Non-writers might not understand the joy a writer feels when they complete a first draft. Usually first drafts are in no way ready to be seen by anyone but the author. I usually don’t let my most trusted beta readers near a new project until at least the second or third drafts. I never send a manuscript to my agent until at least the seventh draft. So what’s the big deal about finishing a first draft?
Let me break it down.
There is nothing more daunting than facing a blank page as a writer. Sure, marching into battle, scrubbing up for surgery, closing a multi-million dollar deal or raising children all are horrifyingly scary in their own way. But the blank page is a fierce opponent for every writer.
It taunts, tantalizes, challenges, goads, shames, leers and sometimes wrestles. It’s haughty, stubborn, smug and full of vast potential to either succeed with glorious results or fail with devastating humiliation. The blank page has many powers, and at times it can be a writer’s greatest ally or their worst enemy.
I’m learning that every new writing project is test of my writing skill. Naively, after I completed my first book, I thought writing would get easier with each new project. Certain aspects have become less daunting…now I tend to overwrite less on my first drafts now and I am more comfortable with the process of story-telling which helps. But here’s the kicker: the doubt I feel about what I’m writing hasn’t decreased with each new project. I have anxiety about whether my story is interesting enough to captivate a reader, I worry if my characters are relatable or am I inadvertently offending someone by using an outdated phrase or not being as inclusive as I could be in my story. So many things to worry about, especially in these modern times. It’s a wonder anyone sits down to write a story at all.
So battling through all those obstacles is an achievement in itself. I set out to write a project and I have finished it the task. No longer staring at a blank page, I can slice and shape the words I’ve written, sometimes deleting the whole lot, but only because they have given me a new vision, a new direction to pursue. Editing is always easier to me because the hard work of creating is already done. Now it just needs to be polished. I’ve often added new characters or story arcs in the editing phase because my mind isn’t overtaxed with building the frame work of the story as it is when I’m writing the first draft. The wooden frame of the house is already constructed. Each subsequent draft transforms that wooden framework into a building, then a house and finally, if you’re lucky, into a home. (or museum, ballpark, amphitheater…whatever floats your boat)
I have to admit that I hated every second of writing this first draft for this treatment. Not because I hate me series. I absolutely love Dani, Martin, Jodi and everyone in the Truehart world. But having to write a script and break down the entire series into episodes, summarized in only a few sentences, was a herculean task akin to stuffing an elephant into a coin purse. My series has lots of moving parts and it was a challenge to convey that in concise, yet descriptive sentences.
My first draft is just the start, though. I’ll spend the next month perfecting it in hopes of snagging the attention of a production company. It might not work, but I’m the type of person who has to dream big. I won’t regret it if my book series never gets and into a tv series. But I will absolutely regret not taking the chance to see if I can make that happen.
So by October, I hope to be onto my next project. Unfortunately, this one will not be a YA series, but a fish-out-of-water, new adult series. I plan on returning to the YA world on future projects, but this new book has been waiting more than a decade to see the light of day. Now is the time. Or rather, October will be.
Go chase those impossible dreams. And if you’re a tv producer, give my agent a call. We have a series you’re going to love.
Happy Tuesday📚