Vomit Drafting is Fine, But...

I am all about vomit drafting. Because I have done some outlining (first time for everything!) of my work in progress, I have found that I am getting words into the document without much of the anxiety I’ve experienced in the past. Beginning, middle, and end? Who knew?

Getting the story down is the focus. I’m enjoying every step of the process. I have plotted a series of sensible beats, moments and events that I have to hit. Counterintuitively, by bothering with an outline, I have bought myself scads of freedom. I can meander all I want (or all my characters want, ugh*), as long as I find my way back to those beats. They are the things that must happen in order to prevent my universe from eating itself.

The goal of vomit drafting, just getting it all out and onto “the page” without fretting, is also tied to freedom. Just ripping the story out of yourself without editing helps you avoid the tyranny of perfectionism. Perfectionism is a Trojan horse concealing excuses, anxiety, and paralysis. Don’t overthink is the theory. Get shit done is the mantra.

It’s spectacular advice but can be taken too far. It can, taken to excess, represent another kind of tyranny—a Trojan horse inside a Trojan horse. Like a Russian doll, but Trojan. And a horse. Horses.

If I think of a tweak, an improvement, a mistake I can correct, why would I force myself to ignore it? That’s straight silliness. I’m not talking about major overhauls here. We’re not gutting the bathroom, we’re only changing the wallpaper. I do not advocate fussiness or preciousness, but I also don’t see the value of mindless adherence to the approach.

*See previous entry: A Character Rebels

PHOTO: Thank you to Hans Braxmeier from Pixabay.

PROGRESS REPORT: 32Kish words. The plot is really accelerating now and it’s been a ton of fun.