5 Tips for Writing Your First Draft (And Not Losing Your Mind)
5 Tips for Writing Your First Draft
Writing a novel starts with one thing: the first draft. It doesn’t have to be perfect (and trust me, it won’t be). But getting those first messy words on the page is how stories begin to take shape. If you're staring at a blank screen and wondering how anyone manages to write a whole book, you're not alone. Here are five tips that have helped me make it through those daunting early chapters; and eventually to "The End."
1. Write Like No One’s Watching
Seriously. The first draft isn’t the place for polished sentences or poetic dialogue. It’s about telling yourself the story. Let the characters ramble. Let the plot get weird. Let it be ugly. No one else needs to read this version but you. And if your inner editor starts whispering that it's not good enough? Politely tell them to take a seat. You'll let them back in for Draft 2.0.
2. Start Before You Feel Ready
Waiting for the perfect outline or the right amount of research can quickly become a stall tactic. You’ll never feel totally ready, and that’s okay. Start with what you know, even if it's just a vague scene or a single line of dialogue. You can shape the rest as you go. I once started a draft with nothing but the image of a girl stepping out of a car. No context, no name. That girl became my main character.
3. Set Realistic Goals
You don’t need to write 2,000 words a day to be a writer. If 300 words is what you can manage between work, kids, or just general burnout, then that’s great. Progress is progress. I like to think in “writing sessions” instead of word counts. An uninterrupted hour, a quiet 20 minutes, or even scribbling a few lines on my phone before bed…it all counts.
4. Accept That It’ll Be a Little (or Very) Messy
Characters will change halfway through. Plot holes will open up like sinkholes. Timelines might not make sense. The point isn’t to avoid the mess, it’s to get through it. First drafts are for discovering what the story really wants to be. The cleanup comes later. Honestly, I’ve written entire scenes only to scrap them later, but I wouldn’t have figured out the right direction without writing the wrong one first.
5. Keep Going, Even When It Feels Terrible
There will be a chapter (or ten) that makes you want to delete the whole thing. Don’t. Keep going. Write through the awkward parts. Every single author I’ve heard has felt the same doubt partway through a draft. It's not a sign you’re failing, it’s just a sign that you're doing the work. Remind yourself: it’s supposed to feel hard sometimes. You’re building something from nothing. That’s no small thing.
Final Thoughts
Your first draft is a promise to yourself. It says, I believe in this story enough to see where it goes. So be brave, be stubborn, and above all, just keep writing. If you're working on a draft right now, I’m cheering you on. I’m personally working on one as I speak!
You’ve got this.
Kayce Grant
@book.of.kay
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When Janie Holcomb receives a cryptic message from her estranged father, she finds herself drawn into the heart of a secretive facility buried deep in the woods. Her father, a brilliant but dying scientist, has been hiding something unimaginable: a collection of alien lifeforms, each more dangerous and more intelligent than the last.
As Janie is pulled deeper into his world of brutal research and unsettling truths, she forms an unlikely connection with one of the prisoners. But something else is stirring in the depths of the facility, something far more terrifying than anything locked behind reinforced walls.
Janie came for answers. What she finds is a terrifying inheritance... and a choice that could either save humanity or end it.
