Let’s see a show of hands. Who here enjoys writing the first draft?
I’m more of a revision-loving girl, but I do love the surprises that happen while I write the first draft, even though I spend time outlining my novels first.
One problem I have while working on my first draft is that I’m easily distracted. The other problem is I love to do research. This means when I stop to do “quick” research (e.g. look for a tattoo that would be symbolic to the story and scene), I end up wasting more time than I should and my writing flow is lost.
So, now I don’t do that anymore. When I need to stop to research something, I make note of it in the manuscript and keep typing. The only exception is if it’s something vital to the plot, and it could result in extensive revisions if I don’t do the research now. Once I’m finished with the draft, I’ll go through it and do the necessary research and edits.
Because I use Scrivener, it’s easy for me to make the notes in my manuscript. They show up in a separate window next to my manuscript. That means I just have to click on a chapter to see what research I need to do. It’s really easy, and it’s one of my favorite features in Scrivener.
When you write your first draft, do you power through it and research details later once you’re finished, or do you research them as you write?
Note: Scrivener is 20% off until June 14th. So, if you’ve been thinking about getting the program, this is a great time to do so.