Depends on the person and their process. I do a lot of pantsing and that works great for getting me first drafts. Editing is a lot more difficult for me though.

Some people write more detailed first drafts and some people write bare bones first drafts. Each are going to make editing different and easier or harder.

It’s good you find editing easier but these things are usually personal

Always be kind to yourself when writing. Just make your work something you feel good about. There’s enough critics in the world.

As others have said, I tend to write the world as I go. Maybe, I’ll have one defining characteristic in mind when I start but usually nothing more than that.

The story and characters are the way in to the world for the readers and they have to be interesting and developed for anyone to care about the world.

Thanks for letting me know. I just posted in the thread, hopefully it will get more traction

I’ll be your buddy if you haven’t already been matched

Yup, this is just the rationalization that anyone who makes it has about themselves. It’s all about something they did, not all the luck and support they got along the way.

I’m sure there are a million actors that worked just as hard as him and didn’t make it.

There are a couple mantras from Anne Lamott’s book on writing, Bird by Bird, that I repeat to myself when feeling anxious or stuck or easily distracted. One is, short assignments. The other is, shitty first drafts. For me, they help remind me to just write something. Don’t worry about finishing the book, the chapter, even a page. Write a sentence. And don’t worry about whether it’s any good.

I don’t know. I think you have to find the process that works best for you. I do the exact opposite of a sparse plot point first draft. I write long repetitive meandering first drafts that still need a ton of work, but it’s usually cutting a lot of unnecessary stuff rather than adding details. But I get excited about trying to convey everything I’m thinking for my characters or scenes and so I try to get it all down. I wouldn’t enjoy things as much if I just had to go through and write only the major plot points.

I’m in! Who needs a buddy?