Regarding first drafts, Anne Lamott posits the argument that for all writers, even good ones, it is necessary “to let go and write those ‘shitty first drafts’ that lead to clarity and sometimes brilliance in second and third drafts”. Lamott ends her article arguing that:

"Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. You need to start somewhere. Start by getting something –anything—down on paper. A friend of mine says that the first draft is the down draft –you just get it down. The second draft is the up draft – you fix it up. You try to say what you have to say more accurately. And the third draft is the dental draft, where you check every tooth, to see if it is loose or cramped or decayed or even, God help us, healthy.” (2) 

As we can see, both Latour and Lamott suggest the experimental nature of scholarly writing. What does that mean to me?  It certainly helps to reduce the anxiety of confronting the blank page; knowing that scholarly writing is a complex process but with persistence, dedication, and the tools offered by professional writers, it is possible for anyone to write a worthy-of-publication article. Before taking this class, my only experience with writing was keeping a teaching journal where I write down the strategies, methods, and activities I use in my daily teaching practice. I focus on the ones that did not work as expected and reflect on changes for those activities in the future. 

Lamott, Anne. "Shitty First Drafts.” Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers. Ed. by Paul Eschholz, Alfred Rosa, and Virginia Clark. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2005: 93-96.