The Crummy First Draft Analysis

Writing requires a delicate balance between pleasing an audience, yet finding and sticking true to personal perspectives. More often than not, people find themselves ignoring their own thoughts and desires and just following along with the crowd, not standing up and arguing for anything, leaving behind a wishy-washy essay because they are too scared to stray from the obligations to others before the obligation to themselves. Anne Lamott’s “The Crummy First Draft” and Koji Frahm’s “How To Write an A Paper” both evaluate and stress the importance to find your own voice in writing and to be more critical towards readers. The reader’s perspective needs to play a role in writing, but it should not overrule the writer themselves. Writing needs to

Both Frahm and Lamott stress the importance to not worry about anyone but yourself when you are writing. The writer is always justified in following their own writing path because it is their work of art. The reader, of course, needs to be considered while writing through proper organization of ideas and flow in the writing piece, but the thoughts and ideas of the writer should be taken in consideration first. Lamott explains that it you need to silence the inner critic, “put the lid on, and watch all these mouse people clawing at the glass, jabbering away, trying to make you feel crummy” (Lamott 264). Simply ignore everyone else’s opinions, stick true to yourself, and focus on you and your draft to get the best possible outcome. Frahm holds a similar point of view encouraging clear, straightforward writing not one with a “Confusing introduction. Lack of content. Bad transitions. (and) Excessive grammatical errors.” (Frahm 271). The essay should not overly serious and takes risks to constantly push the boundaries to expose the author’s voice. While the other’s perspectives play a small role in the creation of an essay, the writer is always justified to take their own path in their writing and disregard any other