Scatterbrain Writing 

​A visual guide to finishing the first draft of your story

For None-Linear Writers & Linear Writers having trouble being Linear.

It always starts the same:
AN IDEA! A THING! $@*%! A STORY!
Everyone does this daily, but some of us write it down.

Part 1: Inspiration

Who what when where why how.
Question everything.
Find Things.

Part 2: Write the Inspiration

Write concepts or ideas that you know will happen,
​especially the idea that first got you hooked.
Everything about them may change, but the essence of what they are is what you are trying to capture here.
Don't obsess over detail, that's waisted energy at this point.

Part 3: Construct an Outline

Outlines are better when organized by the story's  
INTRO, CONFLICT, & RESOLUTION
Get messy. Bubble graphs, sticky notes, research, and everything else.   
IT DOES NOT HAVE TO BE COMPLETE YET

Part 4: Fill in the Holes

This takes time. Make a consistent writing schedule.
Read through your draft,
IGNORE HOW BAD IT MAY SOUND.
Write in stuff you are inspired to write when you are inspired to write it. 
Aim for a certain word count a day, write mind babble if you have to.
Be consistent.

Part 5: Finish Filling in the Holes

This is where intense creative problem solving happens.
This is where you will hit the writer's runner's wall.
Power through it! You are very close!

Part 6: YOU HAVE FINISHED THE FIRST DRAFT

HUZZAH!
Congratulations! Something exists now that did not exist before. Most people give up before they get here. If you finished your first draft, you are above average. Celebrate!

Take note of the sketch above. Notice how rough, incomplete, and inaccurate it looks?
That's what your draft should look like.
A first draft is the messy, gritty, foundation.
The grittier it is, the more footholds you will have to work with later on.
​Be proud of your work; you have found the diamond ore.

Now put it away and do something completely different.
The more time you let pass between reading the first draft, and carrying on to the second, the better. I'd recommend several weeks at least. 
Writing something new!
Never stop  asking questions. 

The real work is about to begin.