Let s admit it: Writing can be daunting. It doesn t matter if you re a published author or a

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1 Arielle Calderon ENC 1101 Unit 4: Synthesis Paper The Steps of Writing Let s admit it: Writing can be daunting. It doesn t matter if you re a published author or a college student in your first writing class, getting your thoughts together and translating them into a structured essay can feel like pulling teeth. Most of us don t wake up, skip to our laptops, crack our knuckles, and tackle the days writing with a smile and a song. That s just the fantasy of the uninitiated (Lamott 1). Instead, most of us are more likely to wake up, trudge to our laptops, put our hands on our face, and tackle the days writing with a frown and a sigh. This is especially true of my generation. With writing appearing to be more of a struggle, most schools have shifted the focus of writing lessons from timed writing to writing as a process - now focusing more on multiple drafts, peer review and revision rather than the task of composition in one fell swoop. This shift in focus has me questioning which way of composing or writing a paper should be taught to students in the most detail. Should it be the perfect first draft that is required in timed writing? The shitty first draft and the steps that ensue? Multiple drafts and peer revision? Writer Anne Lamott and university student Thomas Osborne each have a writing as a process, writing process that works best for them. While different on the surface with Lamott clinging to her shitty first drafts and Osborne s writing multiple drafts and counting on inspiration from peer review, both of their writing processes share a love of constant revision.

2 While the authors perspectives on why writing as a process is a great way to write have valid points, it is important to determine when the steps of writing they take are appropriate and when the can have a negative effect on students ability to write efficiently, think clearly as writers, and write independently. It can be extremely hard for students and writers to get a paper started due to unclear thinking. This difficulty and how to move past it is what Anne Lamott discusses in her novel Bird By Bird. In an excerpt from this novel called Shitty First Drafts, Anne Lamott argues that letting loose and writing shitty first drafts is an integral part of any writing process. Lamott believes that these first drafts should be incoherent, hideous and markedly shitty. That they should serve as a medium of child s play where the writer is able to completely spill their guts about the topic, without any fear of judgment or the need to be perfect holding them back. Anne Lamott claims that most, if not all, successful writers incorporate awful first drafts into their writing process, dispelling the common misconception that successful writers just pump out masterpieces on the spot. Lamott goes as far as saying that these shitty first drafts are the only way she can get anything written at all (Lamott 1). Anne Lamott is convinced these drafts are the key to having a terrific third draft (Lamott 1). For Thomas Osborne, there isn t one thing in particular he can use as a key to write a terrific final paper. Late Nights, Last Rites, and the Rain-Slick Road to Self-Destruction goes over Osborne s writing process by giving the reader a window into the experiences and thoughts that helped shape his piece of writing. Not perfect by any means, Thomas Osborne s writing process reads to be an up and down roller coaster fueled mostly by his self-doubt. Though showing all the signs of being an effective writer and even calling the ability to write liberating, Osborne struggles with trying to conform his writing style after he compares it to his best friend s essay

3 that is the epitome of what other essays should look like (1). However, once he realizes that his unique writing style is his biggest strength, he stays true to his writing as a process, writing process and is able to rewrite and revise his paper into something he s proud of. Anne Lamott and Thomas Osborne both stand firm in their respective writing as a process, writing processes. From the very start of their papers, they each make it clear that first drafts should be nothing of quality. Lamott does this by stating that every good writer writes shitty first drafts. Saying that this is how they end up with good second drafts and terrific third drafts (Lamott 1). Osborne shows this by describing himself smiling after erasing several dozen hours of hard work from existence (Osborne 1). While their angles of vision are very similar in that they are trying to show that it s not how a paper is started that s important but the process that comes after, they each go into different first steps that impact them the most in their writing process. As a published author, Lamott believes that it s the pre-writing, or writing shitty first drafts, that plays the biggest role in making sure that her final piece of work is what it is ( terrific ). Lamott sees the value in starting somewhere, even if it s a struggle to get her thoughts straight or if she has no idea what to write about. To her, writing these proclaimed shitty first drafts is the key to unleashing all her your inner most thoughts and feelings on the topic. She claims that there s always a sentence that is so beautiful or wild that you now know what you're supposed to be writing about, more or less, or in what direction you might go (Lamott 1) and all that would be left is revising. According to Lamott, the only way to get to this is by writing these drafts. It s the most important part of her writing process. Osborne on the other hand, as a university student, believes the most in the power of peer review. He sees the value in having a friend read over your paper and reading your friend/peers paper and then comparing it to your

4 own. Osborne believes that seeing someone else s paper and hearing their critique of your paper, allows you to honestly see the faults in your own writing. This in turn can lead to gaining a more clear direction of where your paper should go when you get to the revision stage. While it might be a painful pill to swallow at first, Osborne believes that it always leaves him with an invisible ally (Osborne 4). While how Lamott and Osborne get inspired and how they start writing quality work differs, they both come to the same conclusion that it s the revision that comes after that has the most impact on the fruition of the paper. Having analyzed the arguments that Lamott and Osborne make against writing something of quality for the first draft, it is equally important to address the benefits that can come from putting your best foot forwards (in terms of writing a first draft). Lamott is constantly pointing out that writing elegant first drafts is not very common, but just because this may be true does not mean that avoiding writing something of quality as a first draft should be avoided like the plague. Writing, especially when it s impromptu, is often an insight into the mind of a writer. Students should be taught from the beginning how to manage these overflow of thoughts that may come with writing and how to productively express them. If students are taught how to better manage and use these thoughts that come pouring out efficiently, rather than to just tell the student that it s okay to write anything as a first draft, even if it includes Mr. Poopy Pants (Lamott 1), they are more likely to turn in quality well-structured writing. There is no risk of anything incoherent and hideous leaking into the final work, past the revision stages, since that thought process isn t taught or nurtured at all. Anne Lamott and Thomas Osborne s papers have made me realize how important a good writing process is to a student s ability to write quality work. The concept of writing shitty first drafts and starting with terrible first efforts (Lamott 1) as Lamott describes, has changed the

5 way students approach writing (for the bad). Instead of trying from the beginning like they were taught in Elementary school (timed writing), students are more likely to spend their time writing to just get it done, and count on peer revision and their teachers to steer them in the right direction to compose a final draft. In a world where many students have serious problems with (a lack of) thinking for themselves and procrastination, this writing as a process writing process can act as an enabler. It not gives students an excuse to make writing a paper a longer and more complicated process than it needs to be, it takes away from a student s ability to write efficiently and with purpose since the student knows they have a disposal of crutches at their disposal. While Thomas Osborne used both peer review and his revision period to better his essay, I believe he is an exception. Not many university students share his passion for writing. Despite the authors convincing arguments about heavy revision playing a huge role in having terrific third drafts (Lamott 1) or an invisible ally (Osborne 4), I believe it s still important to teach students how to write in a way where heavy revision isn t needed. In timed writing, students are told from the beginning that they only have a certain amount of time to write down everything they want to get across. Since most want to spend as much time as they can on the sustenance of the paper, like magic, students put on their Sunday s best and write clearly. They understand that there won t be much time to revise at the end so they put maximum effort into their work. On the other hand, when students are told they will have time to revise and go over, re-write, re-work their work, students are more likely to put little to no effort into their writing since they have a safety net ready to catch them. While I don t believe I have put little to no effort in my writing while I ve been in those situations, I have caught myself putting less effort than I usually would in other circumstances.

6 As students, writing is something we re going to have to partake in for the foreseeable future so finding a writing process we re comfortable with should be a priority. Lamott and Osborne believe that starting a paper just to start and writing as a process in an important part of any writing process. What they do not consider, however, is that it can also have a negative impact on a student s ability to write efficiently, think clearly as a writer, and write independently, especially if a student is never taught how to start with their best foot forwards. If students are first taught how to write in a timed setting where they can learn how to effectively get their thoughts together, it can be advantageous when the student combines steps like peer review and light revision to their writing process. While I believe it s important for teachers to spend time with students focusing on how to write a timed paper, I understand that there are other steps of writing that should be taught and are important to a final piece of writing.

7 Work Cited Lamott, Anne. Shitty First Drafts. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. New York: Pantheon, Web Osborne, Thomas. Late Nights, Last Rites, and the Rain-Slick Road to Self-Destruction. Stylus: A Journal of First Year Writing 2.2 (2010). University of Central Florida Department of Writing and Rhetoric. Web.

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