Rough Drafts, Perfectionism & Self-Doubt
For many writers, the biggest hurdle is getting words on the page. It can be easy to overanalyze a first draft and become mired in the details, which ultimately slows down the entire writing process. First drafts are never perfect, and you should expect to revise everything in your first draft heavily. Approaching your work in sections, as discussed previously, may also make it easier to get started writing. After all, “You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” (Lamott 1995) Lamott uses this quote from E.L. Doctorow to emphasize that sometimes we only need to draft a tiny piece of the larger work in order to move to the next piece. We don’t need to have all the answers or a complete, fleshed out vision of the entire work in order to get started. Focus on what you can see now, and the rest will become clearer as you write.
If fear or self-doubt are making it difficult to begin or complete a first draft, consider changing your writing practices to give yourself permission to view this draft as intentionally very rough. It may be helpful to handwrite an initial draft, to format your draft as an outline or bullet point list rather than in paragraph form, or simply to turn off your computer’s autocorrect and spell-checking features. Give yourself permission to jot down ideas, note sources of interest, and include other placeholders that will remind you to add more detail later. A first draft only needs to be intelligible to you, not to others, and it does not need to encompass the entire final work. It may be helpful to write separate first drafts of each section, and then stitch these together into a complete piece later. This can be especially helpful if you’re feeling overwhelmed by a large final word or page count and can help you overcome the fear of staring at a blank page as well as alleviate worry you may have about whether the final piece will be good.
After you have a rough draft, you can begin to rework the text, either in sections or as a whole document, to improve the flow. As you rework your text and complete subsequent drafts, remember that drafts are designed to change. It isn’t a problem if you need to rework large sections of your writing, move text around, or heavily edit your work. Writing a “bad” first draft doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer; in fact, the effort put in to improve a rough first draft is a hallmark of good writing because it shows dedication and thoughtfulness about your topic (Lamott 2005).
There is always a point at which you must stop revising, and for perfectionists, this can be as difficult as starting a new project with a blank page. It is impossible to write a perfect piece, and with unlimited time, there will always be something more to say, another supporting reference to find, or a cleaner way to phrase your ideas. If you aren’t sure when to stop or are worried about how to tell if your work is “good enough”, consider sharing drafts with trusted friends, colleagues, or other informal editors. An editor’s job is to help improve your work without insisting on the unattainable perfection that you may wish to achieve.
Taking a look back at the 1.3.3: Identifying Your Research Support Ecosystem activity from Course 1, Lesson 3 in your LPOL Workbook can help you find people who may be able to help you review a rough draft, brainstorm new ideas, or offer perspective from another background or area of expertise. If you are concerned about overwhelming one or two people, consider choosing different reviewers for different sections of your writing project from the group that you identified in the worksheet provided in Concept 1. Integrating ideas from a wide community will only improve your final project, as each person in your research ecosystem brings a unique perspective to your project.
If ongoing feelings of self-doubt or perfectionism continue to interfere with your motivation to write, it may be helpful to pause and refocus on self-care and your own mental health. For some, this may involve taking a break from writing commitments that become overwhelming, but for others, it may be helpful to examine some of the self-care resources collected in the Further Learning section at the end of this lesson for ideas about how to refocus your attention on your own needs.
Topic 2 References
#MindfulinLIS – blog posts, resources, and tools rooted in mindfulness. https://mindfulinlis.wordpress.com/
Clark, Melanie, Vardeman, Kimberly, and Shelley Barba. “Perceived Inadequacy: A Study of the Imposter Phenomenon among College and Research Librarians.” College & Research Libraries: 75, 3 (2014). https://doi.org/10.5860/crl12-423
Ford, Emily. “Becoming a Writer-Librarian.” In the Library with the Lead Pipe. 2013. https://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2013/becoming-a-writer-librarian/
Kimball Gruder, Kay. “Taming the Critical Voice of Self-Doubt.” Inside Higher-Ed. 2021. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2021/06/14/why-and-how-curb-self-doubt-greater-career-success-opinion
Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1995.
Lamott, Anne. “Shitty First Drafts.” In Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers, edited by Paul Eschholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark, 93-96. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005. Accessed June 4, 2023. https://wrd.as.uky.edu/sites/default/files/1-Shitty%20First%20Drafts.pdf.
McMillan Cottom, Tressie.. “How I Write.” https://tressiemc.com/essays-2/how-i-write/
Rough Drafts, Perfectionism & Self-Doubt
For many writers, the biggest hurdle is getting words on the page. It can be easy to overanalyze a first draft and become mired in the details, which ultimately slows down the entire writing process. First drafts are never perfect, and you should expect to revise everything in your first draft heavily. Approaching your work in sections, as discussed previously, may also make it easier to get started writing. After all, “You can see only as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” (Lamott 1995) Lamott uses this quote from E.L. Doctorow to emphasize that sometimes we only need to draft a tiny piece of the larger work in order to move to the next piece. We don’t need to have all the answers or a complete, fleshed out vision of the entire work in order to get started. Focus on what you can see now, and the rest will become clearer as you write.
If fear or self-doubt are making it difficult to begin or complete a first draft, consider changing your writing practices to give yourself permission to view this draft as intentionally very rough. It may be helpful to handwrite an initial draft, to format your draft as an outline or bullet point list rather than in paragraph form, or simply to turn off your computer’s autocorrect and spell-checking features. Give yourself permission to jot down ideas, note sources of interest, and include other placeholders that will remind you to add more detail later. A first draft only needs to be intelligible to you, not to others, and it does not need to encompass the entire final work. It may be helpful to write separate first drafts of each section, and then stitch these together into a complete piece later. This can be especially helpful if you’re feeling overwhelmed by a large final word or page count and can help you overcome the fear of staring at a blank page as well as alleviate worry you may have about whether the final piece will be good.
After you have a rough draft, you can begin to rework the text, either in sections or as a whole document, to improve the flow. As you rework your text and complete subsequent drafts, remember that drafts are designed to change. It isn’t a problem if you need to rework large sections of your writing, move text around, or heavily edit your work. Writing a “bad” first draft doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer; in fact, the effort put in to improve a rough first draft is a hallmark of good writing because it shows dedication and thoughtfulness about your topic (Lamott 2005).
There is always a point at which you must stop revising, and for perfectionists, this can be as difficult as starting a new project with a blank page. It is impossible to write a perfect piece, and with unlimited time, there will always be something more to say, another supporting reference to find, or a cleaner way to phrase your ideas. If you aren’t sure when to stop or are worried about how to tell if your work is “good enough”, consider sharing drafts with trusted friends, colleagues, or other informal editors. An editor’s job is to help improve your work without insisting on the unattainable perfection that you may wish to achieve.
Taking a look back at the 1.3.3: Identifying Your Research Support Ecosystem activity from Course 1, Lesson 3 in your LPOL Workbook can help you find people who may be able to help you review a rough draft, brainstorm new ideas, or offer perspective from another background or area of expertise. If you are concerned about overwhelming one or two people, consider choosing different reviewers for different sections of your writing project from the group that you identified in the worksheet provided in Concept 1. Integrating ideas from a wide community will only improve your final project, as each person in your research ecosystem brings a unique perspective to your project.
If ongoing feelings of self-doubt or perfectionism continue to interfere with your motivation to write, it may be helpful to pause and refocus on self-care and your own mental health. For some, this may involve taking a break from writing commitments that become overwhelming, but for others, it may be helpful to examine some of the self-care resources collected in the Further Learning section at the end of this lesson for ideas about how to refocus your attention on your own needs.
Topic 2 References
#MindfulinLIS – blog posts, resources, and tools rooted in mindfulness. https://mindfulinlis.wordpress.com/
Clark, Melanie, Vardeman, Kimberly, and Shelley Barba. “Perceived Inadequacy: A Study of the Imposter Phenomenon among College and Research Librarians.” College & Research Libraries: 75, 3 (2014). https://doi.org/10.5860/crl12-423
Ford, Emily. “Becoming a Writer-Librarian.” In the Library with the Lead Pipe. 2013. https://www.inthelibrarywiththeleadpipe.org/2013/becoming-a-writer-librarian/
Kimball Gruder, Kay. “Taming the Critical Voice of Self-Doubt.” Inside Higher-Ed. 2021. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2021/06/14/why-and-how-curb-self-doubt-greater-career-success-opinion
Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1995.
Lamott, Anne. “Shitty First Drafts.” In Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers, edited by Paul Eschholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark, 93-96. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005. Accessed June 4, 2023. https://wrd.as.uky.edu/sites/default/files/1-Shitty%20First%20Drafts.pdf.
McMillan Cottom, Tressie.. “How I Write.” https://tressiemc.com/essays-2/how-i-write/