How This Writer Drafted Her Novel in 12 Weeks (After 5 Years of False Starts)

Finish your novel fast with the Spell-Draft method—strategic messy drafting that builds momentum without losing your story’s magic.

You Need to Write Your Story Like Absolute Crap

You need to write your story like absolute crap. But there’s a way to write it like crap strategically—so it actually gets you to The End without leaving you buried in an inescapable mess.

I’ll show you how one epic fantasy writer finally drafted her novel in just 12 weeks—after five years of false starts, rewrites, and story breakdowns—using a method you’ve probably heard of… just never tried quite like this.

So if your story’s been subjected to a decade of tinkering—or keeps stalling out around chapter three—this might be the piece you’ve been missing to finally finish your draft in a matter of weeks, not years.

Myth: “Just Draft It” Will Get You There

I know I just wrote an article on strengthening a first line—and how to carry that promise through your draft's opening so it's not so first-attempt awful.

But this isn’t contradictory. That advice still stands—especially if your draft keeps stalling out around chapter three.

Sometimes, refining how you set up your story promises is like pulling off the shroud so you can see there’s still plenty of life and potential in this story you love.

That kind of reset is for when you've tried to do the thing but need to see the worth in continuing. Or maybe you pushed yourself to The End through sheer force of will… even after realizing you might be telling the wrong story.

When what you really need is to get your whole story on the page for the first time—or the right story this time—we’re not going back to take a look at your opening or refining any other piece.

You don’t have to get it right the first time. You need permission to move forward in the naturally messy, iterative drafting process.

And that means learning to embrace the crap—but doing it strategically, not aimlessly.

Because a lot of writing advice will tell you: “Just draft it. Push through. Get to The End. You can fix it later.”

And in theory, that’s great advice.

But if you’ve ever tried that and still couldn’t finish the draft as you saw its problems—or did finish it but hated what it became—you know just drafting it isn’t always enough.

• Maybe your characters kept wandering off script.
• Maybe the plot broke down halfway through and you couldn’t see how to fix it.
• Or maybe it felt like you were writing scenes that sounded fine—but they weren’t building toward the story you actually wanted to tell.

That’s not failure. That’s a sign that your brain didn’t have the right kind of support to keep your vision and momentum intact as you drafted.

And for a lot of writers, that shows up as procrastination. Or perfectionism. Or “writer’s block.”

But underneath those labels is a story or drafting process that’s not quite working.

Solution: The Spell-Draft: Your Messy First Conjuring of the Story Enchantment

That’s why I’m showing you something like a fast drafting or zero drafting technique, but a version you can use strategically—one that still embraces the mess, but doesn’t abandon your story’s core.

It’s a method designed to help you write forward, build momentum, and gives you a foundation you can actually revise from—without losing the vision that started this all for you.

I call it The Spell-Draft.

Because I’m nothing if not thematic with my instruction of how to work your story magic on readers!

And like any good spell, it’s a first attempt at conjuring something powerful. A translation of your imagination to the page—and if that’s not magic in itself, I don’t know what is!

It won’t be perfect. But it makes your story real. And it gives you something to shape, refine, and cast with purpose in revision.

So let me show you how one of the authors in my Enchant Your Readers book coaching program used this exact approach—after five years of rewrites—to finally finish her draft in just twelve weeks.

Case Study: The 12-Week Turnaround with Jamie’s Spell-Draft

Jamie came to me with an epic fantasy novel she’d been carrying in her head for over a decade. She’d worked on it off and on for five years—worldbuilding, outlining, rewriting—trying to do everything “right.”

But no matter how many times she tried to write it, the draft never captured the story she really wanted to tell.

She was a planner. A perfectionist. Every time she came up with something new, she’d go back to rework what she had—and it kept her stuck starting over and unable to get her draft to the next stage.

Once we started working together, Jamie realized the problem wasn’t effort—it was putting structure to the process. She didn’t yet have the tools or clarity to shape the version of the story that truly lived in her imagination.

And when we re-outlined it through my 3 Keys framework, she discovered she’d even been telling the story from the wrong character’s point of view.

You can learn more about that framework in this 3 Keys resource.

With a clear direction at last, Jamie still had to overcome her inner perfectionist. So she tried something different.

She gave herself permission to write forward—badly.

Step 1: Start with a Plan

Jamie didn’t start her Spell-Draft from scratch. She had a fresh outline we’d created based on her story’s character arc, genre structure, and emotional payoff.

So when she opened her drafting doc, she pasted a copy of that outline directly onto the page—and started writing over it. That plan became her guide. It gave her structure, which freed her up to explore how the scenes would play out with more immersion.

Why This Works

This works because outlining and brainstorming, while creative acts initially, also require heavy planning, organization, and critical evaluation. This is largely the domain of your brain’s Executive Control Network (ECN) and prefrontal cortex (PFC). It’s like your inner editor. They both start with E.

Offloading those planning and structural decisions by completing them before drafting will help you maintain a more immersive writing flow.

For one, this division of labor reduces your overall cognitive load of having to simultaneously generate new ideas, recall plot points, and make all the decisions on the spot while you also need to turn those abstract ideas into concrete language, imagery, and action on the page. Talk about an overloaded working memory!

And secondly, it keeps your brain’s inner editor from having to be over-engaged and distract you constantly, pulling you out of your imagination to plan and refine. It helps it play nicely with the other networks also involved in creativity.

So simply by having an outline, you can free up your “daydreamer” brain—that’s largely your Default Mode Network, which also starts with D—and language networks for a smoother, faster drafting experience.

And that way, you enable your brain to focus on the creative act of bringing your story to life on the page.

How You Can Do This

You can do this by starting with your own outline. I have more on outlining in other articles, so for now, just make sure yours includes the core trajectory of your protagonist’s arc and the major turning points in your plot at minimum.

If possible, use a scene-by-scene outline. Then paste that outline into your drafting doc.

When you start your session, don’t face a blank page. Write over your outline.

In other words, “eat it up” as you draft each portion. Maybe you actually drop your cursor into that part of the outline to flesh it out. Or maybe you draft your scene above its same section in your outline, and you leave it intact for reference until you’ve written that section.

Let it hold your place while your daydreamer brain fills in the details. Then delete that outline section so the next one is ready for you to keep going forward.

You don’t have to worry about accidentally messing up your outline this way since you’ll still have your master outline file separate from your drafting doc.

However, this doesn’t mean your outline needs to be perfect or perfectly followed.

It just means you’re giving your brain a framework to translate from—so you don’t stall out every time you sit down to write.

Step 2: Embrace the Sketchy Imperfection

Even with a solid outline, Jamie still had to confront the real problem: perfectionism.

She was used to rewriting scenes over and over. Fixing word choices mid-paragraph. Doubting whether a character’s reaction was “right” and circling back to change things. This time, she practiced doing the opposite.

She gave herself permission to write badly. She didn’t go back to polish. She didn’t fix what wasn’t working yet. She focused on moving forward—even when the scene felt incomplete or not all that great.

And when she didn’t know a detail yet? She used placeholders—like:

• [Fix this later]
• [Insert fight choreography]
• [Make character’s motivation clearer in next draft]

She even wrote notes to herself directly in the document. Brackets, all caps, color-coded—whatever helped her brain move on instead of getting stuck.

That allowed her to get the shape of the story down without letting the things she still needed to figure out lure her into a black hole of worldbuilding or researching.

That way, she could be sure to keep going and capture the deep emotion and more immersive moments she’d been longing to bring to life on the page while it was still fresh and raw.

Why This Works

This step taps directly into how creative flow states work in the brain.

It’s easier to get into flow the more experience you have with writing because the more your brain can rely on automated skills to keep the story moving—what researchers sometimes call creative fluency. But perfectionism disrupts that.

When you stop to judge or edit mid-scene, you engage the Executive Control Network and prefrontal cortex—that inner editor and evaluator—which shuts down your daydreamer side, the Default Mode Network. And your forward momentum.

To stay in flow, you need to reduce judgment and allow rough output.

It also lets you get the most out of those emotionally charged scenes by letting them keep up your forward momentum too. Writing these scenes also taps into the hippocampus and regions tied to memory, empathy, and personal meaning. This fuels immersion and motivation to keep you going—and helps create a story that feels real.

But it can be hard to recapture that raw emotion in later evaluation stages when you’ve reread your story a thousand times. So allow yourself to go deep in them now, even if other sections of your draft look like incoherent ramblings in brackets that only you will ever understand.

How You Can Do This

Here’s how to make this work for your Spell-Draft: ban editing.

• Don’t pause to wordsmith.
• Don’t scroll back to “fix.”
• Don’t worry if the scene is clunky, predictable, or awkward.

Just write. Describe what’s happening in real time, from your character’s perspective. Capture the moments you can already feel—especially the emotional shifts, the tensions, the things your character wants and fears.

If you hit a spot that requires you to figure out more than you thought you needed when you were outlining, just leave a note like:

• [Update magic system logic to match later]
• [What’s her emotional reaction here?]

Treat your draft like a rough sketch. Your only job is to capture everything you can while still moving forward and flag the rest. If something doesn’t feel right—leave a placeholder. Type:

• [Transition scene goes here]
• [Need to figure out how the portal works]
• [Awkward—rewrite later]

Or whatever!

These notes will be great to have during revision. And right now, they help you keep going.

You don’t have to commit to everything here permanently. Writing is an iterative process. Get the shape first. The refinement comes later.

But, as I allowed for Jamie, go back and use your word processor’s commenting function if you do need to place a note at some earlier point in your Spell-Draft. I never want to let you risk forgetting something and beating yourself up over some idea you can’t remember later.

Don’t dive back into the paragraphs of earlier writing sessions and get sucked into tweaking and editing, though.

Instead of a bracketed note in the midst of the text like you might use while continuing to write forward, just use a separate note function or even record it in a different file or notes app.

That way you can still get it out of your head, free up your cognitive space and working memory, and have it at the ready when you need it.

So don’t stop just because you hit something hard or not yet figured out. Use shorthand notes, brackets, or even write in second-person if it helps (e.g., “She needs to feel betrayed here—figure out why later”).

Trust that you’ll come back and fill those gaps with more clarity once the big shape of the story is down.

If it helps for your perfectionism, think of the draft result this way:

You get an A on this assignment—you do it right—when the draft looks like inconsistent quality with a mess of notes in brackets, bits of outline, and strange pep talks to yourself. You’re doing it wrong if it looks too polished!

Step 3: Track Progress & Set “Smashable” Goals

One thing that helped Jamie keep going was logging tangible progress and setting goals she could smash through without trying.

She didn’t obsess over word count—she used a spreadsheet to log each scene completed. She tracked what worked during her writing sessions and what didn’t so we could look for patterns and optimize her process.

Seeing the progress stack up gave her a sense of how much she’d already accomplished so she could build on it.

Why This Works

Tracking progress in a visible or even tactile way creates dopamine rewards in your brain. It helps you associate writing with progress, not just effort.

It also reduces the psychological weight of big goals by turning them into bite-sized, “smashable” achievements—something proven to increase motivation and follow-through.

Once started, the brain’s reward system is activated, often leading to greater engagement and productivity than the original goal required.

How You Can Do This

You can also get these benefits by setting a tiny session goal and creating a drafting log. That goal doesn’t have to be counted words. It can be:

• A few minutes of focused time
• Writing out a point from your outline

Track these goals and your writing sessions in a spreadsheet or by hand in one of those pretty journals you’ve been too afraid to write in.

I even had one author use a system of jars and pretty rocks. It was a tactile bit of “real work” she could do. When completing a scene in her draft, she moved a rock from one jar to her progress jar.

It gave her more joy to see the jar filling up and made her feel like her writing sessions were truly accomplishing something—like the feeling she got from finishing a yardwork task or even a good workout.

Jars and rocks, stickers, bullet journals—anything that gives you a visual reminder that you are moving forward. Let it be satisfying. Let it be small.

Smashable goals beat big goals every time.

And when you also track what worked or didn’t work in each session, you can start to understand what’s best for your individual drafting process.

Step 4: Don’t Draft Alone

What really made the difference for Jamie wasn’t just the method. It was having support.

She wasn’t isolated with the draft anymore. She didn’t do it alone. She had the support of a writing community—myself and others—to keep her accountable, talk through snags, and remind her that this messy middle stage didn’t mean she was failing.

Why This Works

Social accountability strengthens your brain’s commitment to long-term goals. When you feel seen and supported, you get a boost of dopamine and engagement. Your resilience goes up.

Plus, brainstorming or just being in community activates new associative pathways in your brain—leading to creative breakthroughs and a stronger sense of purpose.

How You Can Do This

If you’re drafting right now, find someone to do it with you. A writing buddy. A group. Someone who’ll check in when you’re stuck—not to critique your words, but to remind you you’re not alone.

You can find that support while you’re drafting in the Critique Partner Program. It’s a great way to find a writing buddy who’s in the trenches with you—even before you're ready to swap pages. 

Step 5: Use the Draft to Understand Your Story’s Needs

Jamie finished her Spell-Draft in just 12 weeks—well, technically 8 weeks of actual work, but life always happens and we all need breaks! But it was complete.

She didn’t have a polished book. But she finally had a full story on the page—the right story this time.

Seeing the full shape of it written out, even messy, helped her understand what it still needed.

And because she didn’t agonize over every word, she could now make bold revision decisions without worrying she was ruining something she’d already “perfected.”

The Spell-Draft gave her clarity, momentum, and room to experiment and play with its next level of potential. Rather than overwhelming her with a draft so far from what she wanted that it could hardly be used in revision, Jamie’s draft made her excited about taking it to that next level.

Why This Works

That’s the benefit of this method. Not quite the shortcut promised in the term “fast drafting,” perhaps, but a full draft worth revising to finished book.

Once you see your story’s actual shape, you can make clearer, bolder decisions. Your brain works differently when evaluating a full narrative than when immersing in individual scenes—it’s a shift from “crafting” to “curating.”

How You Can Do This

You’ll revise with so much more confidence when you know what’s actually on the page—not just what you hoped was there.

It’s your first full translation of your imagination onto the page—the magic that lets you finally understand the story you’re really working with—so you can start making the reader experience it the way you always have.

So this is why you can make more strategic progress with the Spell-Draft method—and why writing forward badly is sometimes the smartest move you can make.

But… what do you actually write when you’re staring at the page? Even one with an outline on it? How do you turn those points into prose?

I’ll break down what your brain actually needs to turn a loose scene idea into immersive story prose—so you stop freezing at the cursor and know what to actually write in a draft like this to bring your story to life. It’s in the next article.

Categories: : creativity, manuscript stages, novel drafting, novel planning, revision, writer mindset