Shitty First Drafts

Anne Lammont describes a long writing process that requires many revisions. She states that the first draft is for getting all of your ideas written down, no matter how good or bad they may be. The first draft will give you direction of where you want to take your writing, then you can revise from there. A writer can't expect the first draft to be perfect or even close according to Lammont. She says that every good writer writes terrible first drafts and has to revise their work. My style of writing is a little different than what Lammont describes. I believe that good writers can write great first drafts, but of course they are not going to be perfect. When I write it is not a long and tedious task as Lammont shows, but I am not quick or sloppy. Also, I do not like to revise my own writing. If I do make revisions, they are usually minor. I prefer to have someone else make suggestions on what to change or improve rather than doing it myself. I don't really like revising my own work. I understand Lammont's view that revising will improve whatever is being written, but I think the first draft is as bad as she describes. I think it also has to do with what you are writing and what style you want to have. Some styles require more revision than others. If I am writing something like a blog, I don't see much need to revise it. If I am writing a ten page paper for English class, than I should probably revise several times. I think blogging will help my writing, it is good practice. My writing style might be different on blogs than on regular class papers because it does need to be as formal. Different subjects require different styles.