28 Things you don’t need to worry about when writing a first draft

Once you have written a few first drafts you realise there are some things you don’t need to waste valuable time and energy worrying about. The first stage is simply an outpouring of words onto a page. Nothing else.

Here is a list of 28 things you don’t need to worry about whilst writing your first draft.

• Title.
• First line / first paragraph.
• The impact your first draft will have on your writing career.
• What other people will think of it.
• Your first draft’s imperfections.
• Character names.
• A literary agent’s thoughts on your first 10k words.
• Structure.
• Your choice of font.
• Will there will be any free beta readers available once you finish it?
• What will your parents think of your romantic scene in the first chapter?
• The book cover design.
• Whether you are labelling the start of chapters with ‘chapter x ‘ or ‘part x.’
• Character backgrounds.
• The people who you will be dedicating your novel to once it’s finished.
• Your writing career to date.
• How does your first draft compare to the book at number one in the book charts?
• Number of big words used.
• The Hollywood actor / actress who will play the leading role when your book is turned into a film.
• Acknowledgements.
• Spelling.
• Grammar.
• POV.
• Characters.
• Your feelings towards your story in later drafts.
• How will it compare to the other stories you have written?
• Names of potential literary agents who you think would love a copy of your final book.
• Was Ernest Hemingway right about first drafts because yours sounds amazing!

As John Dufresne said:

‘The purpose of the first draft is not to get it right but to get it written.’

Have a great day!