Writing as a process is often fraught with uncertainty and struggle; even the best writers have to start from somewhere. It is often an arduous climb for a writer to create a great work of literature, or even a passable one. Every author, whether successful or not, must endure a roughly similar process of learning how to write, and how to write well. In Ann Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts,” Frederick Douglass’ “Learning to Read and Write,” and Kurt Vonnegut’s “How to Write with Style,” the various trials and tribulations of getting a piece of writing from the mind to the page are described thoroughly. In essence, the secret to developing a writer’s skills takes time, energy and a great deal of patience, great authors writing honestly and often to achieve the results they want.
The first, fundamental part of a writer’s struggle to hone their craft is to learn to write in the first place. Before a writer can learn to write, they have to learn to read; writers like Frederick Douglass would ‘con’ his white friends into gradually teaching him spelling, vocabulary and grammar. Douglass’ secret weapon was his dedication, his commitment to actually following through and performing the act of reading. By turning the act of reading into a social event by including his friends in the process, Douglass gave himself accountability and developed his sense of discipline. Lamott shares Douglass’ dedication to practice, as her notion of creating ‘shitty first drafts’ allows writers to begin the physical act of writing, which can eventually yield higher-quality material. This level of commitment is the hallmark of all great writers, as the very act of creating takes a great deal of courage and honesty.
Everyone has their reasons for wanting to write - whether they be fame, notoriety or as a creative outlet. For some, like Frederick Douglass, writing was their own personal ticket to freedom. Douglass himself “wished to learn how to write, as [he] might have occasion to write [his] own pass” to the North, away from his miserable life as a slave in the Civil War-era South (Douglass 4). In his work with carpenters at the shipyard, he slowly learned how to write by copying the labeling system they had for identifying ship timber. Through this indirect method, Douglass learned to write the same way he learned how to read – by recruiting friends and daring them to teach him how to write. Douglass was a self-learner, taking what he could from friends, teachers, Webster’s Spelling Book and more. This sense of individuality and self-sufficiency is shared by both Vonnegut and Lamott, who strive for honesty in the creation of their works. Vonnegut stresses the necessity of finding subjects the author cares about and writing from the heart, while Lamott’s secret to a first draft is to let loose with one’s creative energy, only reining it in after the raw data has been committed to paper.
One of the most important attributes to overcoming their frustrations with writing is to understand that perfection comes from practice and repetition. After a writer learns how to physically write, they must go about the process of actually learning what to write, or how to do so creatively. Kurt Vonnegut was highly dedicated to the idea of being honest and personal with your writing, finding something you cared about. Most importantly, it is vital to know when to kill your darlings by cutting out the things you like, but do not really work in the work itself. Rather than assume that good writers have an inherent talent that allows them to write perfectly on the first go, Lamott asserts that even good writers struggle to get the words down on paper, and never feel good about their first drafts. “Writing is not rapturous,” she notes, stating that the only thing that most writers can do to actually accomplish something is to write “really, really shitty first drafts” (Lamott 1). This is a good thing, as first drafts are simply the terrible mess of incomplete thoughts, rambling sentences and basic, undeveloped ideas down on paper. Douglass was not even that concerned about perfecting the quality of his writing - just the struggles that came in learning writing altogether. These aspects make him particularly tenacious and straightforward in his pursuit of craft; it is likely that he would commit to Lamott’s ideas regarding first drafts.
The tenet of the ‘shitty first draft’ is part and parcel of the personal frustrations of the writer, and a good way to confront them. Any anticipation or trepidation that occurs as a result of writing can evaporate, as long as you eliminate your expectations for the first draft’s quality. In many ways, there is a freedom in knowing that your first draft will not be any good - this frees a writer up to write whatever ideas they generate without the expectation of oversight or criticism. It is possible to write a better draft later with the few things that work in this version; until that point, the first draft allows the process of writing to begin. Even then, the end product, regardless of quality, remains at the mercy of the audience’s reception. Readers will always filter what an author writes through their own perspectives, which may run counter to what is intended in said work. The personal struggle of the writer comes from the fact that, despite a tremendous amount of work or creativity, the audience may still not receive it well.
Learning is a constant process, as experience and expertise from others will provide insight into how writers can improve. Just as Douglass did, writers can improve their craft with time, perseverance and effort. The answer, then, is to try to write honestly; this is where Vonnegut’s advice to “say what you mean to say” comes in, as well as Lamott’s urging to free yourself of creative tension through a ‘shitty first draft’ (Vonnegut 67). Together, Lamott and Vonnegut stress the importance of creating a core, basic set of ideas, then cutting them down into a simple, succinct work of literature. By combining the discipline of writing (regardless of mood or inspiration) with the ability to write honestly, it is possible for a writer to gain experience and improve upon their skills.
The personal struggle of the writer to learn how to write is a fundamental and continuing journey for every author, regardless of background. Frederick Douglass plied his trade and learned to write through dedication and hard work. Kurt Vonnegut’s main desire was to ensure that an author writes about something they care about, being true to a writer’s perspective and learn to develop their signature style. While this can be frustrating at times, and even maddening it is important for writers to keep working and developing their own style. Persevering in the face of adversity is the mark of any great writer, and successful writers of the past and present have reached this status through their sense of discipline and willingness to make mistakes. The advice of these three authors, speaking from their own respective journeys, can help to illustrate the ways in which writers work through their neuroses to become experienced and develop their talents.
Works Cited
Douglass, Frederick. “Learning to Read and Write.”
Lamott, Anne. “Shitty First Drafts.” Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers. Ed.
Paul Schholtz, Alfred Rosa and Virginia Clark. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005: 93-96.
Vonnegut, Kurt. “How to Write with Style.” IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
24(2). 1980.
