you for this-I’m loving your videos. Approx how long would this bare-boned first draft be? A few pages?
I think if it is only a few pages then it is probably more of an outline or a brief synopsis. The length of this type of first draft depends entirely on the story itself, of course. But I think it would be best to try to be as thorough as possible. Describe each scene as thoroughly as you need for your next draft. You want to make sure to give yourself enough information to work with going forward. If you don't know something, try to note some details that will help you remember what the scene needs, even if you don't know what the scene should be yet. For me personally these kinds of first drafts end up being roughly half the length of the finished novel. Right around there seems about right to me. But everyone will have a different way to work, you just have to find what works best for you. Thank you so much for watching!
Hi, Hilary! I haven't watched this video yet, but I am a fan of your content. I noticed you swapped the thumbnail. This is just one person's opinion on the internet, but I think keeping your face in the thumbnails is a better idea than using stock photos. I recognize your videos because I see your face in them and almost missed this one because it looked very similar to a lot of other videos in my feed. I don't normally make posts like this because I know it's kind of cringy, but I wanted to let you know because I'm probably not the only one it happened to. Keep up the great work!
Thank you for taking the time to leave this comment. All of this UA-cam stuff is new to me so I'm afraid we're still in the early figuring-out-what-works phase of my channel. I think I agree with you. But as I said, still learning! In the meantime I do really appreciate your support!
Thank you for great advices! 💖 I keep my projects secret, because as soon as I share with anyone information... The sentiment of obligation literally crashes me. I feel guilt when not working on it and this makes me runaway from it.
That's such an interesting aspect I hadn't considered. The sense of obligation actually creating too much pressure to actually allow you to work. I can completely understand that. I imagine that's probably a much more common factor than we'd realize. Thank you for watching!
You mean the program I'm reading on my computer there? That's just Atlantis Word Processor. It's a wonderful, simple, feature-rich word processor. You can customize the entire UI with colors of your choice. I use Scrivener to write but then I compile each draft into a document that I can read through in a word processor like Atlantis. And thank you for watching! I'm glad my video could help you!
Learning to just move on has been my biggest hurdle so far, but I can finally feel the effects of it a quarter into my draft. Don't get me wrong, I still feel the urge to go and rearrange everything I wrote the day before every time I open my novel, but I've gotten better about shoving those feelings down and just picking up where I need to.
It also makes you a little more eager to finish so you can go back and edit. It's that way for me, anyway. I've set such a hard rule about that for myself that it adds another layer of motivation on my urgency to finish the first draft. I hope it continues to go well for you! Good luck!
I genuinely like your vídeos, thank you for the advices, really helping. When you write the First draft of your story you write only a paragraph for each mini arc, so does it means each paragraph is a chapter ? And you have really a small piece at the end that you have to extend ? Or do you put more than one mini arc in each chapter ? I was analyzing game of thrones recently and Georges Martin seems to put 2 mini arcs per chapters + some characters introduction and psychology of characters.
The suggestion about a paragraph for each mini-arc was more of a general guideline. Sometimes a paragraph is all you'll need, sometimes you'll need a page or two. The point is to describe the mini arc in as much detail as you need to be able to understand what's happening in it when you go back through with your second draft, at which point you'll flesh out the finer details. As for the chapters, that's completely stylistic and varies depending on the writer and on what you prefer. Some writers have one arc per chapter, some have several. It might help to write the fist draft without chapters and then figure out the chapter breaks in the next draft depending on how you decide to break up the events of your story. Thank you for watching! I'm glad my videos have been helpful!
I’ve noticed that many aspiring writers often confuse 'realism' with an exaggerated form of bleakness. They strive to make their stories believable and immersive, but being realistic doesn’t mean everything has to be relentlessly grim or depressing. Realism doesn’t require characters to be overwhelmingly incompetent or plagued by a string of improbable misfortunes. Nor does it demand that every other character be irredeemably awful, betraying one another without reason or going out of their way to antagonize the protagonist. True realism lies in balanced, nuanced storytelling that reflects the complexity of real life.
I wholeheartedly agree. This is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, the fallacy that unlikableness and bleakness = realism. It's pretty clear to see, recently, where such a trend stems from in current aspiring writers and it is a shame. Finding that narrow ground between likable and believably flawed and believably difficult is genuinely tricky. So many new writers take the bleak, awful shortcut. Unnecessary conflict is also a shortcut that damages both stories and the believability of the characters. Good characters and good stories are so rewarding to write. It's worth the effort. But I think a lot of new writers don't even realize that such paths are possible, much less permitted.
Well, that’s a new approach for me. I’ve micro needled my way through about 12 chapters, pretending to be James Joyce, Earnest Hemingway, and Franz Kafka finely honing each word.
I think it's so much easier -- for me, anyway -- to finely hone each word in the second or third draft, after I've got the whole story worked out. The words come more easily when I'm not using the other half of my brain to navigate the plot labyrinth.
I stumbled across the advice not to tell anyone about your WIP draft years ago, followed it religiously, and found it didn't work for me. Talking through my ideas with a few people gives me the motivation and confidence I need to finish a first draft. I keep the pool very small, though, and it's only people I trust to listen when I say I'm not looking for critique yet. No one gets to read the first draft, though. I will take my first drafts to my grave.
You've done this in a very smart way, finding people to not so much tell, as to offer support. This study I read, and the advice I subsequently offered, referred to more broad announcements. A mere, "I'm writing a book!" answered with "oh that's so cool!" That little hit of satisfaction can undermine your motivation. Having a support network is very different, and wonderful! And I completely agree with you about hiding away the first drafts. I could never destroy them, but the lawyers are going to be instructed to burn them at the moment of my death, let's just say.
Metaphor casserole 😂. I handwrite ...fyi. I love this video. This is how I finished my last book. I've been a little more careful this time as I anticipate the general things I'll need later, so add a rough sketch of that in...still rough thougn I am doing the erite notes to myself and "move on" thing
Hey, once again, a nice video! I’m in the middle of writing my first book, and I’ve definitely fallen into the trap of endlessly reediting my first chapter... I’ve been at it for 3 weeks!!! and still haven’t finished the damn thing. Your approach seems smart, but I dont know. I like the idea of focusing on a rough draft, but I also really enjoy refining my prose as I go, and I feel like I can’t do that if I keep it too rough. And I like having a sense of how a scene will look when it’s finished, even if I know I’ll probably revise it a hundred times later. So, what do you think? Is it okay to give a little more attention to getting the prose right on the first draft, or is it better to stick to the “rough sketch” mindset and let the edits come later? Would love to hear your thoughts.
This is a slightly tricky question. I completely understand the mindset of wanting to have a sense of one scene before moving on to the next one. It's a very natural approach to writing. But, as I'm sure you've already noticed yourself, this approach for you personally has led to some difficulty. I'm not saying that you're not allowed to want to tackle the prose in your first draft. But I think you might consider trying to divorce the idea of "prose" and "first draft" in your head. As an example: I prefer to write in past tense. So to keep myself from getting caught up in the prose I'll write the first draft in present tense. This way my mind isn't thinking of the words on the page as "prose" so much as "information." I completely understand wanting the prose to be at least close to what you want with the first draft, but fine-tuning prose in the first draft is much harder than it needs to be. For one thing, what if you get the scene perfectly written, then in draft two you realize that that scene doesn't quite work and needs to be omitted or altered. You'll find it MUCH harder to do so given how much time and energy you put into it to make it beautiful, and then if you do bring yourself to omit it you'll likely find yourself feeling very discouraged, like you've had to destroy a work of art. The other factor -- which I notice in myself -- is that it's a lot harder to juggle the story AND the prose at the same time. It is so much easier for me to write lovely prose if I already have the whole scene (and the ones before and the ones after) also set in my mind. You've been having a hard time on your first chapter. You might find that if you come back to it when you're done with your first draft, addressing the prose will be much easier because you won't have half your brain weighed down by considerations about the story. These are just my suggestions. You, of course, should do what you find works best for you. If you want to make your first draft more polished, you may absolutely do so. But if you find it overly difficult to get through in that way, it might not be the right approach for you. I've personally always had trouble trying to tackle prose and story at the same time. I've done it. I've finished drafts doing it. But I don't think those were very good drafts, in the sense that they didn't leave me with a good base for the second draft. Moreover, I was so exhausted by the end that it was hard to return to the beginning and do it all again. As far having a sense of the scene... I wish I could give you an example that would make this clearer. I often write parts of my first draft in a way that's very close to prose. A very rough kind of "Tom then goes back into the house and gets a bottle of water. The entire house is covered in crows at this point but he isn't as worried about that as he is about the paint splashed on his mailbox. The air is full of the cawing of the crows. The neighbors are starting to gather." I have a good sense of this scene in my head. I might even add some notes about Tom's emotional state. Later I can rewrite it so it's beautiful and atmospheric, but what I've got here is enough to paint a clear picture in my mind. It's all I need right now, so I can move on at this point. Sometimes I write a scene with less information and sometimes with more. My goal is always to maintain momentum. I'm sorry that was so long. I guess it's impossible to give you a solid answer on this matter. But those are my thoughts. I hope it can help a little! And I wish you luck with your first draft! Those things are hard to wrangle. But keep at it and you'll get to the end. Thank you so much for watching!
Hey, this wasn’t too long at all! But I was still really surprised when I first saw how thought-out and detailed it was, and it honestly made my morning! :D So yeah, like I mentioned, I’m still on my first chapter, and oh boi, it's been exhausting. What you wrote sums up pretty much what has gone wrong. I’m writing a dark fantasy story, so I really wanted the descriptions and prose to match that "dramatic" vibe. It opens with a carriage ride during a brewing storm, and I spent much time setting up the whole atmosphere. Like describing the scenery, the carriage drivers (MC) inner thoughts on the coming storm, his conflict, how the carriage itself mirrors his state of mind, his thoughts on his shady passengers, and so on. I kept wondering, “Is this interesting enough?", "Will readers actually root for him?” or “Did I really need that whole paragraph just describing the carriage?” Ended up deleting walls of texts that took HOURS to write. (as you said, feels like destroying works of art) Often I edited earlier parts, only to realize the later stuff didn’t make sense anymore with the new edits. And after rereading it a few days later, I’d be like, “Wait, does the whole situation even make sense?” or “Could this prose be better?”. Then stared like 30 minutes at my screen and wondered how the plot could move forward in a logical way... To make it worse, I sent the draft to ChatGPT to see what it would do with the prose, and after using some of it as inspiration for my descriptions, a sudden realization came to me, “Wait… this doesn’t even sound like ME anymore.” That just made me feel WAY more discouraged... Now I guess you can see why I’m still on chapter one and the plot hasn’t even really moved forward! Now I’m going to try your strategy. I’ll make my first draft close to prose but more like a script. Then I’ll take it to the second draft and hopefully get the vibe I want. But I JUST know the “first draft dysmorphia” will still hit me after rereading my second draft. (since my prose won't really improve while writing the first draft) I’ll definitely cringe just like you did in the video :D But hey. There are third, fourth and fifth drafts for a reason, right? Even if it’s exhausting, I know that each one will get it closer to what I want! Thank you VERY much for responding! It was really helpful!
What you described in your efforts to write your first chapter sounds VERY familiar to me. I've done that so many times. And all the questions you were asking yourself were good questions. But the first draft simply can't answer them. If you want to practice your prose separately while writing your simplified first draft (I do this sometimes, I think it might be a little odd, but I don't mind), just pick out something and write some prose for it in a separate document. I had a dramatic scene in which a big revelation occurred and I wrote a simple description of the scene in my first draft, but my mind kept lingering on it. So -- knowing fully that it might not make it into the second draft -- I opened a separate page in Scrivener one afternoon and wrote out the scene with as much imagery and lovely prose as I felt like putting into it. I had no pressure on myself to make it perfect. I treated it like an exercise. Like practicing painting hands before I paint the hand onto the canvas. I actually quite like how the scene turned out. If it still fits when I get to that point in my second draft, I'll add it in. If not, that won't bother me. But in the meantime, doing that, in a sense, scratched a prose itch. I got that out of my system and was able to comfortably move on to next part of the first draft. Sometimes just having those pieces squirreled away in a place separate from the first draft can also help. Anything to help, right? I really hope your draft goes well, now! Good luck!
Once again, thanks for the response! I used to think all those plot related questions had to be answered as soon as possible, but now I realize I can take my time and just keep writing. Btw your method sounds wonderful, and I’m definitely going to give it a try! It’s kind of like working out your muscles and getting ready for the real task, right? Anyway, I’m really looking forward to your upcoming videos. Hope you have an amazing day!
It is like exercise, yes! But like specific exercise. Like practicing drawing hands in a specific position before you paint them onto the canvas. You wouldn't know how big they have to be, or where the thumb should go or anything else if you didn't practice. But after you do, it feels easier and it's less frustrating to get it right. Have a lovely day, too, and thank you!
I wish I had this video 92k words ago, the I wouldn’t be struggling to finish ‘my version’ of a first draft 🫣. Soooo, how many words would you say a first draft would be? I’m so glad I found your channel ❤
That depends entirely on how much information your first draft has. Generally, I'd say it doesn't matter. The word count is only helpful information as you approach the final draft. In the first draft phase it's almost completely irrelevant. I'm currently writing the first draft of a fairly large-scale epic story that I predict (based on my experience) will be around 100-120k when it's done. Maybe longer depending on whether or not I can reign in these subplots. But my first draft, which is nearly done, is only about 60k and will probably end up being no more than about 70k or so. That's all I need for the first draft. For me, personally, I like to keep the first draft concise so I have a lot of room to work when I start the second draft. But that's just me. It really all depends on how you work and what works for you. Thank you for watching! Good luck with your first draft!
@ Thank you so much for the advice. I think I’m trying to write it as complicate as I can which in hindsight was an arrow as I already know how I want to alter the beginning 🙈 I’m also having problems with splitting up my writing into chapters. I’m in 92k words in 27 chapters 😳. I’m sure that isn’t right lol 😂 There’s so much to learn and I know I have to be patient. Thanks for the advice and please keep going, I need you in my writing life! 😉
If you have ideas now for something to change in the beginning, make a note now. You'll see it so you won't forget! And 27 chapters at 92k isn't right or wrong. Chapter length is stylistic and up to you. Some chapters are a hundred pages long. Some are one. Don't worry about chapters yet. Just focus on the story! You can break it up into chapters later!
How you describe youre furst draft is what i would call drawing an outline. I know many pride themzelves from being avle to write by the tip of their fingers, but that normally isnt the reality. My own outlines consist normally a single paragraph that i then turn into an entire novel, and yet i call it an outline. I have already written 3 books, the moment i finished the 3rd one i started working on my 4th. My take on drafting is this (if you draft multeple times you failed to write the story.) My first book was terrable, had to draft 3 times for it to be publishable, my 2nd book, i will need 2 drafts, for my third i only see that i will be needing a singe revision for it. Write so that you dont have to rewrite, then once you finish the book, you will have written the next one before you start revising it.
Thank you! Personally -- and this is just me, how I like to work -- that's what I do. I've tried just outlining but I always end up explaining the particulars of each scene, each bullet point in the outline, so I eventually just let the document become paragraphs and stop fighting myself and the whole thing goes much more smoothly. I work in Scrivener so I break the story into narrative chunks as I'm writing. This way I can rearrange the chunks (mini-arcs) as necessary just by dragging the sections around. Especially helpful with subplots.
This was life changing. I never got any wips actually written down and completed because i had this overachieving goal of writing a "novel" when i should've been writing the story in its most simplest forms. Im not currently at the stage of writing my first draft but this video came at the perfect time regardless. I do have one question: I don't think my story will end up being over 200 pages. Is that something I should rectify or should I keep it simplified like that?
That's the feeling that always got in my way, too, that I was writing a "novel" so it had to look and feel like a novel and be as close to perfect as I could manage. And it made the whole thing such an unnecessary struggle. When you say your story won't end up being over 200 pages, do you mean the first draft? If so, that's certainly no problem at all! The first draft isn't going to be an indicator of your final book's length, so don't let it worry you one way or the other. My first draft that I'm currently working on is something like 56,000 words and I'm nearly done. I know enough about how I write to know that the final draft of the actual book will end up being around 100-120k. Which seems about right to me for the kind of story I'm writing. If keeping it simplified and brief helps you progress to the next phase then that's how you should work. If you find that you would benefit from giving yourself more information to work with in that first shorter draft, then try to be more thorough. You'll have to experiment at first to determine what works best for you. I'm glad my video could help you! Good luck with your first draft and thank you for watching!
What I'm struggling with the most right now is comming up with original names 😩 I don't mind using temporary names for characters, but for creatures and other magic system related things it just doesn't make sense writting without knowing how it'll sound like. I've been searching for the perfect name for some creatures in my story for a couple of decades already 😂 Aaaargh Got any tips for that?
Ah, yes. Fantasy world names. I, unfortunately, have also done this to myself. Because I tend to overdo things a little, my solution was to invent a few languages and use them to name everything in my world, from mountains to people. Inventing a language sounds like a massive, impossible undertaking, but it is possible to invent a very, very simple bare-bones naming language that just creates a system of sounds and some rules (like no words can end with a consonant, for example, that's a fun rule) and then you can name anything, people, places, magic systems. This also gives all the names in your story a uniformity which adds to the realism. And the whole process will take you literally about one day. Maybe two. There's a book called The Language Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder that describes how to invent whole languages and also how to quickly invent simple naming languages. It's surprisingly fun once you get the hang of it. I can't recommend it enough. It demystified the whole process for me. And I love the languages I ended up with.
@The-Second-Story aaah that is super interesting 🤩 I tried that once, when I was a teenager, but one day I lost the paper I was writing the letters and sounds in and never tried it again 😅😅😅
I am having trouble with my inner editor even in later drafts. The first few chapters are like on their 5th draft, while the last few chapters are on like their 2nd/3rd, because instead of going through everything, I keep going back to the start to fix things.
Maybe it would help to look for specific larger problems with your drafts instead of dealing with every little thing as you come across it? For instance, read through your draft and only make notes. You can make them in the document if it's on the computer or with sticky notes stuck to the pages if it's printed or written. Don't make any big changes until you finish this assessment read through. Then make a plan for what you need to do with this draft. Maybe you need to clarify a section of the plot. Maybe you need to remove a character or rearrange the order of some events. Or maybe you need to do a few things like this. Then in your next draft tackle only those problems. When you're satisfied that you've fixed that, do the same thing again. Read through, take notes, make a plan. And again and again. Once you've done a few passes and you're happy with the structure of the story, the order of scenes, the development of the characters, etc. etc. then you can start fine-tuning the prose and rearranging the dialogue and so on like that. Having a plan with each draft can really help each draft be a more efficient phase of the process.
@@The-Second-Story I am writing up my goals for each draft right now, to try to help. I do have lots of notes, but they are all over the place. I probably should organize those too.
That happens to me, too. My notes will get a little chaotic. I think it's a good idea in between drafts to get your whole story (etc) organized in your mind and on paper/computer, then take a deep breath, then start working on the next. That's what I have to do sometimes.
I recently came to this realization and it has been a game changer. Years and years of writing with nothing to show for it because I kept getting caught up in the perfect prose and experiencing "first draft dysmorphia". Great video, extremely relevant and well made thanks ❤
As an artist, the "rough sketch" analogy helps me understand it better.
Wow. Thank you, Hilary. I’ve always dreaded going back over first drafts specifically for the reasons you mentioned. But a comment you made, comparing the first draft to the skeleton of a house, has completely clicked for me. You can’t start putting up drywall until the frame of the house is complete. And you don’t start decorating the drywall until it’s been painted. Each room of a house has multiple layers to it, just like the drafts of a book. 🤯 The prose and witty dialogue are the pictures and artwork and curtains hanging on a wall. It takes time and multiple steps to get there. Thank you.
Yes exactly! Very well put! Thinking of a book as layers really takes the pressure off each individual step. There's so much more room to work when you're only focused on what that layer needs, whether it's the frame, the drywall, or the paint. Taking it all one step at a time is so much less intimidating. I hope your writing goes well! This helped me so much, I hope it helps you, too! Thank you for watching!
Same here the way skeleton explanation was perfect for how i go about my other creative field so its really helped
I am *so* glad I found your channel. I've heard others refer to the type of draft you're talking about as the 'zero draft' - just info dumping all the story as it currently exists in your head, in whatever form it takes to do it, and then dissecting it later. I'm a habitual note-taker (because I come from the distant past, in the days before the advent of home computers), and used to have scraps of paper upon which I'd scribbled bits of dialogue and various story ideas that eventually went into a giant red 3-ring binder that I called The Big Red Book of How and Why, which would later be transcribed onto typewritten sheets. It was not a practical method. Now I take notes on my phone and plug them into an on-going Scrivener document to mull over later. That, to some extent, is my version of the zero draft. Although I have to admit I'm still trying to overcome the desire to edit and revise things even at this stage, as if it somehow matters. Thanks for the great content!
Your Big Red Book of How and Why sounds incredible, actually. I'm also a habitual note-taker. I keep a journal during each book because I'm still rather in love with the analog ways, even though I do still use and love Scrivener. Stopping yourself from revising as you go is really helpful. So many times in the past I would revise at the halfway point. And then I'd have to revise again when I changed something else. And then again. It was an endless loop. But if you wait till you're done, you can handle all the revisions at once.
Thank you so much for watching!
What telling someone about your book early on does to me: makes me hide from the people I've told. 😂
"The first draft is telling the story to yourself."
That actually reframed the process really well for me. The first draft isn't just a hurdle, it's a pole vault and the pole is missing, lol. Although I knew no one was going to see it, I guess there was some sort of hidden pressure to do well in it. Thanks for clearing that up!
I also love, love, love the writing examples you give. The music paired with the sheriff segment pulled me in instantly and put my brain into high gear. The mini-arc paragraphs were super helpful in understanding what a mini-climax would look like. Like some sort of revelation, right? But also the story itself is intriguing. Have you ever thought about doing a video where you do a short story utilizing these tips? (I definitely don't have ulterior motives to see more of your writing, trust me. ^.^)
I had the same attitude. First drafts were SUCH a chore, especially because I was putting so much pressure on myself to get every word just right. I hope approaching things this way helps you as much as it did me!
Thank you! I try to make my examples a little interesting, or maybe even inspiring, if others wanted to use them as seeds for stories. The mini-climax does work a lot like a little revelation. Sometimes it can be a twist, too. Mainly it's the conclusion of a mini chunk of action that then carries the story to the next mini chunk of action.
Someone else mentioned doing a video series in which I take a story from start to finish. I think it's a really good idea, but I'd have to think about it a while to figure out the best and most helpful way to do it. I'm sure I'll figure something out. It's such a good suggestion, thank you!
Thank you very much for watching, and for commenting! I really enjoy reading how my videos help people, it means a lot, thank you!
@@The-Second-Story Glad to be of service! Especially after how you've helped us so much. Take all the time you need if you decide to do a video like that. I don't think I speak for just myself when saying that quality over quantity is well worth the wait. Especially when it comes to helpful content. I've already re-watched your videos 3 times so it'll cement in my head, lol. I really appreciate how you take the time to come up with scenarios AND reply so thoughtfully. Thank you and many blessings on your writing journey! :D
@@The-Second-Story (Btw, the picture of you as hades is SO funny! I'm still laughing!)
You had me at "metaphor casserole." Truly, you are a gem, and this is my new favorite writing channel. You are funny, helpful, and make me feel good about my writing messes. I can't wait for your next one.
Really helpful video. I did NaNo last year (first time attempting long form fiction) and faithfully followed the don't edit principle, but in a more freeform "just type whatever dialogue etc seems to flow without much thought for where it's going" way, with the result that I'm now editing/rewriting and facing a big chunk that just says "insert plot here" (my own personal "here be monsters" :D). The approach of writing each scene as a paragraph first, with its own arc, makes a lot of sense (much more solid architectural premise than ending up with a bunch of curtain fabric randomly thrown into the corner of a muddy field). Thanks!
It sounds to me like you have a really good approach to start with, in the sense that you're using your first draft to focus less on the prose and more on the content. And that you don't edit! All that you need now is to develop a technique that works for you to incorporate story planning into the process as well. Good luck with your writing, and thank you for watching!
Wow I just discovered you! I’ve watched countless videos and followed so many authors, read every book on writing out there, and you explained it so well that I’ve actually had a huge breakthrough moment. I’ve been trying to get my first draft as perfect as possible, and have rewritten it countless times before finishing! It’s been years!
And I have several friends and my husband who keep asking to read sections of it just to see the tone or what it’s going to be like, and I haven’t let them read any of it because it isn’t ready and then I second guess everything and can’t get a single draft finished. My friend even said she’ll help me with it as I write, but I just cannot let her read it and start adding her input before I’ve even gotten my story down. Stresses me out! I’m swatting them away like flies and I know they think I’m crazy. So glad to know it’s not just me struggling with this!
Telling the story to yourself is a great way to put it. This first draft is only for me, they can read parts of a later draft. And then I won’t get so obsessed with making perfect prose while I’m still trying to figure out the plot.
I read somewhere that writing and editing are two completely different author brains/ skills and we should never try to do both at the same time or we’ll block ourselves. But I think we have more like 5 brains competing at a time!
Now on to check out your other videos 😊
That's completely true, the first draft is just for you. It takes so much pressure off to think of it this way, I find. You tend to think of it more like really useful material, rather than writing that should be judged and assessed.
Good luck with your writing! I hope this idea can help you. And thank you for watching!
A well-informed and well-edited video, as always. I have one point to add. I once read someone compare re-drafting to re-reading: because a writer has to draft a story multiple times, a reader should read it multiple times. Few people re-read stories they like. They don't truly know how shallow an experience it is to read a story for the first time. That's why when turning to writing they expect something deep on a first draft.
Loved the conversation approach to describing the work. I’m currently finishing my first draft to my first book. I had the “conversation” of what my book is about- in my own head as if I’m being interviewed by someone. I even sat with a friend specifically to describe my book, before I really started writing it, in my own way of “making my story real”. This process actually helped me guide my work in the direction I wished for it, and away from what I didn’t want, once I began writing.
It's so strange how that works. I do that, too. When I'm struggling with a knot in my plot I'll ask myself questions about the story as if I know nothing. And rearranging my imagination like that makes me see the story differently and the questions I ask lead to answers I hadn't even known I was looking for.
You always give unique perspectives and actually useful advice. I've honestly learned more from your three videos than the tens of other videos that only give formulas and rules.
Thank you for watching and for this comment! I'm glad my videos are able to help you so much!
These tips changed everything! Thank you! I tried it and in 2 hours I got over 1k words. Before I was getting maybe 800 in twice the time.
That's wonderful! Taking that pressure off yourself is such a help. Plus, now you can enjoy the process of figuring out the story without being hung up on the prose. Happy writing!
Hilary, your videos have so much value! Thank you for doing this!
"First: you are not writing a novel." Right after, the ad played, and I just had to think 'Imagine if the video ended there' 😂😂😂
This is hands down the best story writing channel I've seen. Every video is really just great advice and insight that resonates with me so clearly. Thank you.
I'm really glad my videos are so much help! I hope I can continue to make helpful videos! In the meantime, thank you for watching, and for your support!
That last tip is so important. I have a friend who used to chase me down so he could tell me about this new idea he had after failing to finish every single project he's ever started.
He will spend hours telling me every detail of the story to the point where I could literally put the phone on mute while he's talking and he would still be talking by the time I came back however many minutes later.
I used to tell him not to tell me anything until he's finished a chapter at least... He would just go silent, and the next time I hear from him, he's started a new project he wants to tell me about (when I say started, I mean only in his mind).
your advice is so good, truly thank and please keep making videos. I just watched your others, and for the first time i do not feel overwhelmed on how to write characters or my first draft. I’m not dreading to finally start, i’m excited now and really think i can do this!
That is one of the exact life-changing breakthroughs this gave me, not to be overdramatic. I was finally excited about writing again and no longer dreaded it. And you can absolutely do this! Just be patient with yourself and never give up!
Thank you for watching!
A great video also! I used the tip of no editing as I wrote and found myself writing faster and enjoying the process more because I am no longer micro-managing any words, phrases or prose. The mini-arcs are amazing. I am now so much clearer about the middle and was able to work out some kinks and plot points that make no sense! My friend asked me about the story and I replied you'll read it when I'm done 🤣🤣🤣 Now I am pumped to finish it so she can read it!
Yes! I also really enjoy the process so much more this way! And that also helps me write. It's so much easier to write a draft when I'm enjoying the process. I'm so glad your writing is going well! Keep going and good luck! Thank you for watching!
I'm currently working on a short novella project that I plan to send to a contest. I found this video just after I started prototype drafting the story and desided to try this no-prose methods and I'm blown away of how eyeopening it's been. I was able to finish a complete draft in a couple of days instead of maybe weeks for a similar project in scope. I'm already in a process of revising and planing a second draft that is slightly richer and structured. This format of video made all these concepts I have heard in other ways, finally "clicked" for me. Thank you for making and sharing this video.
That's so wonderful! Sometimes racing through like that, especially for shorter stories, is the best way to get it all down initially. And now you can actually enjoy the second draft. Good luck in the contest! Thank you for watching!
This is my favorite video so far. After watching this I had an aha moment thanks to you! I am not sure why I was making it so hard.
Love the Orpheus and Eurydice metaphor. Thanks for this.
I get very excited every time you upload a video. Your advice is very practical, not preachy and basicaly all the good writing theory I've ever read combined in one place. Also, I'm one of those longhand writers who somehow hasn't gotten carpal tunel. It's very zen and grounding to write with paper and ink.
You are one of them! How?? It is very zen and wonderful, I agree. Unfortunately I'm a pen death-gripper. So if I write anything longer than a letter my hand is all but crippled for the rest of the week.
Thank you for watching my videos! I'm really glad they're helpful and I hope they continue to be. Happy writing! (longhand! madness!)
This was fantastic, i hadn't considered approaching the first draft this way and have been bogged down in prose and research mode. Thank you, I will start with this method today!
I find that when I do it this way it's almost liberating. There's something really freeing about being able to only focus on the story. I really hope it works for you, too! Thank you for watching!
Hilary, thank you. I have searched long and hard for simple (as in uncomplicated) advice on how to do this whole "write a story" thing, and at long last, you popped up, seemingly out of nowhere, am I am hooked. Thank you, and please keep up the excellent work.
Every. Video. That. You. Make. Is. HELPFUL! Omg. My background is in visual art. When starting a drawing or painting, I begin with basic geometric shapes that gradually build up into sketches . Then, I begin rendering the image only after mapping everything out. I need to approach writing in a similar way. I WAS TRYING TO WRITE THE FIRST DRAFT PERFECTLY! Ahhhhhh. "You can't do this? Then you can't be a writer. You can't do it." But actual writers don't write like that. LOL. Eeeeek. Thank you, once again, for the reminder.
Your art analogy works perfectly for this. Because not only is it the same idea, it's for exactly the same reasons. Imagine getting a face perfectly drawn with photo-realistic detail only to realize that you need to move it to the other side of the canvas, or you need to change the angle. Or remove it altogether. The same logic applies to story-building. And there's nothing worse than that inner critic using this opportunity to try to convince you that you have no idea what you're doing. When the reality is that even da Vinci didn't know where Mona Lisa's hands went until he'd blocked in the whole painting. Good luck with your writing, I hope it goes more smoothly for you now! Thank you for watching (and for the comment, it's very encouraging to know that my videos are helping other writers)!
This video just made me realize that what I thought was just a very detailed outline was actually my first draft. Thank you!
I want to say this video helped save my novel of two years! Thank you so much for your channel, Hilary!
(PS. I liked your original title better 🤭definitely made me click on it faster than others with "X Tips" in the name)
I'm glad you were able to save your novel! Good luck writing it, I hope it goes smoothly now! Thank you for watching, and for your support!
Recently found your channel & I have to say -- I love your content! You have a direct & entertaining way to deliver actionable advice that is easy to digest. That's not easy to do for a subject like creative writing, let alone novel writing.
Can't wait to see what else you have in store for us!
Great stuff. I like the way you make each point so easy and clear to understand in your videos. I am loving them and learning a lot! Thank you so much!
I am thoroughly convimced that your videos are the only ones available in the internet actually holding any valuable and implementable advice for new writers. Others stay too abstract or use advice and insights that feel more suitable for someone who has actually delved a decent amount into the art of writing.
I am always happy to see another one of your videos pop up in my feed and always felt capable of immediately using your advice the next time I sat down to write. For that I want to thank you a lot. Your videos really brought me the courage to not look at the product if my work in disgust as if it were spoiled but to look at it as a raw material I still need to refine.
I'm so glad my videos could help you with your writing! I've spent too much time myself looking at my projects with disgust. It's a hard and painful hurdle to get over. But once you figure out some tricks that can help you understand the beauty of the whole, difficult, and often messy process, then writing can be a joy again. I really hope my videos can keep helping you in the future. Thank you so much for watching and for this lovely comment!
Hi, first of all thank you, this is the most helpful video i've seen on the writting subject. You're so skilled at explaining stuff for actual beginners, your explanation about what a first draft really is is the most helpfull information i got in weeks of trying to learn to write. Thanks a lot, you might have saved might me weeks or month of struggle with my first draft.
That's wonderful! Anything to prevent struggle is a good thing! Writing is already plenty hard without adding more difficulty on top of it. I wish you luck with your first draft! Just remember to keep going no matter what. You'll probably reach a point in there somewhere (I always do) when it feels pointless and you're absolutely certain it's horrible. But you must keep going! When you're all done you'll realize that it's not horrible at all!
Thank you. I've always been very meticulous from the very beginning, no wonder I'm always wrecked at the 3rd draft. We all should just make our life easier.
Writing a book is already so hard. If any part of it can be made a little simpler, I think we should try to do so. I hope this helps you as much as it did me! Thank you for watching!
Dam, I'm loving your videos. I never thought of my first draft like this. It's almost like a really detailed outline. This has me excited and now you're my new favourite. :)
It is, yes. That's a good way to think of it, like a very detailed outline. I'm always happy to help people get excited about writing again! I really find it helpful to just focus on the story. I feel like the resulting story tends to be better, too. Anyway, thank you for watching and for your support! Happy writing!
I’ve been struggling with too much detail in my first. After listening to this video i feel refocused and excited to write when i return home! Thanks!
It really makes my day when someone tells me that a video of mine has helped them get excited about writing. I know what you mean, too. Using this method I find that I'm able to immerse myself in the story much more easily. And that's always really fun and exciting. Thank you for watching! And good luck with your writing!
I can't wait to be in the future where you've released twenty more brilliant videos and they're my bible for writing
Subscribed immediately. IMMEDIATELY!!! I keep overexplaining things then I bore myself before I get to the story bit. Ugh, thank you so much for showing the example cause it really helped me to understand what I was doing wrong.
I'm so glad I could help you so much! I don't know about you, but stopping myself from getting in my own way is practically a full time job, especially during the first draft. Avoiding getting bored is almost as hard. But if you keep it simple and focused, you can often dodge all that, or most of it. Good luck with your writing! Thank you so much for watching and for your support!
@@The-Second-Story after I finished the video, I turned my internet off and got to the complicated bit of my story that I had been stalling for weeks. Omg, I am so grateful, thank you again 🥹 I hope I can finish it before the year ends.
oooof, i am horrible at 'editing' my book....i've been struggling a lot lately. this is a nice reminder. thank you
Hilary, I was delighted to see a new post from you and it did not disappoint. Thank you for your wisdom and humor. I am in the final third of my first draft and wish I'd gotten your sage advice a year ago! I've been erecting walls of my house then drywalling, wallpapering and trying to hang artwork on them before the next wall has even gone up. But I am going to apply your smart method to the rest of this draft to get me over the finish line. Maybe I'll even meet my goal! Thank you!
That might work out perfectly for you. I don't know about you, but I always really start to struggle as I get to the end. Hopefully you can get there without too much hardship! I'm glad my video could help you, and I hope your writing goes well! Good luck!
Not sure why but your videos are HITTING me, love it. Definitely one of my favorite new writing youtubers. You boil it down in a way that's solid in pacing, doesn't feel shallow, and has lots of clear useful knowledge and caveats so it doesn't feel like dogma. I know it's cliche...but your videos have great pacing, haha.
Not editing is huge, wasted a lot of time "refining" chapters I needed to delete anyway. Not to mention it distracts from forward momentum of the work and doesn't require you to ask further questions to get to the next step. You're better off not writing at all and thinking or researching on a first draft than editing, imo you need to stay as close to the "next page" as possible in your mind. Get it on the page. If you are hitting a WALL and just can't get it out, you're better just trying to ruminate with your mind or generating the ideas away from the page. I think blank page writing with nothing to work towards has done nothing but produce a hole I have to then dig out of later.
My first novel is first draft which took me a year and a half (not terrible given the context) and will spend time making it more concrete in language once I get the "plot" betaread, for now I'm working on my second novel and workshopping refining the process to make it more fluid. This was great, I think for me I'm trying outlining. Not to stick to it, but just to think of the plot in terms of getting to the next point and not simply finding that point. Having points floating for where it should go helps a TON, whether you do connect to that point or not. I did successfully produce an outline for the next novel but haven't tested how much it will help since I haven't finished that draft, but trying to find new ways to outline and to build a framework. I definitely think I need to spend more time on characters this time, finding them in the process was tough for me. They all felt similar which would never have been a hole I had to dig out of if I just built them prior. I spent far more time detaching characters from being similar to other characters than I would have just building them at the getgo. A lot of my initial feedback was "two of these three characters is the same person" and it was confusing even when I literally made it 1 chapter = 1 new POV as a clear rule. A new chapter meant a new name and space and world...but because they were coming from such similar places it still confused people.
For me this idea of zerodrafting fully and not even touching prose till the book is done may be my best bet. I think there is a case for trying to build prose for a character to find tone/character itself if you can't...but do that only in the beginning and then stop. I may try to just full on zero draft the second novel and not touch prose at all, especially as I use this first novel to hammer out the lessons I need to learn so I dont make the same mistakes twice in two different novels.
I found as I went through the first novel the most productive method was zerodrafting the next chapter as I saw it coming, just jotting down paragraphs, sentences, lines, phrases, and things I could use as I went through to mold my steps through it. Plotting them down in the chapter and then writing the chapter from scratch behind it and pushing them forward, deleting them as I addressed them or changed them. Sometimes zero drafting many chapters or entire Acts before I actually sat with the page and wrote the prose and events.
Obviously, for my first draft, the prose was terrible. Too abstract, which works in part for the world, but imo, unweildly and nauseating if you were coming in fresh. Balancing that wax and wane from abstract to concrete is my biggest battle.
Would love to see a video from you on balancing "show dont tell" moreso when to utilize abstract and concrete. I think the dominant adage is never use abstractions because writers overly use them so if you are supressing it entirely you'll balance it out to a normal amount, but imo, my favorite books in part were my favorite because of the abstractions and observations of the author outside of the concrete mechaninations of the plot. So I wont want to kill that, because I love it, I just need to figure out when an abstraction is motivated vs distracting. When is an abstraction a quirk of the character's judgement of the world and themselves and when it is also just losing the reader in the mush of stagnation.
For me, I just love really smart authors with big bold interesting observations and takes on the world, and while I don't know if I have the intelligence to make those, I can't know if I dont try. Those things can and do and will happen in the concrete...but for me the most memorable were the abstract.
"Show don't tell" is an interesting writing tip I hear a lot. I understand what it's trying to say, but I'm not sure it's always interpreted quite correctly. Abstract vs. concrete is extremely stylistic, with almost infinite variations. But it is a very interesting area of study. By abstraction I imagine you mean those moments when the character observes the world or people or events and has opinions that they relate usually in their minds. That is highly stylistic, but certainly an interesting study for a video. I'll put it on the list!
Daphne du Maurier once said that a writer should be read and not seen or heard. As beautiful as a novel is that's full of the author's observations and intelligence (when done right), the key there is to pack all of that into the persons of the characters. And sometimes that means letting your characters disagree with you, or hold a slightly different perspective or opinion, or even be wrong. Audiences are more receptive to the opinions and observations of fictional characters than those of the person doing the writing. Almost all instances of such abstraction that I have seen to be tiresome, boring, or even irritating (and other critical readers would agree) is because it is apparent that the writer is attempting to use the character as a random mouthpiece. But, one might ask, how else do you find the opinions for the character's thoughts but from your own mind? How to prevent that from becoming tiresome? Threading that needle is extremely difficult, but certainly possible. I'm already enjoying thinking about it, so I think I'll enjoy making a video about it. Thank you for the suggestion!
And thank you for watching, and for taking the time to write a comment!
I did finish my first draft!
Still gonna watch though. So far all your videos were quite insightful.
That's wonderful! Good luck with your second draft, now! And thank you for watching anyway, I really appreciate your support!
This technique already came in handy just a few hours after watching your video. I had spent the last few days mulling over a theme I'm interested in, and just as I went to bed, I came up with a fitting story, a modern fairy tale, if you like. So I got back up and I and kind of "vomited" it on paper, in one go. The whole story, compressed in five pages. I use the term vomited cause I'm not used to neglecting the language so badly. Feels awkward but it's great for making sure you get as much of the actual storyline/plot on paper. I'm quite new at writing (fiction) so I'm super excited. The story might not be good or even salvable when I go back to it, but I had fun, and feel a sense of accomplishment, and for a beginner that's important. thanks!
That's wonderful! Sometimes that's what you have to do, just pour it all out and let it be what it is, no matter what. Some of my first drafts are a lot like that. But just the feeling of having the whole story down is incredible. You feel like you've taken the first step, or you've started moving and now it's just a matter of staying the course till the end. Good luck and happy writing!
This is probably the best advice I needed to hear.
This is the best *** most helpful *** writing video I've ever watched:) Thank you
I'm so glad it could help you! Thank you! And thank you for watching!
Thank you very much! Couldn’t have come at a more perfect time. 😊
I do this thing where I interview my characters and what happens during this interview, is nothing short of magic. They tell me their stories. I never thought about it, but that is really my first draft.
The Queen has Returned
This is amazing. Thank you so much for all the videos so far.
Keep going - UA-cam needs content like this - thanks for being here 😊
You've been dropping valuable advice one after another! I definitely look forward to more of your videos. I'm new to writing and want to do it just as a hobby, so I'm not well familiar with the drafting process. I have a question about the implementation of mini-arcs. So from my understanding, this first draft is basically making a basic synopsis of how the mini-arcs are going to play out, so are you supposed to 'expand' these sort of summaries out in the later drafts? As in describing it in greater, more specific details like the prose and the dialogue. Would you also add in more, tiny mini-arcs into that expansion then as a result? Like from what I've observed, the mini-arcs have these even tinier arcs that carry the plot towards its climax and end, I think. I'm basically wondering if I should draw up the bigger picture first, then get smaller with the details in the next draft, like the larger mini-arcs' children mini-arcs! Sorry, I'm kind of struggling to articulate this, so this might seem unclear!
Super helpful! This came at the right time for me. Thanks for sharing.
Everytime I think your next video could not possibly be more helpful (and funny) than the last, and everytime you prove me wrong.
The only way I had heard this tip so far was in the form "Allow your first draft to be terrible", and that was about as unhelpful as advice gets. Thank you for putting it into context.
I heard that exact thing so often, too, and I never understood it. And then one day I was so annoyed that I couldn't figure out how to describe a scene that I just made a series of notes describing what I wanted to happen and the next thing I knew I was a third of the way through the whole story, just "describing" it like that. And suddenly it all made sense (finally).
I'm so glad my videos are helpful! I hope they continue to be! And thank you for watching!
Thank you 🙏🏼
I’ve so needed to hear this.
Hilariously, I just released a video today saying the exact opposite of this. Not as advice. Just, this is why my daily word counts aren’t very high :) Love your videos. All the best 😊
What you wrote at 4:40 is what I consider my outline. Its bullet points, but not fragments. You should be able to read the outline and get the whole story.
I'm awful with describing characters and scenes. Whenever it happens in my story, it halts me for at least an hour. At these points, I think it's good to just write something random and come back later. Only then though.
I don't like the idea of writing my whole first draft the way you describe because it's not much better than an outline. I think writing is like cooking from scratch. Each item I gather or make, is being added to the final meal. This outline you show, is not adding anything to my dish, it's like if I made the dish without knowing the measurements. Now I can't use whatever ingredients we're used in that dish for the real one.
What I'm saying is, your first draft here doesn't feel like it was a stepping stone to the next part of the journey. I like to write something that feels like it could be the final line, but needs fixing with the wording or phrasing. That is left for later since I can see what I'm going for and hopefully jump right back into that mindset when I come back around to edit.
My main issue with this idea of just writing to get it all down is that you feel like you accomplished something, but the dread of knowing that what you made is, going back to the meal talk, inedible, hurts. I lose all drive when I know now I have 300+ pages to edit and nearly all of it is unusable. That to me sets me back far more than it does to write 30 pages that I feel are "edible". Of course they will still need revision, but those feel like touch ups, not remodels.
The tricky part there, I think, is the idea of "usable" and "unusable." I personally find it more helpful to think of writing as making a sculpture from clay. If you've ever done that or watched someone do it then you know that one of the first steps is to pack a lot of clay firmly onto your form with the general shape present. Then, when you're done with that, you carefully sculpt out the shape of your piece. When you're done with that you smooth and polish. No sculptor would ever dream of showing that initial packed clay clump to the world. But it's an essential step, without which they can't ever complete the masterpiece.
If you've put the whole story onto the page, even if it's 300 pages of story, that's all usable. If you have an idea of what happens in each scene already established, in your second draft you can write each of those scenes into something beautiful. Realizing at that point that all that's left is to rewrite the hard clump of data into a beautiful polished chapter makes you realize that all 300 pages aren't just usable, they're invaluable. To use your meal analogy, your first draft isn't cooking. It's studying the recipe and going to the grocery story and collecting all the ingredients. It's measuring out all the ingredients and arranging them in the order you'll need them. It's chopping the vegetables and preparing the marinade and so and so on. It's making sure your pot is hot and your oven is preheated. Then, when you start your second draft, everything is there ready for you to use. It's all usable.
(Sometimes it helps to write a very rough outline before your start the first draft. In which case writing the outline is like deciding which recipe to cook before you make your list and go to the store.)
But maybe what works for you could be a combination of your method and mine. You just have to be open to trying new ways to get through the first draft. It's okay for the prose and descriptions to not be "usable." The story is what you should focus on in the first draft. After that's down, you can have a lot more room and freedom to work on the prose and descriptions.
Thanks for watching! And good luck with your writing!
@@The-Second-Story Thanks for the response.
A lot of what you are saying I get behind. My biggest issue by far is that I'm much better at tackling hundreds of small issues over one large one so a large edit of hundreds of pages would never get done, but doing five pages a day would be easy.
Like you say, it's all about finding what works for you. I appreciate your videos regardless. Please keep it up!
Going with your dish analogy, the process described in this video (which feels to me more like a zero draft instead of first) is like you getting all your ingredients out and in front of you so you don't have to pull them out of the pantry or the fridge while you're juggling 3 different pots on the stove. Which is actually very helpful in cooking.
Anyw, I think the point is that sometimes you do need to let yourself write placeholders so you keep your momentum and don't end up re-editing the same 50 first pages.
@Mothsaam I think you're write and this feels more like a zero draft which I think is just an outline, but the video specifically said it's not that. I don't really agree with that.
My outline, looks exactly like what the first draft in the video looks like. I can't just copy and paste that on the novel doc and then edit it to work. It's too basic and fast paced since it's an outline. I don't think it's like getting the ingredients and prep ready, that be the outline. The way the video shows a first draft to me is like trying to make the dish off of vibes and getting it wrong and learning from that. It can be helpful, sure, but it itself can't now be used for the final dish.
I think a good first draft should be usable and able to be copy and pasted into the novel doc and reedited as is. It's the chopped up ingredients that you now have to measure out.
Though I 100% you should do placeholder to keep your momentum going and actually make progress. HOWEVER, some things are not placeholder issues, but proper issues. The example of changing the location from one state to another is a placeholder issue. Writing a scene to bridge two other scenes together is not a place holder issue. That's a proper scene that will be needed, what reason do you have to not write it right now? Don't make extra work for your future self, thinking you are saving yourself time now.
Think of it like this. I don't have to clean my gutters right now. Rain season just passed. I should put that on the to do list and work on the hole in the wall first since whether it's summer or winter, I want to keep my heat or AC in my house.
Nice skull. Not yours, the one on your desk. Well, I guess the one on your neck too. Whatever… thanks for the advice. Looking forward to the next one.
Thank you! That's Otto. He's been with me... from the beginning.
I mean the one on my desk is Otto. I didn't randomly name the skull on my neck. That would be... a little weird I think.
(Thank you for watching!)
That actually is how I write dialogue. I shall stop thinking that's wrong then!
I love your videos, and I am always watching for the next one.
I'm about 100 pages into my scifi story. As I watched this video, I began to realize that the kind of writing you are describing as the first draft sounds like what I was calling my 'outline.' And when your on-screen text said "to be clear: I do not mean 'outline,'" it made me want to hear your thoughts about outlining, and what you would say about the differences between these in your process. Would you please make a video on this topic?
Please don't stop making videos!
Thank you!
I actually have a video idea on my list that has to do with outlining. Although, I will say that outlining tends to depend a lot on the person doing the outlining. I tend to think of it as the old school style of outlining. With a nice neat hierarchy of bullet points arranged logically in a kind of list. Others might think of something like a synopsis as being an outline. Others might combine the two. For the sake of clarity, outlining, to my mind, is the absolute barest of bare bones approach to planning a plot. Very little information, very concise, very brief, very orderly. Once you start describing the scenes I feel like we're getting into draft territory. But, again, definitions like this tend to be a little subjective.
I do intend to make that video at some point!
Thank you for watching! And for your support!
👍🏻 This is helpful! As I was watching I really wanted to know - roughly how many pages long is your idea of a typical first draft? (As in five pages ... fifty pages?) And how long would it typically / ideally take you? (Days .. weeks ... months?) Let's say we are envisioning a final, finished narrative of roughly one hundred thousand words, perhaps 300 book pages. This might give me a better appreciation of how much my process actually differs from the one you are describing.
If I were to make a first draft of my own story, telling it to myself briskly (not stopping to ponder or elaborate) as I imagine this process, I think I would have around twenty pages, and it would take less than a week to do. The framework would not be thick with details or description. And I would already have spent a large amount of time thinking about my story and making copious notes.
My outline is a thirty-page document. It doesn't forage into description territory, but it does contain details, bulleted structure, and complete sentences where useful. Maybe others would say it is something in between an outline and a draft. Two of my English teachers labeled me an "eeker," and they were the ones insisting on multiple drafts. Your advice about writing the first draft as though telling the story to yourself is making me stop in my tracks here. It gives me doubts about my process! I identify strongly with the idea of making a framework first, and then decorating it. Big picture, then details - zooming in progressively. I do think this is what I have going on.
But, as an eeker, it is very hard not to edit as I write. Though people are always saying "don't do this," I am taking your video more seriously, because (quite unlike others' discussions about writing) so much of your content has made sense and resonated with me. So I am considering whether I should make changes.
Again, thank you very much!
Everything about the entire writing process is subjective. No two people will write a story in the same way. So it's quite hard to answer your questions. A first draft, to me, is however long it needs to be. Naturally, books come in all lengths, so that will effect the length of your first draft. A draft for a fantasy book in which a lot of the worldbuilding, customs, lore, etc. has to be explained as well will be longer than a draft for, say, a murder mystery. If you summarize very loosely and broadly in your first draft rather than describe the scenes as thoroughly as you could, the first draft might be half or even a quarter the length of what your final book ends up being. Because I can't speak in generalities with this, all I can tell you is how I personally work. Please know that everyone is different and what works for me might not work for you at all.
I write books that are around 150k usually. The draft I'm working on now is a book that will probably come in right around there when it's all done. The first draft is about three-quarters to four-fifths of the way done and it is roughly 60k. That seems about right to me, based on how I work. I've got some parts of the first draft that are very broad ("these two characters argue about this for a bit here") and some that are basically whole scenes written out in full. That word count includes three separate subplots which I've outlined and drafted separately.
As for time, it takes as long as it takes. Ideally with this method, it shouldn't take too long. I've spent about three months on this draft and I'll probably be done in a few weeks. I took a bit of time off in the middle there to work on the draft of another story I'm working on. So, all told, I'm at about two or three months on this one.
When you describe your idea of a first draft and your existing outline, these sound very similar to me. If you already write an outline then perhaps you could make your first draft a bit more detailed and thorough. You've got an idea of your plot, so now you could write out the basic idea of each scene, or each mini-arc, not thinking about the prose but focusing instead on the story events that occur. You'll probably find that such a draft would be a bit longer than your twenty-page outline, I'd say. Since the idea of gradually zooming in appeals to you, think of it like this. Your twenty-page outline is the big picture. Then you can do a first draft describing each scene or mini-arc, which would be like zooming in enough to see the rooms and the layout. And that might be longer, but you still shouldn't edit, because, again, this is just the story. And you should finish putting all the rooms and walls and doors in the house before you start moving them around. Once you're done with the first draft, you can go back through and make sure the story progresses as you want it to. When you're satisfied with that, your next draft will be prose and description, that is, zooming in to see the paint colors, the stain on the wood furniture, the throw pillows. This one you can edit all you want. But I'll think you'll find doing so a lot easier and more rewarding because you've already spent quite a lot of effort getting the framework of the story very solid. So now you can decorate it.
I hope that helps! And remember, everyone has a different way of working. You just have to find the method that works best for you.
@@The-Second-Story I appreciate your thoughtful responses to my questions! Thank you. 🙏🏻
I agree, everyone has to find what works for them. My process works for me, but I try to improve it. It is interesting to hear what works for others.
It would be great to get to read your writing. If you have titles to search, links, or a site, I would read.
Thank you again!
I'm working on trying to find a way to put some of my shorter writing out there while I finish writing the book I'm working on. Thank you for your interest!
Happy writing to you in the meantime!
Thank you, I needed to hear this.
This is such a great vid thx sm for making it this has helped alot with how i should go about my first draft
Great tips Hilary- this is exactly what I needed and at the perfect moment too!! Thank you!!
Could you also make a video showing how you do the second draft? This video has already helped me tremendously ❤ I bet this video would help me too.
I intend to do videos covering the whole writing process, so a second draft video is definitely something I hope to do soon. Thank you for watching!
I'm so glad I found your channel! This was really helpful. Is this basically writing a synopsis?
You can certainly think of it that way! But you don't have to restrict yourself to summarizing. As you go along you might find that in places the synopsis becomes a kind of prose. That happens to me. There are several sections of simple summarizing and then a few chapters of actual prose and then I continue again in more of a synopsis form. The point, for me, is to maintain momentum. And stopping because I'm not sure what the right words are will arrest my momentum faster than anything. So if I can't think of the right words, I simply describe what's happening and nothing more. I can find the right words later.
I'm glad this was helpful! Thank you for watching!
@@The-Second-Story This is amazing. Thank you!!!
Thank you so much. Will tell you how this worked for me.
OMG! The Orpheus metaphor! Makes perfect sense! So… um… I got about 10k words into a story and then I was like, this should actually be the first scene. But of course I have no clue how to move on.
I'm sure the answer to that is in your first scene! Just ask yourself what would happen as a result of the events of that first scene and see what seems like the best path for the story. My video on pacing has a few tips on figuring out story and plot paths, maybe it can help you there. Good luck with your writing! And thank you for watching!
I didn't know this is what a draft looks like 🤯 I was wondering how detailed an outline needs to be. I have a short one that looks like a list, and then... I guess I already have a couple of chapters drafted and didn't know 😂 I thought it was just a long outline...
I read another writer's advice that said in every writing session, he starts by reading and editing what he wrote the previous day, and then just drafting the remaining time. I guess I gotta find what works for me, but definately worry less about editing at this stage!
Your outline sounds perfect. If it's clear to you and if it helps you understand the story structure you're building, then it's doing everything it's supposed to be doing. My outlines do that to. Sometimes I just need half a sentence to explain the plot point. Sometimes I need a whole page.
Re-reading and editing at the beginning of every writing session might work well once you're into the second or third draft. But I highly recommend avoiding that for the first draft.
Just keep experimenting until you find your own method! And happy writing!
@The-Second-Story I'll try it!! 🥰 Thank you so much for replying!! And I love your advice! It's very different from what's found in other places, and I think it makes a lot of sense!
I’ve been looking for new inspiration and motivation to help finish my first draft. Thank you for this-I’m loving your videos. Approx how long would this bare-boned first draft be? A few pages?
I think if it is only a few pages then it is probably more of an outline or a brief synopsis. The length of this type of first draft depends entirely on the story itself, of course. But I think it would be best to try to be as thorough as possible. Describe each scene as thoroughly as you need for your next draft. You want to make sure to give yourself enough information to work with going forward. If you don't know something, try to note some details that will help you remember what the scene needs, even if you don't know what the scene should be yet. For me personally these kinds of first drafts end up being roughly half the length of the finished novel. Right around there seems about right to me. But everyone will have a different way to work, you just have to find what works best for you.
Thank you so much for watching!
Hi, Hilary! I haven't watched this video yet, but I am a fan of your content. I noticed you swapped the thumbnail. This is just one person's opinion on the internet, but I think keeping your face in the thumbnails is a better idea than using stock photos. I recognize your videos because I see your face in them and almost missed this one because it looked very similar to a lot of other videos in my feed. I don't normally make posts like this because I know it's kind of cringy, but I wanted to let you know because I'm probably not the only one it happened to. Keep up the great work!
Thank you for taking the time to leave this comment. All of this UA-cam stuff is new to me so I'm afraid we're still in the early figuring-out-what-works phase of my channel. I think I agree with you. But as I said, still learning! In the meantime I do really appreciate your support!
@@The-Second-Story You're welcome! Looking forward to seeing the channel grow
Excellent perspective! Thanks! ❤
Thank you for great advices! 💖 I keep my projects secret, because as soon as I share with anyone information... The sentiment of obligation literally crashes me. I feel guilt when not working on it and this makes me runaway from it.
That's such an interesting aspect I hadn't considered. The sense of obligation actually creating too much pressure to actually allow you to work. I can completely understand that. I imagine that's probably a much more common factor than we'd realize.
Thank you for watching!
What you describe as "first draft" is what I do with outline plus scene synopsis. Same result from a process viewpoint.
I needed your words badly. Thank you soo much.❤ Ehm, maybe a silly question. What program you use? I loved the brownish background.
You mean the program I'm reading on my computer there? That's just Atlantis Word Processor. It's a wonderful, simple, feature-rich word processor. You can customize the entire UI with colors of your choice. I use Scrivener to write but then I compile each draft into a document that I can read through in a word processor like Atlantis.
And thank you for watching! I'm glad my video could help you!
@ ♥️🙏🏼Thank youuu!!
Learning to just move on has been my biggest hurdle so far, but I can finally feel the effects of it a quarter into my draft. Don't get me wrong, I still feel the urge to go and rearrange everything I wrote the day before every time I open my novel, but I've gotten better about shoving those feelings down and just picking up where I need to.
It also makes you a little more eager to finish so you can go back and edit. It's that way for me, anyway. I've set such a hard rule about that for myself that it adds another layer of motivation on my urgency to finish the first draft. I hope it continues to go well for you! Good luck!
I genuinely like your vídeos, thank you for the advices, really helping. When you write the First draft of your story you write only a paragraph for each mini arc, so does it means each paragraph is a chapter ? And you have really a small piece at the end that you have to extend ? Or do you put more than one mini arc in each chapter ? I was analyzing game of thrones recently and Georges Martin seems to put 2 mini arcs per chapters + some characters introduction and psychology of characters.
The suggestion about a paragraph for each mini-arc was more of a general guideline. Sometimes a paragraph is all you'll need, sometimes you'll need a page or two. The point is to describe the mini arc in as much detail as you need to be able to understand what's happening in it when you go back through with your second draft, at which point you'll flesh out the finer details. As for the chapters, that's completely stylistic and varies depending on the writer and on what you prefer. Some writers have one arc per chapter, some have several. It might help to write the fist draft without chapters and then figure out the chapter breaks in the next draft depending on how you decide to break up the events of your story.
Thank you for watching! I'm glad my videos have been helpful!
Okay thank you :)
I truly enjoy your videos. Thanks!
I loooooved this video!!! THank youuuu!!
I’ve noticed that many aspiring writers often confuse 'realism' with an exaggerated form of bleakness. They strive to make their stories believable and immersive, but being realistic doesn’t mean everything has to be relentlessly grim or depressing. Realism doesn’t require characters to be overwhelmingly incompetent or plagued by a string of improbable misfortunes. Nor does it demand that every other character be irredeemably awful, betraying one another without reason or going out of their way to antagonize the protagonist. True realism lies in balanced, nuanced storytelling that reflects the complexity of real life.
I wholeheartedly agree. This is a bit of a pet peeve of mine, the fallacy that unlikableness and bleakness = realism. It's pretty clear to see, recently, where such a trend stems from in current aspiring writers and it is a shame. Finding that narrow ground between likable and believably flawed and believably difficult is genuinely tricky. So many new writers take the bleak, awful shortcut. Unnecessary conflict is also a shortcut that damages both stories and the believability of the characters. Good characters and good stories are so rewarding to write. It's worth the effort. But I think a lot of new writers don't even realize that such paths are possible, much less permitted.
Well, that’s a new approach for me. I’ve micro needled my way through about 12 chapters, pretending to be James Joyce, Earnest Hemingway, and Franz Kafka finely honing each word.
I think it's so much easier -- for me, anyway -- to finely hone each word in the second or third draft, after I've got the whole story worked out. The words come more easily when I'm not using the other half of my brain to navigate the plot labyrinth.
I stumbled across the advice not to tell anyone about your WIP draft years ago, followed it religiously, and found it didn't work for me. Talking through my ideas with a few people gives me the motivation and confidence I need to finish a first draft. I keep the pool very small, though, and it's only people I trust to listen when I say I'm not looking for critique yet.
No one gets to read the first draft, though. I will take my first drafts to my grave.
You've done this in a very smart way, finding people to not so much tell, as to offer support. This study I read, and the advice I subsequently offered, referred to more broad announcements. A mere, "I'm writing a book!" answered with "oh that's so cool!" That little hit of satisfaction can undermine your motivation. Having a support network is very different, and wonderful!
And I completely agree with you about hiding away the first drafts. I could never destroy them, but the lawyers are going to be instructed to burn them at the moment of my death, let's just say.
Metaphor casserole 😂. I handwrite ...fyi. I love this video. This is how I finished my last book. I've been a little more careful this time as I anticipate the general things I'll need later, so add a rough sketch of that in...still rough thougn
I am doing the erite notes to myself and "move on" thing
thanks so much for this, I was writing too fancy
Good stuff. Keep at it.
Hey, once again, a nice video! I’m in the middle of writing my first book, and I’ve definitely fallen into the trap of endlessly reediting my first chapter... I’ve been at it for 3 weeks!!! and still haven’t finished the damn thing. Your approach seems smart, but I dont know. I like the idea of focusing on a rough draft, but I also really enjoy refining my prose as I go, and I feel like I can’t do that if I keep it too rough. And I like having a sense of how a scene will look when it’s finished, even if I know I’ll probably revise it a hundred times later. So, what do you think? Is it okay to give a little more attention to getting the prose right on the first draft, or is it better to stick to the “rough sketch” mindset and let the edits come later? Would love to hear your thoughts.
This is a slightly tricky question. I completely understand the mindset of wanting to have a sense of one scene before moving on to the next one. It's a very natural approach to writing. But, as I'm sure you've already noticed yourself, this approach for you personally has led to some difficulty. I'm not saying that you're not allowed to want to tackle the prose in your first draft. But I think you might consider trying to divorce the idea of "prose" and "first draft" in your head. As an example: I prefer to write in past tense. So to keep myself from getting caught up in the prose I'll write the first draft in present tense. This way my mind isn't thinking of the words on the page as "prose" so much as "information." I completely understand wanting the prose to be at least close to what you want with the first draft, but fine-tuning prose in the first draft is much harder than it needs to be. For one thing, what if you get the scene perfectly written, then in draft two you realize that that scene doesn't quite work and needs to be omitted or altered. You'll find it MUCH harder to do so given how much time and energy you put into it to make it beautiful, and then if you do bring yourself to omit it you'll likely find yourself feeling very discouraged, like you've had to destroy a work of art. The other factor -- which I notice in myself -- is that it's a lot harder to juggle the story AND the prose at the same time. It is so much easier for me to write lovely prose if I already have the whole scene (and the ones before and the ones after) also set in my mind. You've been having a hard time on your first chapter. You might find that if you come back to it when you're done with your first draft, addressing the prose will be much easier because you won't have half your brain weighed down by considerations about the story.
These are just my suggestions. You, of course, should do what you find works best for you. If you want to make your first draft more polished, you may absolutely do so. But if you find it overly difficult to get through in that way, it might not be the right approach for you. I've personally always had trouble trying to tackle prose and story at the same time. I've done it. I've finished drafts doing it. But I don't think those were very good drafts, in the sense that they didn't leave me with a good base for the second draft. Moreover, I was so exhausted by the end that it was hard to return to the beginning and do it all again.
As far having a sense of the scene... I wish I could give you an example that would make this clearer. I often write parts of my first draft in a way that's very close to prose. A very rough kind of "Tom then goes back into the house and gets a bottle of water. The entire house is covered in crows at this point but he isn't as worried about that as he is about the paint splashed on his mailbox. The air is full of the cawing of the crows. The neighbors are starting to gather." I have a good sense of this scene in my head. I might even add some notes about Tom's emotional state. Later I can rewrite it so it's beautiful and atmospheric, but what I've got here is enough to paint a clear picture in my mind. It's all I need right now, so I can move on at this point. Sometimes I write a scene with less information and sometimes with more. My goal is always to maintain momentum.
I'm sorry that was so long. I guess it's impossible to give you a solid answer on this matter. But those are my thoughts. I hope it can help a little! And I wish you luck with your first draft! Those things are hard to wrangle. But keep at it and you'll get to the end. Thank you so much for watching!
Hey, this wasn’t too long at all! But I was still really surprised when I first saw how thought-out and detailed it was, and it honestly made my morning! :D
So yeah, like I mentioned, I’m still on my first chapter, and oh boi, it's been exhausting. What you wrote sums up pretty much what has gone wrong. I’m writing a dark fantasy story, so I really wanted the descriptions and prose to match that "dramatic" vibe. It opens with a carriage ride during a brewing storm, and I spent much time setting up the whole atmosphere. Like describing the scenery, the carriage drivers (MC) inner thoughts on the coming storm, his conflict, how the carriage itself mirrors his state of mind, his thoughts on his shady passengers, and so on. I kept wondering, “Is this interesting enough?", "Will readers actually root for him?” or “Did I really need that whole paragraph just describing the carriage?”
Ended up deleting walls of texts that took HOURS to write. (as you said, feels like destroying works of art)
Often I edited earlier parts, only to realize the later stuff didn’t make sense anymore with the new edits. And after rereading it a few days later, I’d be like, “Wait, does the whole situation even make sense?” or “Could this prose be better?”. Then stared like 30 minutes at my screen and wondered how the plot could move forward in a logical way...
To make it worse, I sent the draft to ChatGPT to see what it would do with the prose, and after using some of it as inspiration for my descriptions, a sudden realization came to me, “Wait… this doesn’t even sound like ME anymore.” That just made me feel WAY more discouraged... Now I guess you can see why I’m still on chapter one and the plot hasn’t even really moved forward!
Now I’m going to try your strategy. I’ll make my first draft close to prose but more like a script. Then I’ll take it to the second draft and hopefully get the vibe I want. But I JUST know the “first draft dysmorphia” will still hit me after rereading my second draft. (since my prose won't really improve while writing the first draft) I’ll definitely cringe just like you did in the video :D
But hey. There are third, fourth and fifth drafts for a reason, right? Even if it’s exhausting, I know that each one will get it closer to what I want! Thank you VERY much for responding! It was really helpful!
What you described in your efforts to write your first chapter sounds VERY familiar to me. I've done that so many times. And all the questions you were asking yourself were good questions. But the first draft simply can't answer them.
If you want to practice your prose separately while writing your simplified first draft (I do this sometimes, I think it might be a little odd, but I don't mind), just pick out something and write some prose for it in a separate document. I had a dramatic scene in which a big revelation occurred and I wrote a simple description of the scene in my first draft, but my mind kept lingering on it. So -- knowing fully that it might not make it into the second draft -- I opened a separate page in Scrivener one afternoon and wrote out the scene with as much imagery and lovely prose as I felt like putting into it. I had no pressure on myself to make it perfect. I treated it like an exercise. Like practicing painting hands before I paint the hand onto the canvas. I actually quite like how the scene turned out. If it still fits when I get to that point in my second draft, I'll add it in. If not, that won't bother me. But in the meantime, doing that, in a sense, scratched a prose itch. I got that out of my system and was able to comfortably move on to next part of the first draft. Sometimes just having those pieces squirreled away in a place separate from the first draft can also help. Anything to help, right?
I really hope your draft goes well, now! Good luck!
Once again, thanks for the response! I used to think all those plot related questions had to be answered as soon as possible, but now I realize I can take my time and just keep writing. Btw your method sounds wonderful, and I’m definitely going to give it a try! It’s kind of like working out your muscles and getting ready for the real task, right?
Anyway, I’m really looking forward to your upcoming videos. Hope you have an amazing day!
It is like exercise, yes! But like specific exercise. Like practicing drawing hands in a specific position before you paint them onto the canvas. You wouldn't know how big they have to be, or where the thumb should go or anything else if you didn't practice. But after you do, it feels easier and it's less frustrating to get it right.
Have a lovely day, too, and thank you!
Very helpful. But where is the poll? If it was an option, I'd love to have your thoughts on character arcs.
You can find the poll in my community tab. And character arcs is one of the options! Thank you for watching!
Lol, that into with the coffee cup XD
This is a worrisome idea but I'm gonna give it a try.
Thank you!
thank you. can you make a video on how to start your second draft, please?
I definitely plan to make more videos on all phases of the writing process, but especially the second draft! Thank you for watching!
I wish I had this video 92k words ago, the I wouldn’t be struggling to finish ‘my version’ of a first draft 🫣. Soooo, how many words would you say a first draft would be? I’m so glad I found your channel ❤
That depends entirely on how much information your first draft has. Generally, I'd say it doesn't matter. The word count is only helpful information as you approach the final draft. In the first draft phase it's almost completely irrelevant. I'm currently writing the first draft of a fairly large-scale epic story that I predict (based on my experience) will be around 100-120k when it's done. Maybe longer depending on whether or not I can reign in these subplots. But my first draft, which is nearly done, is only about 60k and will probably end up being no more than about 70k or so. That's all I need for the first draft. For me, personally, I like to keep the first draft concise so I have a lot of room to work when I start the second draft. But that's just me. It really all depends on how you work and what works for you.
Thank you for watching! Good luck with your first draft!
@ Thank you so much for the advice. I think I’m trying to write it as complicate as I can which in hindsight was an arrow as I already know how I want to alter the beginning 🙈
I’m also having problems with splitting up my writing into chapters. I’m in 92k words in 27 chapters 😳. I’m sure that isn’t right lol 😂
There’s so much to learn and I know I have to be patient. Thanks for the advice and please keep going, I need you in my writing life! 😉
If you have ideas now for something to change in the beginning, make a note now. You'll see it so you won't forget! And 27 chapters at 92k isn't right or wrong. Chapter length is stylistic and up to you. Some chapters are a hundred pages long. Some are one. Don't worry about chapters yet. Just focus on the story! You can break it up into chapters later!
@ thanks you so much for the advice, I really appreciate it ☺️
Took me 5 years to work this out after letting 3 projects peter out!!!!!!! 😂😂
How you describe youre furst draft is what i would call drawing an outline. I know many pride themzelves from being avle to write by the tip of their fingers, but that normally isnt the reality. My own outlines consist normally a single paragraph that i then turn into an entire novel, and yet i call it an outline.
I have already written 3 books, the moment i finished the 3rd one i started working on my 4th. My take on drafting is this (if you draft multeple times you failed to write the story.) My first book was terrable, had to draft 3 times for it to be publishable, my 2nd book, i will need 2 drafts, for my third i only see that i will be needing a singe revision for it. Write so that you dont have to rewrite, then once you finish the book, you will have written the next one before you start revising it.
Un nuevo video tuyo es como un día festivo para mi jajaja
this video lives in my head, arguing passionately with an ornery purple Muppet from Australia. . .
Fantastic words, as always.
What are your thoughts on simply combining the outline and first draft process?
Thank you!
Personally -- and this is just me, how I like to work -- that's what I do. I've tried just outlining but I always end up explaining the particulars of each scene, each bullet point in the outline, so I eventually just let the document become paragraphs and stop fighting myself and the whole thing goes much more smoothly. I work in Scrivener so I break the story into narrative chunks as I'm writing. This way I can rearrange the chunks (mini-arcs) as necessary just by dragging the sections around. Especially helpful with subplots.
This was life changing. I never got any wips actually written down and completed because i had this overachieving goal of writing a "novel" when i should've been writing the story in its most simplest forms. Im not currently at the stage of writing my first draft but this video came at the perfect time regardless.
I do have one question: I don't think my story will end up being over 200 pages. Is that something I should rectify or should I keep it simplified like that?
That's the feeling that always got in my way, too, that I was writing a "novel" so it had to look and feel like a novel and be as close to perfect as I could manage. And it made the whole thing such an unnecessary struggle.
When you say your story won't end up being over 200 pages, do you mean the first draft? If so, that's certainly no problem at all! The first draft isn't going to be an indicator of your final book's length, so don't let it worry you one way or the other. My first draft that I'm currently working on is something like 56,000 words and I'm nearly done. I know enough about how I write to know that the final draft of the actual book will end up being around 100-120k. Which seems about right to me for the kind of story I'm writing. If keeping it simplified and brief helps you progress to the next phase then that's how you should work. If you find that you would benefit from giving yourself more information to work with in that first shorter draft, then try to be more thorough. You'll have to experiment at first to determine what works best for you.
I'm glad my video could help you! Good luck with your first draft and thank you for watching!
Pleeeaaaaaaaseeeeee mooree!!!! 😭 I need all the advice you can share🤧🫶
omg I forgot November was the month of the nanowrimo 😭😭
Thank you.
What I'm struggling with the most right now is comming up with original names 😩
I don't mind using temporary names for characters, but for creatures and other magic system related things it just doesn't make sense writting without knowing how it'll sound like.
I've been searching for the perfect name for some creatures in my story for a couple of decades already 😂 Aaaargh
Got any tips for that?
Ah, yes. Fantasy world names. I, unfortunately, have also done this to myself. Because I tend to overdo things a little, my solution was to invent a few languages and use them to name everything in my world, from mountains to people. Inventing a language sounds like a massive, impossible undertaking, but it is possible to invent a very, very simple bare-bones naming language that just creates a system of sounds and some rules (like no words can end with a consonant, for example, that's a fun rule) and then you can name anything, people, places, magic systems. This also gives all the names in your story a uniformity which adds to the realism. And the whole process will take you literally about one day. Maybe two.
There's a book called The Language Construction Kit by Mark Rosenfelder that describes how to invent whole languages and also how to quickly invent simple naming languages. It's surprisingly fun once you get the hang of it. I can't recommend it enough. It demystified the whole process for me. And I love the languages I ended up with.
@The-Second-Story aaah that is super interesting 🤩 I tried that once, when I was a teenager, but one day I lost the paper I was writing the letters and sounds in and never tried it again 😅😅😅
You should try it again! It sounds like you already know how, and then you'll have your names, finally! Plus, it's kind of fun...
I am having trouble with my inner editor even in later drafts. The first few chapters are like on their 5th draft, while the last few chapters are on like their 2nd/3rd, because instead of going through everything, I keep going back to the start to fix things.
Maybe it would help to look for specific larger problems with your drafts instead of dealing with every little thing as you come across it? For instance, read through your draft and only make notes. You can make them in the document if it's on the computer or with sticky notes stuck to the pages if it's printed or written. Don't make any big changes until you finish this assessment read through. Then make a plan for what you need to do with this draft. Maybe you need to clarify a section of the plot. Maybe you need to remove a character or rearrange the order of some events. Or maybe you need to do a few things like this. Then in your next draft tackle only those problems. When you're satisfied that you've fixed that, do the same thing again. Read through, take notes, make a plan. And again and again. Once you've done a few passes and you're happy with the structure of the story, the order of scenes, the development of the characters, etc. etc. then you can start fine-tuning the prose and rearranging the dialogue and so on like that. Having a plan with each draft can really help each draft be a more efficient phase of the process.
@@The-Second-Story I am writing up my goals for each draft right now, to try to help. I do have lots of notes, but they are all over the place. I probably should organize those too.
That happens to me, too. My notes will get a little chaotic. I think it's a good idea in between drafts to get your whole story (etc) organized in your mind and on paper/computer, then take a deep breath, then start working on the next. That's what I have to do sometimes.