confessions of a first-drafter

in college, i tutored writing, psychology, and philosophy (i wasn't very good in that subject). when i do something, i read everything i can get my hands on. there were various handouts on learning styles and techniques, test taking tips, etc., which i accumulated and read. one of the handouts was about mnemonics, using letters to form a word or sentence to remind you of a series of things. another was about the subconscious and the studies by a certain doctor who detailed how the brain works in test taking. essentially, he said, trust yourself. if you have attended to your studies, then trust yourself for the answer.

i tend to over think tests. when i was taking astronomy, i got to the "helio-centric" definition question. i immediately picked, "sun-centered." but then THOUGHT, that was too easy, it must be wrong. well, as you know, it was right. my brain and instinct had picked the right answer, but my doubts about myself and abilities caused me to dawdle over the question i had instinctively answered right and (since i hadn't read the good doctors notes) i got the question wrong as i picked a more "difficult" thus correct answer. wrong! way wrong.

once i had the "trust thyself" notion down, i took a mythology class. we viewed joseph campbell's, the power of myth series with bill moyer on pbs. it was powerful to me. it quickened my mind, and intrigued me because he was comparing all the myths of all different people groups and coupled them with imagery, music, and very interesting dialog.

some fear campbell, he is not christian, therefore he is not good. i don't think that way. i think, anything that is truth is from God. whether a donkey speaks it (why are you hitting me?), or a man who happens to be unchristian.

campbell said, "the most creative state is your alpha state. those moments just before falling asleep and those moments just before waking up. pose a question to your mind before you drift off to sleep and you will wake up with the answer. your mind will figure it out for you." i scribbled it down in my notebook.

it was an intriguing thought. i began to play with creativity and the alpha state. i began to attend to my alpha state moments. i began to write papers only when i "heard" a line from them. this coupled my knowledge of the good doctor's theory with joseph campbell's statement. here is what i began doing:

when i had a paper to write, i would do my research, attend to all the details well before the paper was due, then pose the question to my mind (what am i going to say about native american mythology?). then push the topic from my conscious thought and literally forget about it. the first time i did this, it was quite unnerving. i was experimentally risking a grade on a paper, on some words and ideas from two strangers. what the heck, i'm a risk taker. so i went for it.

one morning as i was waking up, i heard, "the yellow corn maidens." i knew i had it. that was a line from my upcoming paper, i knew it was, because i typically don't think of the yellow corn maidens. and my research had included pueblo myths and legends of the yellow corn maidens.

i sat down to write. while i don't remember that first paper, i can tell you i wrote my college papers in ten to fifteen minutes each, first drafts. i don't do second drafts. i edit a bit, for example on this piece, i would read back through and find the good doctor's actual name (opted not to, i'll do it later) and plug it in, check the spelling of mnemonics. but i would not revise my work. i would hand it in.

as far as tests go. i ATTEND to my reading assignments, this is essential. if you don't attend, if your mind is wandering and you are tired, stop reading, stop studying, stop doing research. this is the most important thing you can do. because the whole theory i developed says, put everything into your brain (like loading a crock pot, if you forget the meat, your stew will be a vegetable soup). once you've read everything, pose a question to your mind (or you can pose the question along the way, what am i going to write about, what is my thesis going to be?) and your brain will figure it out.

back to tests, i had friends in college who would tell each other, she tests fast, don't let it unnerve you. after the astronomy shenanigan, i learned to trust my studying. i took all tests in college from that point on in 10-45 minutes. even the hard ones. i went through on a first past, bang, bang, bang, if a question couldn't be answered in a moment, i skipped it and went on. then i returned to the beginning of the test focusing on the skipped ones, and spent a minute or two on those. done.

i graduated summa cum laude in english literature, i have never gotten a C in college. i am still working toward my elusive bachelor's, but will continue to use my theory and get As and Bs.

i have more to say about this topic, but i'll leave you wondering how it applies to my writing now. think about what i've written, try it out. more later.