Oh the draft. That one part of a paper, assignment, or in class exercises that I am not a fan of. For me, the outline always came AFTER the finished product. In a high school a majority of my instructors would request that we turn in an outline with our paper, you know, the one I “formulated” before my paper. My drafts usually consist of phrases, ideas, run on sentences, incorrect punctuation, etc. Anything that goes against the code of correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation can usually be found within my first draft of any assignment. Needless to say, I need work on my drafts, thus, I plan on improving by taking what I learn within this class and will work on applying it to my writing. Also, for those of you who are not wonderful drafters like me take a look at the title of my blog. It is a quote that I entirely agree with: “Write a first draft with your heart. Rewrite with your head”. Your heart will get you started and your mind will follow.
Aside from the mess found within my drafts I do believe there are some “healthy” aspects that we discussed two weeks ago. I think I do a pretty good job of showing, definitely more so then telling. I use a lot of imagery and past memories to help the reader get an idea of scenery and location so they can place themselves inside of the reading. I am big on creating “saucy” language and work on finding a way to work some words within my writing to produce that little kick of spice in my work. This memoir for me is one that hits close at my heart and the words really are drenched with meaning and value. I think it will become obvious to those who do read my piece. As dark as part of the tale is, the words carry weight and reveal to the reader exactly what I, the writer, felt. It builds up and supports it fully in a way that ties emotions into a piece of reality from my past.
My blog post is really similar- I hated drafting when I was growing up and I was rather terrible at it (in fact I'm still not great). But I'm sure our drafts will be good for this class.
ReplyDeleteLove the "Draft with your heart... rewrite with your head" idea
Alex Rummelhart
Your blog heading "Write a first draft with your heart, rewrite with your head" really struck me. Its so true, I think when you get an inspiration to write you should run with it, and use your intuition, then clean it up later. I have a problem when I'm trying to start a draft, I overanalyze every sentence, until i feel so confused that i just want to give up. Let your heart lead you, and your head clean it up.
ReplyDeleteHi Kim,
ReplyDeleteLike everybody else, I really like the title of this blog. The same is true for me. My draft now is still a mess of words and run-on thoughts, but like you said, it somehow seems healthy. My topic is also quite close to me and I sometimes have difficulty shaping where I want it to go. I hope to keep working on it until, as you said, the words are drenched with meaning. I'm looking forward to reading your piece! :)
-Mackenzie
It is so nice to know that it is okay if your writing isn't technically correct as long as your ideas and thoughts are flowing through it. I love draft writing now, it feels so much easier than the forced outlines and drafts we used to create in high school!
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