Like seriously, how bad first draft is allowed?

TL;DR

As bad it can be.

A “draft” will be a draft until:

• it is approved by your editor
• you have a gut feeling, this is the one-final-draft
• or, it is published.

If that is enough to motivate you, then start writing your first chapter on Verbals, now!

Writing can be a daunting task, especially when you're trying to create a masterpiece from scratch. It's easy to get caught up in the details and lose sight of the big picture. But the truth is, the first draft doesn't have to be perfect. In fact, it can be as bad as bad can be, as long as you have ideas written down.

The most important thing to achieve in the first draft is to get those ideas written down. Everything else can come later. Pacing, prose, and progression are eminently editable. Don't worry about the small stuff. The 1st draft should be a flurry of ideas and plot development, spelling and grammatical errors included. The point is to avoid the common problem of never writing anything.

There is no single correct answer when it comes to writing a first draft. Some authors do trash or zero drafts and then write a few more drafts to get the finished product, while others write each book once and only do minor edits later. What's important is finding what works best for you. This may also be tied to the way you write, whether you prefer to sit down and start a story or take some time to plot and outline everything before you begin.

Ultimately, the only thing worse than a bad first draft is not having a first draft at all. So keep it as easy as possible. No pressure. Written ideas are all you need to achieve to get yourself started. And who knows, maybe that seemingly terrible first draft will turn into a masterpiece with some revision and editing. Just remember, as bad as you need it to be to actually finish it, or as good as you need it to be to think it's worth the effort.