Trial and Error: Get It on the Page

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Dan Myler

Mr. Burrello

Expository Writing

26 March 2012

Trial and Error: Get It On The Page

Writing does not come naturally to me. The idea of sitting in a room full of strangers, and expelling my somewhat coherent thoughts onto a sheet of recycled wood pulp is one I find terrifying. The incessant inner monologue that plays when I'm attempting to express these thoughts is enough to drive the most composed person berserk. Anne Lamott knows how I feel.

In her essay, "Shitty First Drafts," Anne Lamott describes how the process of producing a rough draft is one of the most agonizing things a writer can do, and how it is necessary to produce better work over time. The essay is all about getting over the inner voices that tell us that our work is mediocre.

If you're like me, silencing those voices can be the most difficult part of the process. Lamott once went to a hypnotist with this problem, and the following is the solution she received: "Close your eyes and get quiet for a minute, until the chatter starts up. Then isolate one of the voices and imagine the person speaking as a mouse. Pick it up by the tail and drop it into a mason jar. Then isolate another voice, pick it up by the tail, drop it in the jar. And so on." (Lamott) She continues, "Then put the lid on, and watch all these mouse people clawing at the glass, jabbering away, trying to make you feel like shit because you won't do what they want. Then imagine that there is a volume-control button on the bottle. Turn it all the way up for a minute, and listen tot he stream of angry, neglected, guilt-mongering voices. Then turn it all the way down and watch the frantic mice lunge at the glass, trying to get to you. Leave it down, and get back to your shitty first draft." (Lamott) Silencing those voices is half the battle. Once

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they are gone, you can start sculpting your words and ideas into what will eventually become your finished product.

Writing isn't about getting it right the first time; it's about getting your ideas out of your head, and turning them into something tangible. Lamott explains this when she says, "The first draft is the child's draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one can see it and that you can shape it later. You just let this childlike part of you channel whatever voices and visions come through and onto the page." (Lamott)

She states that, "All good writers write shitty first