I dedicate this chapter to RElizabethM for reading multiple crappy first drafts.
I was going to make this chapter about tropes, then it was going to be about interacting with people on Wattpad. Those chapters are coming but I've been struggling as us writers do from time to time so this chapter will be sort of a motivational chapter.

First drafts. They suck.

The first draft is supposed to suck. Nobody does it right the first time. I'm pretty confident on this.

I believe every writer starts out thinking their writing is good (to an extent), otherwise you wouldn't be a writer now would you?

So, you think you're a good writer and you will begin writing your first draft of your first story. At some point it will happen. You'll realize it sucks.

You'll realize you want to write it in a different POV(like I did)

Or that you have a shitload of stuff going down for your characters in a three month period(again like I did)

I don't know when this usually happens for authors but I imagine it's probably around the end of the book. That's when it happened for me. When I finished the first draft of "Nothing To Lose" I was emotionally spent. I wanted to sleep for a year.

I can't tell you if that is normal or not as I didn't have that feeling on other works I have completed.

I knew it needed work (proper editing and more details etc) but it wasn't until I sat back and really thought about it and got feedback that I realized the issues it has. Even now I still haven't combed through all the chapters, so there's probably more stuff I haven't thought of that I have to fix.

You would think "writing the book" would be the hardest part. (God knows that is what I thought)

I think that the editing and revising is the hardest part (aside from getting it published, which is a whole nother chapter)

After I finished the first draft, I was a little disheartened I guess. I had spent 4 months writing it. It was only 39K words (half my goal) and had plot holes and issues galore. I felt like I just wrote this book, now I have to do it all over again.

Now as I'm doing editing and revisions where I have hit walls and these feelings of "I don't want to do this anymore"

Again I don't know if this is normal

At the same time I loved writing my new chapters for the book.

It's about powering through, which ever way you need to.

Put the book down....

Start a completely different book, get your mind off of it. Come back at it with fresh eyes

Ask for reviews and critiques....even fresher eyes  than yours.

Get second, third, and forth opinions. There might be an aspect of the book that you love and you get a review that completely hates it. (Book Clubs are a good way to do this)

That reviewer may be biased (they don't like the genre or maybe they can't relate to it, or it's cliche) so get more than one opinion. Try to look at the book objectively during the editing process.

In the end, it's your book and only you know what is best for it. Don't give up. You can do this. No one said it would be easy.

What have your guys' first draft experience been like? Do you think I left anything out?

Book Shoutout:

Affair with My Cousin by Oumayma9193

Ok so this is a shout out for open-minded readers. I know everyone isn't into this kind of thing. I just started it so I can't tell you much of content it seems quirky and awkwardly cute so far. You should check it out if you feel so inclined.

Want a shout out for your book? The first 3 people to comment a 3+line comment on any of my original stories and use #bookshoutout will get one.