Preview

A Literary Analysis to Shitty First Drafts

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
440 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
A Literary Analysis to Shitty First Drafts
A Literary Analysis to Shitty First Drafts Writing does not always come out naturally for neither inexperience nor experience writers. In shitty first drafts, the talented author, Anne Lamott changes the misconception that writing comes out naturally for a professional writer. Lamontt also address the common problems that all writers encounter when writing while providing the reader with advice to get past their problems when writing. Lamott states “The right words and sentences just do not come pouring out like ticker tape most of the time for writers.” People have this unreasonable perspective that experienced writers do not have any problems when it comes to writing or that experienced writers can just sit down and write a perfect draft. However, experienced writers do go through the common motion, such as not knowing where to start or where to write more than one rough draft. Even though, experienced writers go through the common motion listed above, they do not allow those common motions to defeat them, besides that is what makes them professional writers. A child like draft is a rough draft which the writer can just write freely and write about anything that comes to mind. Lamott states “ The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and let it romp all over the place, Knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.” A child like draft consists of fragment sentences, run on, misspelling, and many other in corrections. A writer should never be ashamed of their child like draft because it helps create new ideas. If the writer does not have a clue on how to start their writing, it helps the writer see what fits the topic and what does not and prepares the writer for the final draft. Internal and external distractions are common problems that writer experience when writing; these distractions can come in many form such as a cell phone, T.V, useless thoughts, and even people. Distractions whether internal or

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    My process begins before I put pen to paper. I lock myself in a quiet room, shut off my phone, and turn on some eighties hair band music. One thing that helps me write is listening to music. It blocks out distractions and irritating background noises.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In elementary and middle school, we were all taught to write first drafts before writing our final copies. Teachers would tell us it is important to take the time to write and organize our thoughts and ideas before writing a final copy. I would never complete this step. I was usually one of the students that would spend my time writing to just get the writing done. Then, I would look over it quickly and correct only few parts. My “first draft” would usually end up being my final draft. I have never enjoyed writing and have never really liked my own writing. My writing was never the one talked about by teachers or ever given a good grade. I would never bother fixing my first draft because I never thought I could make it into a good quality paper. Lamott describes a brilliant writer sitting down and writing a polished piece of work in one sitting and then goes on to explain how that never happens. I found that really comforting because that is how I imagined many people writing. Now I know that is usually not how it happens. This made me realize that good writing just takes time. Some people might be better writers than others, but the way Lamott describes writing makes it seem that anyone can become good writer. I just need to take the time to write out my ideas to form an awful first draft that can later be revised into a “terrific” final…

    • 506 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In this child’s draft of just visions and impulsive thoughts, she lets it all gush out and let it slope all over the place, thinking that only yourself are going to see it and shape the draft later. After cutting out lines and phrases that she doesn’t need, she would continue on to rewriting a better second draft. She used to write food reviews for a California magazine; from there, the writer learned a lot that food reviewing was not only typing and commenting on the food but it also need a clear structure of explanation. Lastly, Lamott tells readers that this whole rough drafts process is just a persisting cycle, and it will soon happen again. If I use some of these techniques that Lamott mentioned in this paper, then maybe I can begin to have some comfort when writing my first draft and to create wonderful pieces of art that are out of my potential. No matter how “shitty” the first copy may be,…

    • 1039 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Anne Lamott Summary

    • 341 Words
    • 1 Page

    In the book Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott, she writes an excerpt, Shitty First Drafts, which is about the impact and importance of the first drafts of writing. Anne explains in the beginning of this excerpt that all writers write shitty first drafts and the drafts get better as you write more and work on the writing more. Lamott claims that “writing is not rapturous,” she explains that the only way that she can write anything well is to write a very bad first draft and just work on fixing that. She explains that sometimes you just have to type and get your ideas written out to be able to write a good piece of work. Once someone has been writing for so long, they have to have the ability to be able to just trust their writing process and understand that the first draft isn’t going to be perfect. Nothing is perfect on the first try, you have to keep working at it. Sometimes the first draft will be the worst thing someone thinks they have ever written, but they just have to go back to it and try to make it better and revise what is wrong. A writer has to start somewhere and they work from there. Just because the first draft is a bad draft doesn’t mean that the final work will be terrible. The first draft is the terrible draft, the second draft is the slightly better draft that has been picked through lightly to better, and the final draft is the “dental draft.” The dental draft is the draft that you really pick through and make sure that everything is perfect. In other words, the final product is checked “dentally” to make sure that it is “healthy” so that the final product is perfect. Lamott’s entire excerpt is just explaining that whether or not your first draft is perfect or not, the final product will definitely be better and more acceptable.…

    • 341 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In “Shitty First Drafts,” a selection from Bird by Bird (1994), Anne Lamott claims that in order to write effectively it is necessary to just get a first draft written down, no matter how crappy it may be. She does this by disproving the assumption that great authors just sit down and magically spit out an amazing piece of work and by sharing her own experience writing awful first drafts. Ms. Lamott, an accomplished author, shared her experiences in order to demonstrate how all readers need to write that abhorrent first draft. She is writing to other, less-experienced writers to reassure them, and to help them become better writers.…

    • 304 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Anne Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts” is an argument and an admission from an industry veteran. A Herculean effort may be necessary for writing because life requires the same strain. Lamott’s personal conflicts and self-doubt have built an amazing opportunity to use her story to convince her audience that for some people, perfectionism and self-criticism can be the cause of failure. Through the prolific use of metaphor in the form of personification and interesting similes relating to her personal experiences, Lamott lays a foundation in her life story and aggressively finishes with a sound logical argument. For Lamott, it is okay to have shitty first drafts because those are just a step in the difficult process of writing.…

    • 632 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Lamott shows the purpose of the essay “Shitty first drafts”, to persuade the reader “for the need to let go and write those “shitty first drafts” that lead to clarity and sometimes brilliance in our second and third drafts,” through what readers learn, by unveiling the reality of writing a first draft and by emphasizing the process over the product of a first draft. Lamott teaches the reader that making a rough draft is to get as many words down on paper, no matter how bad it turns out, to set up the other drafts for success. Additionally, she says that the first draft process is “not rapturous”. In fact, the only way [she] can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts.” Lamott advocates that writing a first…

    • 205 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the article, “Shitty First Drafts”, Anne Lamott discusses the topic of writing what inspires the brain for a first draft is a valuable approach to compose a paper. Anne confesses specialized writers even await a response for a hint at writing their next scoop. However, when the writer has first attempt to begin writing perfection they experience dread and edginess. This is what the writers need to write the best they can. In order to wind up with great second drafts and phenomenal third drafts, fruitful authors should upchuck out their thoughts on paper. Stated by Anne, the first draft is called the “Childs draft” a mess of words only for one’s eyes. Subsequent to backpedaling and modifying the first draft, start to structure and adjust…

    • 174 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Anne Lamott’s article “Shitty First Drafts,” the author writes about first draft that are “incoherent, hideous” and just downright “shitty.” The author explains how even professional writers sit at their desks with fear in their eyes, and desperation in their heart dreading the writing process hoping to get some type of enlightenment that will help them write their next story. Lamott then goes on to elaborate how that fear and anguish is exactly what great authors need to create their masterpiece. According to Lamott a “child’s draft,” is exactly what writers need to get their ideas on paper. A “child’s draft” is usually the first draft where thoughts flow freely, later the writer goes back polishes the shitty first draft to create a decent…

    • 321 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    ‘Shitty first drafts’ is an excerpt from the book Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. It informs us about the importance of the shitty first drafts in the development of quality content for books, articles, essays and whatever else a writer intends to produce. Lamott claims that all writers write these drafts and that is how they eventually end up with the great subsequent drafts that they release to the public. She adds that the idea people have where a writer wakes up and has it all together in terms of what they will write is a fallacy that rarely happens. The author informs us that the only effective way through which she does her writing is by first putting down ‘really, really shitty first drafts.’ She begins by letting out all the ideas she has on paper bearing in mind that no one is going to see what she has written. This gives her the confidence to go on. Even though these ideas may be all over the place, there is something in the midst of it all that stands out and leads her in the direction that she would take. She explains to us by saying,…

    • 594 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    1. When Anne Lamott wrote this article, she had 4 years’ experience on her job as a food critic. By that time, she should of know that her writing is great; by managing to keep her job for that long. But as a writer, not being able to be next to their readers when finishing reading their work, to observe their reaction and to answer their question or clarified any doubt they may have, is the reason why most writer feel that nerviness and insecurity over them. Writers need be able to connect with the readers, just thinking of the wide range of individuals they need to connect too, is enough to make anybody nerves. When referring to the writing process Lamott, said “sort of, more or less” because she knows that her first drafts will be, without a doubt a shitty one, but at…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott discusses her opinions on first drafts, how she believes others dislike first drafts as much as her, how she gets past getting through her first draft, and her own experiences with first drafts when she worked as a food critic for the magazine California.…

    • 525 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Shitty First Drafts

    • 328 Words
    • 2 Pages

    1.) Ann Lamott is a writer that struggles just like anybody else and whose life is not perfect by any means. She tells us how nobody can sit down and write a perfect first draft and it is okay to write a shitty first draft. They give us ways to sit down and just write the first draft and keep writing till you run out of thought, she then tells us to make revisions to the first draft with a red pen then type your second draft, last but not least make more corrections the your 2nd draft and just write away on your 3rd and final draft. She told us about the voices and all the thoughts that were in her head correcting her paper and how the hypnotist told her to just get rid of them by putting them in a mason jar and just write.…

    • 328 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The essay entitled, Perfectionism was an inspiring piece, discussing that of which haunts all writers: perfect writing. The over all though of perfectionism seemed to be that it was a curse but one that could be over come. Perfectionism seemed to focus more on acceptance of mistakes, and enjoying the process instead of forcing a perfect product. Lamott's Shitty First Drafts, to me seemed more focused on a subtopic of perfectionism. Letting the urge to write carry you, type whatever it is the story demands of you then... simply fix it up later.…

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Bird By Bird Analysis

    • 522 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Written by almost all good writers, sloppy first drafts are a way to begin the long writing process, while still allowing mistakes along the way. In order to make a piece of writing absolute, one must start at the bottom and work up from there, making small changes along the way. Lamott exemplifies the importance of these first drafts through the use of her own and others writing experiences. While sharing her experience…

    • 522 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays