Favorite Writing Tips and Tricks for a First Draft

Have you ever written a first draft? Because let me tell you (and I think I speak for anyone else who has written one), it might just be the hardest thing you ever do. Writing a first draft is not for the weak, and it will test you in ways you didn’t think possible.

There will be days where you wake up with all the motivation in the world, yet by the time you sit down in front of your computer to type, there’s nothing left. You’ll have nights where the cursor is blinking back at you like a taunt, daring you to actually put a word down. Of course, you’ll also have days where every star aligns and suddenly you wrote ten thousand words. As rare as this is, it can happen, but this is the one percent of someone’s life you see on social media (does that make sense?).

My point is, I know what it feels like to be in the pits of writing a first draft, and I want to share the tips and tricks I use to help me navigate on the days were even writing “Chapter #” feels too hard.

1. You first draft does not need to be good.

   This was advice I was given years ago, and it has been the constant reminder I need when I’m writing a first draft. It does not need to be good. When you are writing a first draft, you may have your plot, your outline, your character arcs all planned out, but more often than not, your characters have minds of their own. They might have the guts to tell you how it’s going to be, and that might not be even close to what you had planned. And that’s OKAY! Your first draft is your time to get to know your story and your characters, and if it doesn’t go how you originally planned, oh well. Your first draft is supposed to be messy, imperfect, and desperately need work. That’s literally the entire point of editing, so just focus on getting your story out of your head for now.

   
   

2. It’s okay to have a plan, but it’s also okay to go off script.

   Like I mentioned before, sometimes your characters have minds of their own. It can feel so wrong to move away from the plan you already have, but in my experience, trying to stick to my initial plan when my characters are trying to tell me something different is actually why I have some of my worst writer’s block. it’s okay to let your characters guide you, and if it ends up being bad and you hate it when the draft is done, you can always go back and change it.

   
   

3. Waiting for the perfect moment means there will never be a perfect moment.

   If you’re waiting for the right boost of inspiration, the perfect weather, and the ideal mental space, that first draft is probably never going to be anything but a work in progress unless you’re the luckiest writer on the planet. A lot of your favorite authors probably started out in the shoes you’re in right now—writing in the wee hours of the night after the kids are in bed, getting far too little sleep because they’re writing around their 9-5, and making it a priority to write every day, even if it’s only fifty words. Notice how none of those would be considered the perfect moment. They were tired, stressed, and probably burnt out, but they knew they knew it was now or never.

   
   

4. Speaking of writing every day…

   Write. Every. Day. I’m not kidding. Even if you only have the time and the energy to write fifty words, writing another fifty tomorrow will make that one hundred words, and three hundred and fifty words next week. It may not seem like a lot, but I promise, it adds up fast. Even if you end up deleting every word you wrote the next day, it still meant you were exercising the part of your brain you use to write, honing your craft, and putting in the effort.

   
   

5. You can set a word goal for yourself each day/week, but also try breaking it up into smaller goals.

   My standard word count goal when I am actively working on a first draft is 1000 words a day. Do I always meet this goal? Absolutely not! I will usually break up that goal into smaller goals that feel more achievable. If I’m struggling through writer’s block, this helps me so much, because I don’t have to sit down for hours just to get 1000 more words on the page. Depending on what else is on my to-do list (could be other tasks for Wanderlust, could be household chores), I’ll break up my goals into 125 or 250 word sections. When my writer’s block is my biggest barrier, this is my greatest strength!

Writing is hard, and it’s important to remember to also give yourself some grace. It’s okay to miss a day of writing when the rest of your life is too much. It’s okay to not meet your daily word count. What’s important is that you keep writing, and you don’t let one set back stop you from chasing those dreams!

What are some of your favorite writing tips and tricks for first drafts?

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