Blog Post #1 Shitty First Drafts by Anne Lamott

I found “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott from Bird by Bird to very insightful not only about the writing process but also for the creation process of the arts in general. As a painter and someone who actually enjoys writing essays, I was able to relate to this excerpt through that capacity. Just like in painting, we experience the very similar cycle of slight terror before beginning a new piece. “Another blank canvas to fill…where do I start” we ask ourselves. In paragraph 5, Lamott worries “I am not going to be able to get the magic to work this time.” This is a worry I think any form of an artist can relate to. When we see that blank canvas or blank page or even a wonderfully completed project, many of us find ourselves wondering how we managed to do it before or will we be able to go into “that zone” and create as amazingly and magically as we did before. Just like with painting, all writing need time, thought, and a bit of madness to “just go for it” and express. That first draft is all about planning and outlining your thoughts before making more comprehensive and eloquent explanations. In fact, I even did the same thing with this blog post as I jotted ideas down that were sparked by different areas of the text that later became the back bone pieces to this blog response. Forms of art expression are an art form themselves. I think that this excerpt will be valuable advice to keep in mind for the writing in this class as well as for artistic expressions in the future.