Is Your First Draft Terrible Enough?

That’s not a typo; I’m questioning whether the first draft of your story is horrible, trashy, and amateurish enough to qualify as a first draft. I’m not talking about cacography here, I’m talking about tripe, drivel, bunkum.

Yes, I know all writers are different and for some, their first draft is their publishable, final draft. Isaac Asimov said he didn’t re-write his stories. But I’m guessing that doesn’t work for most writers, especially beginning writers.

For most of you, here’s my advice: s...