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Writing Update: First Draft As An Outline?
Writing over the weekend, and today has been good. And reasonably consistent.
As I mused over what to do with An Abused Mind, I moved on to just writing my short story All Fascists are Zombies!
I’ve been thinking about this story a lot. I had the opening, kind of mood-setting scene written. That was written months ago, during that awful heatwave we had. And I’ve had a lot of the other scenes thought out, like the second scene and a few more. I’ve eventually worked out an ending but it’s taken me a while to just begin writing the bloody thing.
I’ve been so obsessed with making sure I’d worked out every detail so I don’t slip up whilst writing the first draft.
But there are just some things you can’t work out until you begin writing and putting the story down. Things fall into place, you write what comes next because it’s natural to your character, or even just what you’d do in that situation. These things can’t be premeditated all of the time.
In a sense, I’m finding this first draft to be my outline. As the story becomes clear to me, through the process of writing, I can gain a feel for the story, the mood and tone. I’ll work out details that can be included later, what scenes are unnecessary etc.
On Sunday, I wrote nearly 1,800 words, all in a flurry with little thought at all. I was trying to get the story down without too much obsession about the writing form and being overly critical. It worked well for me, and whilst the initial sentences may have been awkward as I’ve eased into the story, I’ve become more comfortable, found my rhythm and feel better and less nervous now.
Today, I stayed home sick, and after blogging, applying for some new jobs, reading and doing stuff on the Internet, I finally got myself writing again. I wrote 800 words and finished the second scene, cutting it shorter than I thought because I wanted to save some of the details for later.
The story now sits at almost 3,000 words and the story is only at the beginning. This clearly is not going to be a short story unless I cut a heap of detail out in the second draft. But I’m going to keep writing. Perhaps it will be a novelette or a novella. I don’t think it’ll become a novel.
I know novelettes and novellas stand almost no chance of being published, but I need to write the story as it is, and not cut it down or unnecessarily draw it out. I’m not sure where I’m going with this, where it’ll end up, or if it’s ‘worth’ it or not but I’m enjoying the journey and I’m sure I could get a few people to read it even if it doesn’t make publication.
I plan to write this First Draft to the end, and use it as an outline to write a clearer second draft. I’ll probably repeat this process until I’m left with a draft that has a clear story. Then it will be easier to fine tune the writing and make it sharper.
Have you written a first draft as an outline? If you haven’t, how do you see the first draft?
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There are 13 Comments to "Writing Update: First Draft As An Outline?"
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I’ve got a couple stories with a first draft that i’ll use as an outline for a completely fresh write. One story in particular stands out. The first draft has given me some good character development, and something to base the plot around, but the plot itself in the first draft is cheesy, and the focus doesn’t feel right. But there should be enough there for me to work with when it comes around to rewriting.
Generally, as you know, i’m an outliner (as in, brief progression of main points so i know where i’m going, rather than lots of detail about every scene) and i often outline as i go, so a lot of my first drafts have a completed plot. Usually they only require intensive editing rather than rewriting, to clarify things, to get the pacing right, to make sure the characters are fully developed, etc.
Isaac’s last blog post..And today we wrote…
I think 1st draft as outline is a good way of looking at it… the important thing is when you’re primed to write, WRITE!
My current project is a serial webnovel (http://www.saintmarksbody.com/buono) set in 9th century Venice. I am keeping a tight schedule of three ~500 word updates a week, and by necessity they are all first drafts. Character development and themes just kind of happen when you’re under the gun like that!
Isaac: I outline occasionally too, and even tried with this one but I think I kept stalling because I was trying to over outline. I have the basic scenes in my head so just need to write them and work out the rest of the details in the process of the first draft.
Richard: That project sounds interesting and I guess having your work updated online gives you some extra pressure to keep writing consistently.
I agree with Richard – all you got to do is keep writing. The story will unveil itself to you eventually, you don’t have to worry about that or how many words you will end up writing. I completed my first novel, “A Diary of Wasted Years,” a couple of years back, and it’s just released by Eloquent Books. If you are into dark novels, you are certainly welcome to try it… and even if you’re not… Other, than that, keep on writing.
I was going to say I’ve never used a first draft as an outline, but then I realized I had. One time I looked over the first draft of a story that I’d been having trouble with and realized there were three stories in one, so I used the draft as a guide to separate the stories.
Hmmm, I wonder what ever happened to those stories . . .
Carol’s last blog post..Post Fairies
Thanks Chris, nice website.
Carol: You should so hunt down those lost stories. I’m sure the ideas are still gems even if you’ve probably grown as a writer.
I usually try to write a “clean” first draft. This means I want it to be as good a draft as a first one can get.
But…sometimes the planning is lacking and I don’t figure that out until I’m writing that first draft. When this happens, I turn to “just get the story down” mode instead. At least then I have a complete story to work with when I start the editing stage…even if it means rewriting the entire thing!
Karen, I think I’ve tried to do it your first way in the past but this time it’s definitely just to get the story down and lay my cards to see what I’ve got to work with.
Well, it really doesn’t matter in the long term, as long as the manuscript is written. I’m a believer in having a completed draft means you’ll more likely to end up with a polished manuscript ready for submission.
Karen Lee Field´s last blog ..The Reading World
I guess that may have been a problem with previous stories, like ‘An Abused Mind,’ which really needs a rewrite.
I think you’re going about this story the right way Benjamin. Just write it down and see what you end up with.
Don’t worry whether it’s the right word length or if it will be published. The satisfaction will come from knowing you have penned the story as it was meant to be.
“If you’re going to put your name on something, make sure its something YOU are happy with (emphasis on YOU) because if you truly consider it to be a piece of art, then in a way it is a reflection of yourself.”
-Adam Jones (paraphrased)
David Sayers´s last blog ..
Thanks for the comment David. I really agree with that quote.
The first drafts of my books are 130,000 word plot outlines. Then I pare them back into 90,000 word novels.