5 WAYS TO
DRAFT
Properly
3. Start writing without engaging your inner critic
Don’t worry if your first draft doesn’t make complete sense. Don’t
worry about the reader in the first draft. Don't worry if you're not
completely sure about what you want to say or what your
conclusions will be. Give yourself time to develop and improve your
thinking as you work through successive drafts. By not writing
perfectly in your first draft you are allowing yourself to easily chop
up, delete, or dramatically change what you have written.
4. Don’t stop to do more research
While writing, don’t stop if you are unsure about a particular fact or if
you realize you need to look something up. Instead, try writing reminder
notes to yourself directly in your draft in hard brackets and make time to
follow this up later. For example, [I remember that there was a recent
report that looked into topic X - look this up] or [ask Joel about those
review papers he mentioned during his talk]. Try to do your research
before and after each draft. When you allocate time for writing, just
write. When you have finished your first draft you can review what you
have written and identify topics that need further research.