Tip 2: Write the first draft without fear

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"This is how you do it: you sit down at the keyboard and you put one word after another until it's done. It's that easy, and that hard." ~Neil Gaiman

Note that the heading to this tip refers to your "first draft," not simply your "draft." That's because you're not limited to writing one draft. Your story doesn't have to be perfect the first time. Your second draft is the opportunity to turn your good story into a great story.

A few writers, often the more experienced ones, write a single draft, and they self-edit along the way. They have an expert-level grasp of worldbuilding, character development, and the plot of their stories. If this is your first novel, don't try this, or else you may find yourself trying to constantly polish as you write. You'll be writing like you're riding a bike with the brakes on; you'll never find the momentum you need to finish the novel.

Some first-time novelists find themselves in this rut, and they take years to complete their novel because they're constantly rewriting and tweaking it as they write. They're writing backward, sideways, and every other direction except forward...the direction they need to go to reach the finish line.

Instead, give yourself permission to write ugly. I write a first draft that's often horribly rough. But, I have the end-to-end story on paper, which is so much easier to improve and polish on a second draft than to start with a blank page. By taking this approach, I don't allow myself to spend too much time on a scene or chapter, letting it become quicksand to my momentum. When I know I need to fill in plot holes or rework a scene, I note the changes needed and then move on to the next scene.

The key to finishing the first draft is to keep writing forward.

If you focus on moving ahead into the next scene, and the scene after that, you'll finish each writing session with a sense of accomplishment and energized to continue.

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