Only the final version matters

 

  I couldn't even begin to guess how many words I've written over the past 50 years - 40 of which have been writing in some form or other to earn a living. I've been a journalist, speech-writer, web-content provider, corporate writer, novelist and short-story writer.
 Some of what I've written has been very good but none of the exceptional stuff started out that way. Pretty well every first draft of anything I ever wrote was crap. Stilted, wordy, unorganised, mistake-filled drivel. I now accept that as part of the process but in the past it bothered me and had me often question my ability as I writer. But I've come to realise, only the last version, that which is flung to the public, matters.
 Writing is mining. The diamonds are in there but you have to extract and spread out a lot of useless dirt before you find them! The secret to becoming a successful (however you choose to define "successful") writer is simple: sit down and write! It does not matter if that writing is bad. Excavate the dirt, spread it out finely before you and then begin sifting for diamonds. Give yourself permission to write badly. Get it all down first then fix, reshape, reorganise, rewrite and polish.
 Almost all great writing starts with a bad first draft and that's okay - you have to start somewhere. Get it down, move the dirt, it's an inescapable part of the process.
 But don't run the pump dry. Ernest Hemingway said: “Never pump yourself dry. Leave a little for the next day. The main thing is to know when to stop. Don’t wait till you’ve written yourself out. When you’re still going good and you come to an interesting place and you know what’s going to happen next, that’s the time to stop. Then leave it alone and don’t think about it; let your subconscious mind do the work."