4.4: Drafting

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Nobody Gets It Right the First Time

Whether a writer is the next Sandra Cisneros, or a student looking to earn a good grade, drafting must be done as a part of successful writing. Even when writers work to deadline and write at a single sitting, they return to parts of it again and again in order to get it just right.

It does not matter whether the work is a research paper or a poem, all forms of writing need to be drafted. Since a professional writer almost never creates a perfect first draft, don’t feel bad if you need several drafts, too. So, if you find yourself very unhappy about your first try at a paper, think of it as just the start of something better, i.e. the rough draft.

Another advantage to multiple drafts is that the more drafting you do the more chances you have of catching mistakes and improving the paper. This is why it is so important to make time for multiple drafts during the writing process. The time spent drafting will bring you closer than ever to a more kick-ass version of your final draft.

The Importance of Just Getting It on The Page:

Not much can be done for a piece of writing until it is on paper or computer screen. You may worry that the paper will not be very good or even think that it will be awful, yet you won’t really know until you’ve actually written it. Not only will you and your reader(s) not be able to see what you have written, but there is no chance of working to fix what has not yet been written.

Rough Draft

A rough draft is a very important step in the writing process. Writing more than one draft gives you the opportunity to catch problems and see where the paper may not be working. So, it is a very good idea to leave yourself with enough time to write at least two or three drafts of your paper. You may want to do an outline to plan your paper beforehand but doing that is not always necessary. After you choose your topic, any possible research and or sources needed in order you can begin actually writing. While you write your rough draft, you may not feel completely satisfied about the paper, but that’s okay because that is what a rough draft is for. You want to give yourself a chance to work to get to the best arrangement of ideas and find different ways of expressing them.

TIPS FOR DRAFTING:

• Start it, say it, finish it – that’s an academic writing draft in its simplest form. o Start it. The introduction starts it all. That’s where you get the reader involved in what you are writing about and along the way, and it also gets them interested in what you have to say. At the end of the introduction section, many forms of academic writing have a thesis – the main idea or claim.
  • Say it. Say what you have to say, and don’t forget to set up a sequence of ideas that will eventually lead to the conclusion. Each idea or “point” needs room to breathe, so give it its own paragraph, at the very least. Supporting details and examples will also help.
  • Finish it. The conclusion wraps it all up in a way that doesn’t just repeat the thesis- -it makes it both bigger and more specific. The term for this kind of writing is “synthesis.” In synthesis, the whole is greater than its parts, and that is exactly what a good conclusion does.

Final Draft

Yay! Here’s how you know you have a final draft:

• The overall structure and organization is solid.
  • The thesis is clear, and your topic sentences link back to that thesis statement.
  • Each of the paragraphs is centered around the topic sentence.
• You’ve edited for clarity and audience.
• The nerdy proofreader in you, or at your tutoring center, found any goofy errors in punctuation, spelling, and grammar.
• The writing assignment has been formatted in MLA or APA style; all sources are properly cited in the text and at the end of the paper with full details.

STUDENT EXAMPLE: DRAFTING

Title of Assignment: Dear Me at age 15

Details: Write a letter to your younger self; you get to choose the age, but I would suggest anywhere from 10-15. What do you want to tell your younger self? What advice do you have right now? You can be serious or funny; it’s your letter to YOU.

DEAR ME AT 15 - FIRST DRAFT

Dear Julia,

How are you? Are you shocked that I am writing to you from the future? Me too. Here are some things I wanted to tell you:

When it comes to the family, Mom and Dad are about to get a divorce. But it is not your fault. Don’t blame yourself. They are unhappy, and I think you can feel that in the apartment when they are around together. Maybe you don’t feel comfortable, and I don’t think they do either.

All your friends will see changes too in their lives. Being a teenager sucks, and you should just realize that right away. Braces suck your teeth will look great later on tho.

DEAR ME AT 15 - SECOND DRAFT

Dear Julia,

How are you? Are you shocked that I am writing to you from the future? Me too. Here are some things I wanted to tell you: Mom & Dad are about to divorce. This crushes you because you think it is your fault. It isn’t. You should focus your energy on your little sister, Hayley. She starts to rebel because of the divorce.

All your friends will see changes too in their lives. Tanya’s parents’ divorce and you are both sad together. You two need to support each other and talk about what’s going on. When I was first in your shoes, I ignored a lot of people, but maybe you’ll listen to this letter and do better than me.

Assignments or Questions to Consider

(Insert ideas from students or teacher here.)

58 “Basic Writing/Print version.” Wikibooks, The Free Textbook Project. 9 Sep 2008, 16:02 UTC. 11 May 2016, 18:08 . Licensed CC-BY-SA.