When First Is Not Best – Revising Your Book’s First Draft

When First Is Not Best – Revising Your Book’s First Draft

Writing a book from beginning to end can seem daunting, especially when you realize there is writing, and editing, more writing, more editing, reviews, and revisions, until finally, months later, it’s done.

Months, not years. It can turn into years if you allow it to, but we believe you can write that book that will set you apart from your competitors, in months, not years.

I decided to write about first drafts as I was revising and editing one of our eBooks, 13 Excuses NOT To Write Your Book This Year. We’re revising many of our eBooks to reflect our new Master Book Builders brand and in doing so, I am finding a few typos and even some references that -while they were current and useful when I wrote the book – they are not so current and useful now.

What is a First Draft Anyway?

Interesting side note – I went to ChatGPT to develop an outline for this post, before committing to writing it. I found it helpful, but it didn’t return anything I didn’t already know or wasn’t already going to write about. So, while I encourage you to tap into AI for things like ideas and outlines, be aware that for the most part, right now, I don’t think ChatGPT is any smarter than I am. It’s just faster.

So, the first thing to talk about here is what a first draft of a book is.

Many writers edit as they write, so they don’t consider the completed work to be a first draft. Truth is, after all that focus and writing, many writers feel accomplished and relieved. They are finally done. The book is written.

Not true. It’s not done yet.

Don’t make this mistake. Even if you edit as you write – which is a bad habit I encourage you to break, and I’ll tell you why later on in this post – your final result is not a finished manuscript.

It’s still a first draft.

No, it’s not “good enough.” Even though Tom and I talk about ‘shipping’ – being done and not constantly revising – the truth is, when you first finish that manuscript, you must be ready for editing and revision. From a professional.

Some writers I’ve talked to say, “I like that paragraph, it should stay,” when I’ve advised removing some of their hard work. It’s sad and sometimes scary. “That’s my best work,” they might say. When I know better.

When I know their best work is in front of them.

The problem is the writer is often too close to the work to see the flaws. There is an emotional attachment, which is good, yes, but if you allow it to prevent you from polishing your work, you do yourself and your readers a disservice.

This completed manuscript, your very first writing of it, is a first draft and as such, requires more work. Don’t feel upset or intimidated when your editor asks you to revise and remove and rethink. Instead, think of it as a stepping stone to the magnificent work with which you will end up.

Write for Clarity and Be Concise

The ability to write just the right amount of content is not natural to any human being. We love to talk. We love to share stories. We love to hear ourselves talk and share stories. And when we write, we do the same thing.

I like to tell my writers to write to their heart’s content. Write away! Write 300 pages if you must. I want them to tell all the stories they have to tell. I want them to reveal all the secrets they have to reveal. I do not want them to pause as they write to ask, “Maybe I shouldn’t tell this story.”

Or, “Maybe Sally or Joe or Frank or Sue will be upset if I write about them.”

Just write. We’ll mask any mentions of people who need to be more fictional. And BTW, don’t edit as you write. It slows you down. It causes those pauses that just make trouble for you and for me. Even Psychology Today agrees. Read the article about this, here.

Together we will pull out anything that shouldn’t be there. Together we will remove anything that has no purpose in being there. Together we will add what needs adding – new citations, stories, facts, and figures. And, if in the telling you are honest with yourself, you needn’t worry about Sally or Joe or Frank or Sue, because in the telling the story is about you, not them. They are secondary characters and may (probably will) remember the event differently. If they wish to dispute it, they are welcome to write their own book.

I am not giving you permission to ramble. Do not mistake my intention. I require writing that is as good as you are capable of – and do not compare yourself to your favorite author, he or she is not you, and all of them had their own demons to slay when they were first starting out, also. In fact, people love to quote Hemingway or Stephen King, but both of these famous writers had first drafts of novels that they hated. In fact, King says,

“…first drafts are usually long and self-indulgent.”

He tells us in his book On Writing that he often cuts out great sections of his work, during the actual editing process.

And Margaret Atwood shares this advice, which rings true for me,

“You have to be prepared to put in the time and the effort, and not be discouraged by the first version.”

These are novelists. Not to be confused with many of you, who are nonfiction business book writers. The advice still stands. Your first draft will be too long and self-indulgent. And while I like it that way – it gives us a jumping-off place. – it is not ready for readers.

First Impressions Matter

You only have one chance to make a first impression. A similar quote has been attributed to Will Rogers and Oscar Wilde, so I don’t take credit for it.

But I do want to stress that if you allow a first draft to become a published book, you will have lost your chance to impress your readers. They will now think of you as the kind of person who allowed ego to stand in the way of clarity and conciseness.

In the world of traditional publishing, sending out a first draft of a book, without the polish and work of developmental editing, line editing, revising, and refining, or with a cover your cousin designed, will do you more harm than good. Because the person reading it is expecting the finest from you.

An agent receiving that manuscript will likely not even reply to you if he sees a first draft. And agents know when they’re looking at something that was rushed. They know the difference between a polished manuscript and a rough draft. The polished manuscript will get a second glance. The rough draft, even as you believe it is done, will get tossed.

In self-publishing, often referred to as Indie Publishing today, the sad truth is those who believe their first draft is their best work, after putting in all that time and doing their own editing, make all of us look bad. This is the bad rap that self-publishing gets. When an eager, and often well-meaning writer creates a final book out of his or her first draft, or even their second draft, and it looks substandard the rest of the self-published community suffers. Because we are judged by that one author’s mistakes.

Press-Enterprise captures it well in this quote from “Self-Publishing Grows and Grows Despite the Old Stigma”:

The belief that all self-published books are poorly written, unedited and poorly designed is pervasive. And, yes, many of them are. Way too many. But some self-published books are great — as fine as those distributed by the big traditional New York publishers and better than some.

I do not fault anyone for being proud of what they accomplished. Writing a book is a lot of work and effort. I am writing this today to impress upon you the importance of creating a book that will stand up next to anything in the traditionally published world. Because your book is just as good as their books – if you’ve taken your first draft to the next step.

Second Draft Third Draft How Many Does It Take?

Working from the amazing job you’ve done with your first draft, your second draft can be the one that is primed for publication.

Or, you may need to do a third.

There are those who do three, four, or more drafts before they feel confident their book is ready for publication.

In our world, we plan on having the second (occasionally the third) draft be the final, polished book.

This means you will work with:

• Professional Developmental Editors who understand what a Throughline is
• Professionals who proof and edit line-by-line
• Professionals who understand the audience – who are the readers and where do they hang out?
• Professionals who work with you to connect you with Beta Readers to get valuable feedback and testimonials
• Professionals who are experienced in book design – both cover (front, back, and spine) and interior design
• Professionals who know how to prepare a book launch party
• Professionals who will work with you to hold the launch party
• Professionals who will support you in your marketing efforts – with advice and hands-on promotion where they can

I was going to single out a few of the bulleted points to give emphasis to, but the more I look at them, they are all important.

In my role as a developmental editor, I do much of the line-by-line and proofing, also. But, when Tom receives the manuscript, he also proofs it and reads it for clarity and purpose. And this helps him with the design work. He does not design covers or interiors without reading the story.

Your Print Proof – How Important Is It?

As we approach publication, we always get a print proof of the book. One for us and one for the author. This allows us time to see the real thing – the published book, in its entirety. We all go through it one more time, making notes or correcting errors in the content before we allow it to be launched.

With the author, and whomever else she chooses, we give that print proof serious attention, to catch any formatting errors, typos (yes, even at this stage we may have missed a typo or comma placement), and any design problems. Uploading the document to KDP may, not will, but may cause formatting errors or design issues. Having a print proof to catch that before launching the actual book, is a vital part of what any author should expect from the publishing company they are working with – and get it in writing.

Your book is more than a bunch of type-written (digitally or otherwise) printed pages with a pretty cover.

It’s you. It’s your gift to the world. It’s a tool in your marketing toolbox.

Make it the best it can be. Don’t rely on first drafts. Show the world you mean business. Put together a team of professionals and give the book a fighting chance to make a big difference in someone else’s life. Not just your life. The lives of all your readers.

First drafts just won’t do when your goal is to look and sound professional. First drafts cannot compete with all the other books out there.

Let me end by saying Master Book Builders has a new service. We will review your first draft manuscript and give you a report on its viability in the marketplace you identify. If you have a first draft, or even just a few chapters, and would like professional eyes to assess it, send me an email and we can discuss.