After reading Anne Lamott’s article on “Shitty First Drafts”, I immediately thought of how I write and that many of her methods were similar to my own. I always find myself bringing an essay together by starting off with a bunch of crazy, random ideas that will hopefully lead me to my next idea. I throw stuff into my first drafts even if they may not belong, just so I can get any idea possible onto the page.
I do not make a bunch of separate drafts, but rather combine most of them together, and add and develop them as I go on. Once I get my body paragraphs all lined up and my introduction, thesis and conclusion are in order, then I start to write with detail and make sense of my ideas. Sometimes it takes me a couple weeks, but mainly just a few days to get it all together and start bringing in the final draft.
When others help me and revise my papers, my writing obviously becomes better and easier to understand, even for myself. Anne says in her article that it tends to be after a shitty first draft, when you can finally organize and structure your ideas to make sense.
I like to find a quiet space with snacks by my side and a ton of fresh air blowing in my face to get my ideas started. Some days, as for many, can be dead and full of nothing but I know some ideas will eventually flow in. I like to at least try and think out of the box, with something that would impress my professor or make the paper better, but sometimes my ideas could also be very basic. A lot of my writing comes from my personal experiences and the way I look at life in a positive manner, because I tend to be inspirational in my words (or so I’ve heard).
Skye Shaffer 