A lot goes into the first draft of a novel. It’s a phase, not just a single event. It goes through emotional twists and turns–as does the writer.
I write all my novels longhand in the first draft. Here’s a list of some of the ingredients I used to write my most recent first draft:
Firstly I needed six of these: (they HAVE to match…)
And I will on average use 4 or 5 of these: (I am literally writing purple prose).
One each of the these:
And even these:
Finally, raring to go, I will begin with excited enthusiasm: (the towel’s not really part of this.)
Then I will write furiously in a panic to get it all down on paper:
Then I will feel tired and only want to do this:
Next comes the phase of rebellion:
Then there’s a little bit of surprised ‘I think this is going to work’ feeling.
Followed rapidly by a ‘Why on earth do I do this to myself?’ sensation (which can last up to twenty years).
When that is over, I move into what I like to call the ‘Theoden, King’ phase of writing: a kind of grim resignation.
When writing a first draft you need a lot of sheer dogged persistence. Fortunately I do have quite a lot of that. It’s basically my only marketable (or not) skill.
Until one day:
Followed by:
And of course, plenty of:
And then:
The End (of the beginning…)
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Brilliant – and greetings, Malcolm!
he’s such an attention seeker!
LOVE that! 🙂
haha thank youxx