When is a First Draft “Finished”?

For many writers, the eager anticipation of typing the words “The End” on the final page of a first draft is a feeling rivaled by few others. That is, perhaps, except for the surreal sensation that follows having finally typed those very words. After working for so long toward one goal—finishing a first draft—it can be easy to wonder if it’s truly finished. At the same time, as you type ever closer to that goal, you may oftentimes find yourself wondering if you’ll ever reach it. Or maybe you find yourself somewhere in between. Alas, no matter where you may land on that spectrum, there is one common question: when is a first draft finished? In order to fully recognize this finish line, it’s important to acknowledge where the process begins and what it entails. 

Drafting is the very first stage of the writing journey. Whether you identify as a plotter or a pantser, drafting is when the idea in your mind transfers into the first iteration of your manuscript, also known as your rough draft. During this stage, your focus should be on getting the story from your imagination (or your outline) into a form that reads as a reflection of what you’ve conceptualized. The objective is to expand on your initial idea, concept, or message, and provide more detail than what’s in your imagination or on your outline, but not every single detail—just the bigger picture. 

A first draft is an opportunity to begin developing your story. This stage is intended to produce a version of your story that contains your main points and key events without including every detail, which can be added—as needed—later. By focusing on the bigger picture of your story, you’re able to create room for the freedom to change your mind about an exact sequence of events.  

Many writers tend to struggle throughout their experience writing the first draft of their manuscript because of writer’s block. Although writer’s block can have a variety of causes, it can sometimes be avoided (or, at least, lessened) by continuing to write, even if the sentences or thoughts are incomplete, the information not completely accurate (such as in the case of scientific or historical components, for example), or if there are gaps in your plot as your characters progress through their journey. By continuing to write—rather than pausing to assess or “fix” predicaments such as these aforementioned—you will ultimately progress in generating content. You can always re-evaluate what you’ve included, how the information is presented, and further research notions you’ve been inspired to include later. 

Of course, it can be challenging to avoid engaging with your inner critic during the drafting stage, or fretting over what a reader might think of your story. But the truth of the matter is that a first draft is for you, the writer; it’s the springboard that will launch the rest of your story—eventually, your final draft—into existence. The process of generating a first draft isn’t the time to worry about the exact flow of your story (that’s for the developmental editing stage, later); likewise, don’t fret about being repetitive in your descriptions or if your writing is enticing quite yet, which is something you can self-edit in a second (or even third or fourth) draft. 

No matter how spontaneous, jumbled, or messy the journey may be, you’ll know your first draft is complete when you reach the end of your story. Once the basic plot points have been addressed in some semblance of order (check out this explanation of Freytag’s Pyramid here)—and in greater detail than your original idea, but understandably far less than your final version may look—you can rest assured that your first draft is finished. 

If that seems a bit simpler of an answer than you expected, that’s okay. Sometimes in our society, we can misconstrue the idea of finishing something with the idea of perfection. As writers, it’s all too common for us to place an abundance of pressure on ourselves to “get it right” on the first try, but writing—no matter your genre—is an art form. In the words of renowned artist Bob Ross, writing, like painting, is full of “happy little accidents.” When we remove the pressure to perfect and instead focus on the joy of creating, we open the door to new opportunities…and it all begins with our first draft.