Give yourself permission to spew run-on sentences, spit out awkward phrases, and regurgitate unnecessary background details; dump information into a festering literary mound. That’s what revision is for. Crappy paragraphs and poor word choices are all good here. If you set out to write a first draft that’s ready to go to the printer, it ain’t gonna happen (See? I can correct that later).

Steven dos Santos is a Team Member of We Need Diverse Books. Steven is a passionate advocate of LGBT rights and is currently working on the third book in The Torch Keeper series.

Writer’s Care Packages from Camp NaNoWriMo and We Need Diverse Books.