"Shitty First Drafts"

Lamott’s piece shows us how important “shitty first drafts” are. It is normal to have a first draft be all over the place, one just has to know how to fix it. A first draft is a way to get all of your ideas onto paper. It is not supposed to be organized or well written and it is usually a sloppy mess. It is a way to get your ideas onto the paper. They may seem not so important because of their lack of order and perfection, however First drafts, are crucial because this draft will be the basis of the final outcome. Lamott’s story reassured me that I am able to write a good paper. Writing an A paper takes time as well as trail and error. A paper must be treated with care and revised over and over again. Typically I become worried when writing a first draft, because I am afraid that my paper will not make any sense and won’t have the proper flow. However, all of these mistakes are necessary in order to have a decent paper. I learned that you must take the good pieces of your first draft and use and organize them in a way that they will work with the final. It is all about organization and getting your ideas straight. A crappy first draft is completely normal. The more ideas, the better the outcome. It is ok for the first draft to be sloppy, it is allowed to start at point A and finish at point Z because in the end the writer has many more ideas to work with.

A first draft is the basis of a final. You just have to let your fingers type and ideas as they flow out of your head. Afterwards is when you can efficiently piece the puzzle together and have your words make sense. You can create outlines and such in order to become organized with your works. Lamott gives very helpful advice because it made me put into perspective how truly important the first draft is. The first draft is written for marking up, tweaking, and scribbling all over. It is the foundation of your works. Just like a house needs a sturdy foundation, so does your paper. The first draft is the framework. As the house gets built; the walls are put into place and the flooring is laid down, your paper gets reorganized and words are assembled differently. This continues to happen until it is time for the finishing touches, the paint, decorations, etc. This is the final draft, the smaller things, making sure the words make sense and every last detail is in place. Writing a paper is a cumulative process. It takes a lot of time and effort. The more you revise, the better your paper will be. I completely agree with the point Lamott was trying to get across.