The First Draft

Sometimes it is a struggle to get the first draft on the page. There’s no way around it. Depending on your interest in the topic and the course, you may struggle to write for the assignment. Writing can feel like an ever-frustrating task, and if you struggle to find joy in doing the work, you’re not alone. One strategy that a lot of students find helpful is to accept that the first draft may not be that great. If you free yourself from having to write something perfect every time you come to the page, the pressure eases. You can write terribly. You can use clichés, incorrect words, and run-on sentences. Don’t worry about any of your sentences being perfect. You can revise and edit later.

Let the words fill the page. At this point in the draft, you may use words like “I think” or “maybe” to help you think on the page. If no words come, try to copy a few quotes about your source and write what you think. Maybe copying a quote from a person you admire and then writing about your perspective of that quote can help. Aim to get your writing muscles working, and your mind will start to make connections. You have to stop waiting to “feel” like writing and do the hard work of writing. Waiting to feel like writing is the same thing as waiting for inspiration. Neither typically happen unless you’re working.

Don’t be afraid of the horrible, no-good words. At least you have words. That’s an accomplishment. Many give up before even getting that far. You didn’t. You have an ugly first draft. Now get to work on the second. It’ll still be ugly but much less so than the first. Make sure that you start early to have enough time to go through many drafts. If you wait until the day before, you will have time for only one draft, and that will show in your writing.

Figure 1. Take a look at this example with notes a student wrote on her rough draft. Once you complete your own rough draft, you will want to engage in a revision and editing process that involves feedback, time, and diligence on your part.

The Second Draft

The second draft is about organizing your information logically and effectively. If you created a thorough first draft, this should be easy. Organize the main points that you plan to make, find supporting evidence for each point, and spend a few sentences explaining what conclusions you are able to draw from the information. Most writing assignments ask students to draw conclusions on their own. It weakens your argument to use phrases like might, I think, and maybe, so keep an eye out for those and edit them out in your second draft.

The Third Draft and More

The third and any subsequent drafts are really about finesse. These are the drafts that will hook your reader and help you earn the grade that you want. Try to write an attention-grabbing introduction as well as a conclusion that leaves the reader thinking about your paper. If you are still struggling with the overall flow of your paper, go back to your first draft and start rewriting.

Often your main point will change by the time you get to this draft, and that is fine. However, you may need to go back to your first draft when this happens. The elusive “show, don’t tell” expression comes into play in this draft, meaning that you want to set the stage for the reader to have them experience and feel a certain way instead of merely telling them what to experience or feel. Your audience wants to be informed, and they want to understand how you feel about the topic.

During this draft, check that you are showing your own thoughts in your writing, and synthesizing from multiple sources. You need to show that you know what you’re talking about and that you can write in an engaging style. If you are bored reading the paper, chances are the audience will be, too. At this point in your writing, you can add action verbs, remove passive verbs, and use more examples. You might also visit your campus’ writing center to have another reader take look at your work.

Revising

Although we often use the terms first draft, second draft, third draft, etc., know that there are no set boundaries on what constitutes each draft. Your teacher may include specifics in an assignment, but if not, then there are no set definitions of what the drafting process looks like. The importance of writing multiple drafts is to revisit and revise your paper through multiple passes. If you hit a point where you’re not sure what the next step should be, here are three key questions to ask.

Figure 2. During your revision process, ensure that all of your claims are supported by evidence. This will strengthen your credibility as a writer.

1) Does the argument hold together?

Does your essay move convincingly from one point to the next? Maybe you decide to move your key points around and change the structure of the essay.

Do your paragraphs carry the argument clearly? You might want to look at the links between paragraphs to make the relationships between them more clear.

2) Is your argument supported by evidence?

Every point you make should have some evidence to support it. Maybe there’s still some reading you need to do to find the evidence you need.

3) Does the essay have an effective introduction and conclusion?

At this stage, you have a good idea of what the essay as a whole will look like. So now is the time to write and refine your introduction and your conclusion. These are much easier to write at this second stage than straight off at the start of your work on the essay.

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