One of the most common questions I get as an author is how I am able to write a book so fast. In reality, if it weren’t for having to pay the bills, I could easily write the first draft of a book in a matter of weeks. Am I some kind of phenom? No. It’s all about writing the first draft of the book lightly.
Well, I also type between 65 and 70 words per minute, depending on the day. Sometimes faster, if the flow is just right for a scene.
This is actually a practice you can do yourself to help you write the first draft of your book. Doing so will place you among 3% of people who say they want to write a book and actually do it.
What is Writing Light?
So, what does it mean to write light when putting together the first draft? Instead of focusing on perfection, in-line edits, or trying your best to include all of the details, writing light is all about getting the story out of you.
You’re not going to publish your first draft. In fact, it’s not even going to be the book you publish, as you’re going to change a lot during the editing phase. It’s relatively pointless to worry about writing the perfect first draft and making sure all of the details are included.
Now, this doesn’t mean that you just start typing and hope something coherent comes forth. You still want to put together a manuscript that tells a decent story with some character and plot development. All I’m saying is that you shouldn’t worry about trying to cross every “t” and dot every “i” when writing the first draft.
Once the story is out of you, then you can go back and start making changes. And you’ll spend more time editing a good book than you did writing it.
Several characters in my first book, Kingmaker, didn’t have names until after the first draft was written. One in particular didn’t have a name or backstory until near the end of the editing process.
When writing light and not worried about perfection, you free yourself to finish the manuscript.
How Do You Lightly Write the First Draft?
Writing lightly is relatively easy and straightforward. For the most part, you’ll want to avoid making edits as you write. Now, there will be times when you’ll want to fix a sentence or a scene so that the first draft still makes sense. I’m talking about making major sweeping changes in the manuscript, such as starting over from scratch.
What else can you do to get started writing light today?
Set a Low Word Count Goal, According to Genre Averages
First, how many words do you want in the manuscript? This will depend on whether you’re writing flash fiction, short stories, or a full-length novel. Genres have varying averages for word count, which is not necessarily set in stone.
A lot of authors will write well beyond or below those perceived averages. It really depends on whether you feel the story is told when you’re done writing. Then, agents, editors, and publishers may try to talk you into cutting scenes and such to get the book to be a certain length. That’s a whole ordeal for another time.
Right now, we’re just focusing on writing as lightly as we can to get the first draft done.
Take Kingmaker, for example. According to the author Katie Bachelder, fantasy novels should be between 90,000 and 120,000 words long. The first draft goal for Kingmaker was 75,000 words. By the time I was done with several rounds of edits, the book clocked in at just over 88,000.
Fury, on the other hand, is around 102,500, and I have about two or three chapters left to write for the first draft.
Start Anywhere, You’re Going to Change it Later
A very common question I get from new authors is how do they start their book. Where do they start writing to get the story going?
Although this is another situation that depends on the author, you can literally start anywhere when it comes to the first draft. That’s because it’s very likely that you’re going to change the beginning during edits. In fact, it’s believed that around 25% of your book, on average, will be different than the first draft.
Depending on the book and series, I usually like to start by laying the groundwork for the antagonist. For instance, the first chapter of Shadows of Atlantic City focused on the sinking of a ship in a winter storm and how the antagonist landed in 1854, New Jersey.
In Despair, the story starts with Riley blowing up a wagon because he was too inexperienced to handle a fireball wand. In Kingmaker, the action started with Diemos fending off feral creatures during a dark and rainy night.
As simple as it sounds, just start writing from any point where you want the story to begin. It could be a location, focused on the emotions of a person, or even zooming out from an object on a table in a room.
There is literally no right or wrong way to start a first draft. As I said, you’re more than likely going to change it anyway. Well, unless you whip up an incredible beginning, which happens more often than you think.
Trust yourself to start the story and make changes as necessary AFTER the first draft is complete.
Don’t Try to Make Every Sentence Perfect
One trap that a lot of new authors stumble into is trying to make every sentence perfect before moving on. Remember, a first draft is not meant to be perfect. It’s completely OK to have a mess of writing, as long as it’s coherent enough for you to edit later.
Also, keep in mind that writing a “good” book is subjective. This means that the term “good” is not the same for everyone. What one person thinks is a brilliant piece of literature, another could view as complete trash. So, trying to make it “perfect” doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things.
Besides, you’ll have plenty of time to polish any sentence after the first draft is complete. Going back and tweaking things is only going to slow down progress. And a lot of those changes you make at that moment are probably going to get rewritten in the edits anyway.
Don’t worry about whether someone will like the story you’re currently writing. No one is going to read this version of the book, except for beta readers or developmental editors you may have on hand. But the general public may never see the first draft of your manuscript.
Leave Notes to Yourself, But Keep Moving Forward
While writing the first draft, you’ll undoubtedly have ideas or things you would like to change. Instead of going back and making those edits, highlight the sections and leave notes for yourself of those ideas. Then, when you go back to make edits, you can decide whether they are as good as you thought.
Most writing apps have a way to make notations or comments. In Reedy Studio, you can highlight a piece of text and click the comment icon to leave notes to yourself. In Google Docs, you can right-click anywhere in the manuscript or select a word and then click the “Comment” option from the drop-down list.
The bottom line is that you don’t want to spend too much time trying to make edits. If you want to quickly get the first draft of your manuscript written, just leave a quick note and move on.
While writing the first draft of Fury, I had well over 40 of these types of comments to remind me to change certain things or to include elements I wanted to add to scenes. This also included naming secondary characters and world-building sections.
After the first draft, I would go through the list of comments one by one before I began actually editing the piece.
Take Breaks to Refresh the Mind
I take regular walking breaks when working on my books. It gives me a chance to visualize what I want to “see” in the book while giving me a moment of Zen. It’s probably one of the biggest reasons why I am not plagued with writer’s block as often as some people.
By the time I come back to the book, I am ready to hammer out another 500 to 600 words before needing another breather.
How does this impact writing the first draft lightly? Regular breaks help break up monotony while giving your mind a chance to process what you’ve already written. Then, you have that moment to consider options for how to proceed.
For me, it’s like developing a consistent stream of thought regarding the plot. It’s like recharging a low battery and then coming back to it at 100%.
What About Grammar and Spelling Mistakes?
Most of the writing apps I use are web-based through Chrome. That means that I can use the Grammarly Chrome extension to help keep the grammar and spelling in check. I disabled the AI functionality and use Grammarly purely as a way to spellcheck my work. Then, I usually ignore other suggestions from the app, as some of them would remove my style and personality.
Lately, I’ve committed a lot of time to using Reedsy Studio to write my books, and Grammarly works great with it. So, I can work on a manuscript without having to worry about proofreading much during the process.
Of course, you want to dive deeper into grammar and spelling during the editing process. You may use words that are spelled correctly but are completely wrong for the scene.
Overall, though, you shouldn’t worry too much about grammatical errors in the first draft. You’ll fix them when the editing begins.
Practice with Short Stories First
If you want to practice writing light, why not try a short, 3000-word story for yourself or perhaps on an online platform? You don’t have to work on a full-length manuscript, especially if you’re thinking about writing an anthology of your work.
Short stories are great for practice as they take less time and can help you build a good flow for your writing. They help you find your voice while ironing out any issues you may have before jumping into an 85,000-word novel.
Besides, if you work out the kinks, you can probably submit those flash fiction stories to a variety of publishing websites and contests.
I am a big proponent of practice, practice, practice. It’s how athletes become superstars and how writers become great authors. No one is going to be the best there is from day one, but continued practice will help you achieve some great skills.
So, whether you keep the stories for yourself or plan to publish them on something like Wattpad or Inkitt, practice regularly. Even after publishing my third book, I still practice by experimenting with different genres and points of view. And I plan on publishing a lot of those practice pieces on Wattpad and Inkitt in the next few weeks.
The point is that you can use short stories to practice writing light that can fit easily into your busy schedule. It’s an investment of time in yourself that will pay off down the road.
FAQs About Writing the First Draft Lightly
It depends on the individual. Things like typing speed, time spent per day writing, diversions, and flow of the story will affect how long it takes to write a first draft. In my case, I can write 1100 words per hour on average. For a 75,000-word book, it would take me roughly 68 hours.
It depends on your imagination. You may find that some aspects of character, scene, and plot development come easily as you write. However, you don’t have to concern yourself too much with details and descriptions if they’re not forthcoming. You’ll add more in the edit phases.
Neither. There is no right or wrong way to write a first draft, as long as it gets written. The question of plotting vs pantsing is completely up to the individual. Some feel that plotting is easier to maintain a good flow of writing, but it may take a bit more time. Others enjoy the fact of not knowing how a story will unfold, but it often leads to writer’s block. So, it’s really up to you to decide which method works best for your needs.
It depends on how much time you want to put into the outline. I’ll often have all of the main points already planned out before I start writing, and then simply work to connect the dots. You can be as detailed as you’d like, just as long as it works to help you finish the first draft.
Many successful authors advise you to take 4 to 6 weeks before returning to a first draft to start edits. This is because the wait allows your mind to reset, giving you a better chance to find mistakes, add pertinent details, and make the best changes for the story.
It’s All About Getting the Story Out
Every author finds their groove for what works best for them. The above list is simply things I do to help me write the first draft. Writing light may not be the best option in your case, but I can attest to how much of a difference it has made for me.
There’s nothing wrong with trial and error to find the routines that work best for you. Just keep an open mind and test the waters to find the sweet spot that you can dive into to help you write.
Remember, the first draft isn’t meant to be perfect; just completed.
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