Drafting is where your research, notes, and outline begin to take shape as full chapters. At this stage, the aim isn’t to write perfect text, it’s to get your ideas down on the page so you can refine and improve them later.
You might think of drafting as a process of writing in layers: start with rough sentences or bullet points; expand into fuller paragraphs; return to link paragraphs, revise, edit, and polish in later drafts. The key is to keep moving forward, even if your first attempts feel messy.
A rough draft is progress - you can’t edit a blank page, but you can always improve a draft.
Tips for managing the drafting stage:
Start your first draft
Your writing outline should give you a framework to get started although you might find that you need to adjust it as your writing and thinking develops. Remember to adopt a critical perspective and develop your argument and points by using evidence from your research sources.
Follow up additional research
Go back to your research and find sources to fill in any gaps/points that may come up and that need evidence. Revisit the Researching section to get tips about how to do this.
Cite as you go
Remember to check which referencing system you should be using and be consistent throughout your draft. You can use the referencing guides and referencing tools to help you keep organised and on top of your in-text citations and referencing.
Revise and rewrite
Revise and redraft your work, ensuring that your argument is clearly identifiable and your material is well structured. Write your introduction and conclusion.
Drafting your introduction before starting on your chapters can help give your writing some direction. It gives you a clear starting point and helps you articulate your main question and scope so that you can map out where your writing is going.
A potential downside to writing your introduction first is that if your argument evolves while drafting, you may need to rewrite it once you have a complete draft to make sure it aligns.
Some writers prefer to write their introduction after they have written some of their chapters or wait until they have completed most of the draft.
Starting with a chapter or section that you feel confident about writing is one way to stop procrastinating and get started. Leaving the introduction to write last also means there is less risk of writing something you’ll need to rewrite anyway.
However, some students may feel directionless without an introduction to guide their early writing; and others can find that what they end up writing in their first chapter might need to be cut and pasted into an introduction anyway.
Academic Skills Advisors recommend writing a 'working introduction':
Introduction – set up the research question, context, and structure.
Chapter 1 - background, context, or theory (grounding your work).
Chapter 2 - focused analysis (primary sources, case studies, or data).
Chapter 3 - extended analysis or synthesis (bringing theory and evidence together).
Conclusion - answer your research question, reflect on significance, and suggest next steps.
Introduction – outline what the chapter will cover and how it connects to your overall question/ argument.
Development – present theory, themes, case studies, or analysis in well-structured paragraphs.
Mini-Conclusion – summarise the key insight and show how it prepares for the next chapter/ carries argument forward.
Claim - State a clear point in a topic sentence
Evidence -Support it with evidence from your research (secondary or primary sources).
Analysis - Analyse and explain why it matters.
Link - Link back to the research question/ argument and forward to the next idea.
Writer’s Block
Struggling to start?
Begin with the section you feel most confident about, or try free-writing for 10 minutes to warm up.
Perfectionism:
Feeling like every sentence has to be polished before moving on?
Remind yourself it’s a draft. Use placeholders in a different font colour and use comment function to add 'notes to self' (e.g. “check source later”) and keep writing.
Losing Focus
Going off on tangents or writing too much background?
Keep your research question visible as you write (copy it into the header of your document so it appears on every page). Ask yourself: Does this paragraph help answer it?
Writing too much
Using too many words to explain one point? Tendency to waffle?
Write freely in your first draft, then highlight key sentences when revising and cut repetition and redundancy ruthlessly when redrafting. (Stephen King describes this as "killing your darlings"!)
Disconnection Between Sections
Drafted pieces not flowing together?
Don't worry so much if your writing isn't flowing in the early drafts but focus on this once you have a complete draft and your argument is clearer to you. Use linking sentences at the end of each section to connect ideas and signpost what comes next.
