2nd drafts are important. NOT as important as getting a 1st draft down, but important nonetheless. For what's implied when a writer is writing or has written a 2nd draft is that they're taking a complete story they wrote and trying to make it better. That the biggest purpose of a 2nd draft, making improvements on a 1st draft.
I completed a 2nd draft of "The Commune III" on May 14th. Been working on the 3rd draft since then. Almost done with that too now. After that's done I think I'll start showing it to people.
Gators and gunfire
What could be better right?
That's a comical hook/tagline I just thought up today. It's not all there yet, but it's getting closer each day I chip away at it... Back to drafts.
A 2nd draft should be a big relief for any writer. Why? Because it means you've already done the hardest part of writing -- writing the story in its entirety from beginning to end. And that's what's implied when a writer says, "I've got my first draft done." That means the author has a take on scenes, and goes through them to resolution. Doesn't have to be great outta the gates. That's what draftS are for.
What you're looking to do in a 2nd draft:
- Identify the spots that pop and make the story special. As a writer you've gotta believe in that, and be able to find it. Because if you can't you're in real trouble. Because you can't expect someone to respond positively to something you've written if you don't see anything special about it yourself.
- Use your writer's spidey sense to tell you what areas need to be improved. About 90% of my edits are instinctual. I just feel something's not right, maximized or belongs there. I don't do dialog passes. I do scene heading passes where I clean up shot headings and try to standardize them for a cleaner read.
- Smooth out the rough areas of your script. As you get deeper into the draft process you should be doing less of this UNLESS you get feedback from a reader that you agree with that spots something that doesn't that you missed. ALWAYS be open to someone else's opinion, but also realize that you're the author and should be the one who knows what's best for your baby. I do a lot of smoothing out the rough edges in a 2nd draft. And a lot of ties in with #2, using your spidey sense.
- Apply some rules of structure to your story. Does it have a beginning, middle and end that has page count their you're good with? Do you know where your ACT I Breakpoint is? To me that a big milestone. Why? Because prior to that you're setting the world of your story. The ACT I Breakpoint is where your protagonist is self-aware of the conflict he or she must face, and the rest of the story is seeing how that plays out. I am not a slave to structure. I see structure as the bare bones. But its you put on those bones that matters.
- Rewrite whatever you feel needs to be written, which will probably be most of your story. Your 2nd draft should be much cleaner than your 1st draft.. Remember, that's one of the biggest reasons you do that.
Something else you MAY want to do in a 2nd draft or later drafts, but earlier the better, is do different takes of scenes that you don't think aren't working, or add new scenes. You don't always get it right in your 1st draft -- even if you outline. I write new stuff in drafts ALL. THE. TIME. You should too. That's one of the other things that good about drafting --
PLAYING
That's right playing. Sometimes you need to try new scenes, new characters. Always be open to that -- especially when you're spidey sense hints that's what you need to do. The beauty of drafts is it helps you NOT TO LOSE any writing. You can always go back to an idea once it exists on the page. I don't do this very often, but I find it a comfort to know that I have that in back pocket if I wanna play that card.
In the end it's all about you, and what you can deliver on the page. The good news is, you don't have to be brilliant! There are good days behind the keyboard and bad ones. What you need to develop is a regular writing pattern that works for you. I advice 1-2 hours a day.
So how do you know when your 2nd draft is done?
I like to go through and edit EVERYTHING in the 1st draft beginning to end. Like I said, I don't do dialog passes. Never have. Probably never will. But what I do, is constantly strive for a better piece of artwork. Too me writing a script is like building a building. At first the construction scene is quite hectic. But the closer the building gets to completion, the better it looks. Ever been on a construction site before? Very hazardous. Nails on the ground. Most of the workers are surly and assholes. And with many moving parts danger is all over the place. Hence, hard hats!
The difference between a 2nd draft and 3rd draft is really up to the writer. Because technically it's all a first draft when people see it for the first time. What you need to watch out of is that you don't give your work away too early when there's things you as the author should have cleaned up. Never expect anyone else to do your work for you.
I call a 2nd draft complete when I've gone over my 1st draft beginning to end and cleaned it up. What I look for in completed 2nd draft is confidence in my scenes. Ya gotta get that right. You can't constantly be rewriting scenes. At some point you've convince yourself this is scene you need, in the right length. Spidey sense, writer's style.
Probably means something's not quite right in your story, Spiderman!
Always be open to the muse and when inspiration strikes. Move with it and don't be afraid. Because if you draft, there's your safety net; your earlier draft. So much of writing is believing you can pull it off. Works-in-progress are never pretty. Get help if you get stuck. Don't beat yourself up if you can't figure something out. I waited YEARS to write "The Commune" because all I knew initially was I wanted to have a shoot-out, troops vs. flying saucers in a ghost town. Took me YEARS to figure everything out and have the confidence to feel I could pull the story off. Same thing with "When the Motorcycle Calls". Biggest fear for me there was the DETAILS of the bank robbery, because my mind just doesn't work that way; I'm not a robber.
You should feel a great sense of relief when you write your 2nd draft. The hard parts done: you have a beginning, a middle and an end in place. All you're doing now is improvements. And like I said, when inspiration strikes go for it! That's the fun part of writing. Making discoveries. Being proud of something you created. Hoping that someday your hard work will be appreciated and entertain someone. All writers are entertainers at heart. But re-writing and editing is the grind side of the coin. But it's not all bad for it is in that where your voice comes out. You unique way of telling a story.
Style points matter. Your voice matters. Work harder than you think you should. I do. I work MY ASS OFF at my writing. If anyone tells you differently, you tell them from me that can kiss my ass! Because I know how hard I try. Now you do the same. Draft away until you've created something special that you're proud of. As a writer that should ALWAYS be your endgame: finishing a writing project that you are proud of.
When you're done drafting your story needs to be on par with this:
A 2nd draft is just part of the process of getting there.
