Drafting
Drafting involves a series of writing
efforts leading to a finished product. Each draft, ideally, improves
upon the preceding one.
• The First Draft: Even
after pre-writing and planning has been done, writing a first
draft can be daunting. The first draft (sometimes called a "discovery
draft"), is a way of laying out your ideas while trying to link
them together.
1. Review your pre-writing
work. Ask yourself, "What here is worth keeping?"
2. If you chose to write one,
review your formal outline, reminding yourself of ideas that may
now be unified into an essay.
3. Write, write, and keep writing.
Write everything from your thesis statement or the first line of
your introduction to the last line of your conclusion. It doesn't
have to be perfect right now; don't worry about that here. For now,
just make all the necessary connections.
•
The Second Draft: No, no - don't say, "A second draft?
I don't need that!" Believe it or not, this is often where a
writer's most important work happens. Second drafts should very
substantially improve upon first drafts. Whereas pre-writing
gathers materials and ideas, and the first draft combines those
ingredients, the second draft molds those ingredients into a
better form.
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