I have been rewriting and editing for a couple of years now rather than first drafting.

Denying myself the indulgence of a first draft crazy mad heady rush of words as I had too many first drafts and not enough polished stories. 

Now I have finished a few of my projects and have another nearing the end of the rewrite process I looked and thought about the two first drafts still waiting in the wings but although I’d love to get them finished and out in the world another story tugged me sideways.

I did begin an epic fantasy first draft in 2020 but have put it aside as the myriad characters and plot lines were tangling like a knotted mess of wool. I have worked out timelines and where the characters interreact and am very tempted to complete it. I don’t like leaving a first draft half done. I don’t want that to become a habit for a story cannot be corrected if it isn’t written.

But this other story has been patient, waiting since its first kernel of an idea in 2013 until now, 2021. I’ve played with the idea in my head, and I’ve done research but I’ve not allowed myself to start the first draft.

Partly because as I said I had too many first drafts, partly because I felt I wasn’t ready (yes Stephen King I have read your advice on this) but mostly because it scared me.

It’s a five book Young Adult Paranormal series and darker than my usual stories and requires a ton of research. It needs to be believable and feel like our world and reality although it’s not…or it could be and we don’t know.

Anyhow, it’s happening. I am writing the first draft of the first book in the series.

But, after doing all those rewrites and edits, polishing and careful thought about every word it’s so very hard to get back into the flow of writing rubbish. For that is what I need to do. That is what a free flowing, non-planned first draft is. I say non-planned but I do know the character, her weakness and strength, her goal for the book and I think I know the ending, but the when and how I leave my subconscious to deal with.

I love writing and being in a different person’s head and world and know this first drafting will become faster and smoother as I practise. I also know the high of frantic ideas pouring out onto the page can become addictive and my body needs to move and stretch so a time limit is vital for my health and well-being.

I’ve set myself five sessions of writing a week of at least an hour long and in the past I have spat out almost two thousand words in an hour and a bit, but this week it has been slow.

I did write a few scenes from the start of the book for an online course in 2016 and these have been rewritten and polished and that’s caused my brain to want to write at the same level. But that is not a first draft, not in my writing world.

I’ve found myself looking back and changing sentences and then groaning as I become aware of what I am doing.

But I am being patient and gentle with myself and remembering the little tricks that worked so well in the past.

Five tricks for turning off my inner editor-

1. If I’ve missed something and want to backtrack, I change the font colour and write it where I am in the text, that way I know it needs to be moved and I am not tempted to read what I’ve written and do any rewriting.

2. When I finish a writing session, I leave a few words such as Sara returns home, it’s been ransacked – this stops me from looking back to see what I had written before. It gives me a point at which to continue the story.

3. I do not touch type and maybe this is good as I stay focussed on the keyboard rather than looking at the words I am writing. I know some touch-type writers change font colour to white or shrink the font so they cannot be tempted to change something.

4. I do not write in chapters and If I have an idea for a scene later in the story, I write it and again change the font colour.

5. I’m not precious about spelling, grammar, words or descriptions. I use get and put. They can be changed later. Descriptions and detail can also be added and if I forget a character or place name, they are called Name or Place.

My tricks are beginning to work. (If you have others please do share in the comments box at the bottom of the page or in the facebook group where you have seen this.)

My word count is increasing, and I am enjoying the daftness that I write at times.

I know it’s important for me to write like this rather than be too planned as the stories I’ve written with an idea for each chapter have not flowed in the same organic was as the others and are more difficult to rewrite.

I have learned about my writing faults from developmental and copy edits but am tucking them at the back of my mind as I first draft, that can all be dealt with once the story is written.

I’m not sure yet, but I think I will first draft all five books before beginning the rewrite although if fundamental elements change when I rewrite the first book…hum. Time will tell, and nothing will change if I don’t write the first book. 

Here I go.......

This snippet from the beginning of the story was written in 2016 and has been rewritten but I still can see an error.



I am not going to correct it yet. Not until the first draft is complete.