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Rough Draft — Write now. Edit later. Remember, it's just a rough draft.
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Henk
@benwtnb I'm dying so as I was creating my "onboarding" process I wrote a long long piece thinking I would have it. Where can I fine it?!
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@henkholveck I'm very sorry Henk, we had many beta users saying that they didn't like having to delete that file first thing, so we stopped saving it.
We're submitting an update right now, so I will change the copy in the onboarding to make this clear. Very sorry that it wasn't there for you, but hope you'll continue trying out First Draft.
@henkholveck I'm really sorry to say there isn't… 🙇 I'm so sorry Henk. Hope you'll write something great about Haus of Holveck or your modeling career in First Draft again.
It interesting to see all the various attempts at reducing friction between idea and word. Given there are several "distraction free" apps - 750words, IAWriter, OmWriter, etc. How do you see simplicity being the magic trick to increasing writing volume?
@micah Thanks for your question Micah! First Draft goes beyond just a simple design and simplifies how you actually draft a document. You don't think about getting an exact picture, but just what the *bigger picture* goal of that picture is. Also instead of complicating things editing words you stop deleting so much due to the strikeouts and just focus on the idea rather than complicated *wordsmithing*.
Been using this since Beta and absolutely stoked to see it finally launch for everyone. Previous to First Draft, I was never really comfortable using a writing app, I preferred putting my content right in Google Docs thinking only about the editing I needed done. However, I love that First Draft forces me to be uncomfortable and accepting of the first draft that comes with every piece I write. Love the simplicity, how it gets out of the way and allows me to just write. Highly recommend and can't wait to see where the team takes the platform.
@imcatnoone We've been absolutely stoked to have you as a beta writer cat! 🙏 All your feedback really made First Draft grow into what it became, and is really what makes me love Product Hunt. There's no place else where you can meet other makers and get such great constructive positive feedback.
Happy to hear that the beta "forces [you] to be uncomfortable," we really want to make experiences that make the user take notice! Thanks again for writing in First Draft Cat!
That's a really cool concept @imcatnoone ! Does it literally prevent you from backspacing for the entire first draft?
@spinoodle Agreed! Yup. It doesn't allow you to backspace, which is what drove me bonkers at first! I disliked the idea of not being able to "erase" my mistakes, but that's one of the best features. The product forces you to accept that this *is* a first draft and meant to look like a first version, pushing you towards your main goal at this stage—completing the first draft before it's ready to head over to editing.
@spinoodle Hi Nicholas, it doesn't let you ⌫, but it does let you strikethrough backwards. It keeps you just moving forward and writing.
There's a lot the team and I would love to say about First Draft, but most of all would love to hear your questions and answer them!
First Draft was inspired by the experience of failing multiple times at writing a book on a computer, and finally succeeding at a first draft of a book in paper. We wanted to combine the best points of writing on paper with a computer. Mainly we wanted to help writers "stop sweating the small stuff," aka the words, and focus on getting their idea out!
I've been playing with the beta for just a couple of weeks, and I really love the strikethrough editing. It was hard to wrap my mind around the idea of a writing app that's not designed for editing, but the truth is that writing in apps that have lots of editing features has always held me back (though I would *love* to have a few streamlined options for headers and bold/italic, which help structure my thoughts - any chance you've got Markdown on your roadmap?).
@playswithfood @benwtnb @factorzero, can you guys talk a little about what the ideal 'second draft' solution looks like or the ecosystem you envision for First Draft, including/beyond integrations with rich editing and publishing tools?
@eliservescent Thanks for the comments EJ! And thanks for visiting us in Tokyo earlier this month!
Firstly, we're so glad you like the strikethrough deletion. We intentionally stripped all features out to get the bare-bones minimum needed to write, then added only the features we felt necessary. We may consider slowly adding bonus features such as markdown (which we love in another no-frills, "done is better than perfect" app, Deckset), other fonts, etc.
Thanks for asking about our future plans! Beyond first showing the world the profound benefits of writing first / editing later, we also have some thoughts about providing a way for authors to give their audience a peek into their process.
Beta user here - love the app! Forces you to cut out the editing impulse and focus on just letting your writing flow!
Great job Dave & Ben!
@batraatin Thanks Atin! I'll rudely co-opt your kind comment and say *thank you* from the bottom of our hearts to each of our very generous -- and very patient 😆 -- beta testers. You helped us realize the hands-down most rewarding part of making First Draft is developing relationships with each of our users and learning through their writing the things that make them laugh, cry and... hunt!
Love the site (the "typing" is a really cool way to show what the product is about), love the onboarding and the simplicity of the UI. Everything is set up just right to get you focused on the task, no clutter, everything appears and disappears just as you need it. Really good job.
@_annacates Very happy to hear that. We spent a ton of time trying to get the onboarding just right.
@factorzero @_annacates Hi Corey,
Ben here, Anna's much less talented (newish) husband. :)
Anna was raving about the UX in First Draft and insisted I try it so I did and I am not disappointed.
I did, however, find what may be a bug. When deleting something (which I try desperately hard to avoid as apparently I have strikeout OCD) I noticed that in the following word there is no space between the strikedout word and the new word. Is this by design? Because to me it is a bit strange.
Also, it took me a few seconds to notice the location of the prompts at the top. I am not sure how to describe this, but my eyes didn't go there naturally even after I knew where it was. I would consider trying to make it part of the page itself like the other texts.
Other than that great job.
@catesb @factorzero Agreed about the prompts in the top, it's a small thing but the focus is on the white area most of the time, so my eyes don't "see" the change of the instructions on the top unless I look for it.
@catesb @_annacates Hi Ben, Ben here too :)
I tend to hit space after striking out something, as I feel the same way as you. First Draft automatically strips out double spaces around strikedout words, so your export will still be clean. Maybe we should make the space by default. Thanks for the idea!
I'm a little confused what you mean about the prompts. They should paste into the page once you select one. Do you mean the button itself? Thanks for your thoughts and we'll work to improve! This is just version 1 so we'll be working hard with an update coming next week including all the great feedback from Hunters, including you!
@benwtnb @_annacates Hi Ben,
I was referring to the prompts you show during the tutorial. The ones with the yellow okay button to the right.
I would maybe try and find a way to put it inside the main part of the page where text is typed.
Cheers!
I've been using First Draft in beta for about a month, and have really loved it. I've experimented with a bunch of flows: First Draft --> Hemingway; First Draft --> Medium; First Draft --> Simple Note; First Draft --> Google Docs. All of them are useful for different functions, but they all start with First Draft. It took me only about 1 or 2 pieces of writing to get used to the backspace = full word delete action, and now it's second-nature, and has made first drafting noticeably faster. The other feature I really love is the ability to drop in placeholders for links, videos, images, etc., without interrupting my flow to go find the thing, insert it, and then continue where I left off, with all the cognitive transition costs that entails. Above all, I really appreciate the remarkable attention to simplicity. Fantastic work, David and Ben.
@mcandrew totally agree about the simplicity. I also like to use it in full-screen mode to maximize focus on writing. I hadn't thought about it before, but the way you describe it going to Hemingway, Medium, etc is actually really similar to how I use the mobile Drafts app. For mobile, it's the easiest way to compose. First Drafts is accomplishing this on desktop by being the most clean, easiest place to start writing longer form content -- regardless of where I ultimately want it to end up.
@mcandrew Thanks for your kind words and sharing your flows! We've got some updates coming to make the transition between platforms even easier 😄
@matthartman looking forward to getting you the iOS beta! We're trying to go beyond just shrinking First Draft for iOS/iPhone like some of our team's favorite multi-platform apps by @MacGuitar & @FiftyThree.
I was asked by @96problems to provide some critical feedback.
This is an interesting concept, but this seems like more of a feature that you could toggle on/off, rather than the basis for an entire editor. Also, the lack of a web interface seems somewhat limiting. I don't have a tablet, and I'm not going to write an article on my phone.
There are a lot of people trying to produce the next big writing tool at the moment. I'm left feeling like a lot of them are only incorporating one key feature, which leaves me with an incomplete editor.
I want to write more yet I barely do. This beautifully designed tool has encouraged me to start scribbling my thoughts down again. Thanks for building something so great!
@nbrempel Thanks for such an encouraging message! 🙏If First Draft is really the impetus to get you back into scribbling and getting your thoughts out that we couldn't be happier! Hope you enjoy Nick, and think you'll really enjoy what's coming next with the scribbling/strikeouts📝
I was eager to try this primarily because it was an app for mac as opposed to a web app. I use draftin.com heavily and wanted to see if first draft was an improvement.
After downloading though, the experience was very sour. I hate to be negative on products when I know a lot of hard work went into them. However, the mandatory 2-3 minute onboarding was obtrusive and at one point I had trouble figuring out how to advance. I had made numerous strikethroughs but it still insisted I needed more. I had to actually create a strikethrough using the delete key only which wasn't clear from the directions.
I also thought the pricing reveal felt more like a gotcha. I don't usually balk at a $15 price point or even "pay to unlock" models but after being frustrated this came at the worst possible time.
I think this app has a lot of potential but you might need to work more on the customer experience and the feelings their having. Guide them to their happy place.
@lindsey_io Very sorry to have let you down Lindsey. Apologies that the payment to unlock the app left a bad taste, we tried to be very up front with it during the onboarding but will think about how we can make it better!
Thanks for the time you've already invested, we hope you'll give it a little longer try and forgive the onboarding… which it sounds like a small bug may have snuck back into while transitioning to Swift 2. Thanks for your honest feedback and we'll continue working towards leaving more writers in their 😄 place!
@lindsey_io thanks for sharing this. they say they don't want to be sneaky but don't even mention how much 'one purchase' is. i like the idea but I it looks like an acquired taste, one that I'm not willing to invest into. I have no trouble letting things flow even when digital.... But i like that it exists!
@itscoreyb @lindsey_io Good point Corey, we'll definitely add that into the onboarding. Disappointed that we've made some writers think of us as being sneaky… 😰
Thanks for helping us to improve. Very important to have the outside input on the sensitive IAP flow. It can be difficult to get that real feedback from beta users who don't have to actually purchase… we've messed up and will work to improve and be more transparent moving forward. Thanks for your honest feedback! 🙏
Just want to say that we are super humbled to have one of our absolute favorite writing apps -- Hemingway -- listed as a similar product. Thanks @adam_b_long and @BenLongComedy for creating such a useful app and keeping it non-complicated. One flow I use every day is First Draft --> Hemingway for all my emails.
It's also my go-to app to make myself look 😎at parties!
As someone who constantly gets stuck trying to achieve "perfection" while writing a first draft, this is a great tool to remind myself that it's ok to write complete garbage at first. When I go back to my draft the next day to edit it, I'm always thankful for it because now I have something to work with instead of just a blank screen.
@juanvme Exactly! Altucher had a great quote about this that we expanded on. His point was the first draft just being to get a "mass of clay," that you can shape later. https://medium.com/30daysofwriti...
Please let me know if there's anything we might add to help with your blank canvas!
Really unique product, so nice to see it here! I really love that @benwtnb and colleagues are keeping it simple - the main focus is on writing process itself, which is the best thing that could happen to a writing app, honestly. Thanks!
@marchenkomark We've loved having someone (you) that writes about writing weekly involved in the beta and refining what parts of the writing process are focused on. Thanks so much for helping First Draft grow beyond its first beta!
Big NaNoWriMo participant here, this looks amazing. Can't wait to write my next novel with this. Would love to get involved in the beta programs!
@goldenchaos Hey Jason! Thanks for bringing up NaNoWriMo -- @benWTNB and I so were inspired by the program and the wonderful community there that we both decided to take the plunge this year. See you in November!
And we're thrilled that you'd like to write your novel with First Draft. We've got a program for NaNoWriMoers to let you use First Draft for free through November. I'll tweet you the details!
This is fantastic. I've been looking for something to help me merge the convenience of word processing/digital file management with my philosophical preference for handwriting in pen (you know, because you have to commit to the words that come out of your brain-piece without trying to perfect them).
@damrunner Exactly! Ink, whether on a typewriter or ✒️, just connects and commits you to your writing. We made this for writers just like you to make the writing of the draft faster and transition to editing easier! Hope you enjoy just 📝'ing!
Is there going to be a Windows version? Also, what about exporting to other programs?
@lynnfredricks Thank you for the great questions Lynn! We absolutely encourage exporting. First Draft is not meant to be a walled garden. We built it with other services and writing tools in mind.
First Draft help get you started writing. For next steps -- editing and publishing -- we currently support .txt export and allow you to copy-paste to any of your favorite text editors or publishing platforms, such as Hemingway or Medium. Also, we're now building direct export buttons to many services like these.
If people love First Draft like we think they will, we hope to grow our team and build a Windows version soon!
@playswithfood @lynnfredricks I thought of you guys when the Medium API was announced - where's 'Export to Medium' on your roadmap?
@eliservescent @lynnfredricks Hey EJ! We applied to Medium for API access and will start working on the export button in the meanwhile! Look for this soon!
@playswithfood @lynnfredricks Id consider something like this while writing on Medium, but again it would have to be available on Windows.
@lynnfredricks We're working hard to make sure that we're available for writers regardless of OS :) We've been getting lots of requests from NaNoWriMo writers for Windows, so know it's something we'll need to expand the team to be able to do. Thanks for your willingness to give First Draft a try!🙏
This is so smart! Could this become a Chrome Extension to use when I write on Medium etc? 😌
@mkaroumi Thanks for the kind words and the idea Marcus 👊 We thought a lot about not only the features (and lack therefof) to keep you in flow, but also the environment. If you're like me, it's too tempting to not open another tab and go hunting for that [research / quote / www.drakedis.co GIF 😜] when an idea comes up -- especially when writing, and especially in a browser, where you can simply cmnd + t your way into a new tab, and then 5 minutes later you find yourself bingeing on cat videos on Reddit 🙀. For those easily distracted folks like me out there, we hope that the native Mac app environment of First Draft will be just far enough removed from web surfing so as to help them focus on their writing. (To get even more focused, check out a 1 Day Hack we put together -- Offline Time https://www.producthunt.com/tech... -- that will help you turn (and keep 😉) your wifi off for small periods of time, to really get into flow.)
We do understand that while you're in the zone, you still might want to look something up later. That's why we've got you covered with placeholder buttons, which let you note the supporting materials you'll need to research later, keeping you focused on your writing now.
We're super big Medium fans, and are currently building an "export to Medium" function -- among others. Making this transition -- exporting from the rough draft writing environment of First Draft to the polishing and publish environment of Medium -- we believe is one of the most important parts about writing with First Draft. We're not neuroscientists and can't prove anything (yet!) but we think that these transitions can help to train the mind to switch between writing mode vs. polishing mode when *you* choose, reducing multitasking and increasing focus and flow.
Really like this. A few things I would change: 1)An option to skip the tutorial 2)An ability to turn off the writing prompts 3)An ability to hide the sidebar 4)More text-size options. Otherwise, really great, I like how the light theme emulates Apple's Notes app (w/out the annoying skeumorphism).
@lukechrisinger Thanks for all your great thoughts! I'll reply with numbers to make it easier.
1) The tutorial can be skipped there's some small text along the bottom that says press esc to skip, we'll give some more thought to this.
2) That's a good point about the prompts. We'll add a setting to hide the button just like you can the placeholder button.
3) Which sidebar are you talking about? The settings sidebar should be able to be hidden and then the other sidebar hides as soon as you open a doc. What is the case that you want to hide it on the folder screen?
4) We're probably going to open up the text options more. Will take a bit of time as it effects the placement of the placeholder elements.
Thanks for all the great ideas!
@benwtnb Sorry, should of been more clear. The sidebar on the right. I can't hide it for some reason. It's very obvious in dark-mode. Could be a bug? The drag and drop functionality with the folders is great, btw.
@lukechrisinger I think the sidebar/scrollbar is showing up because you might be using a 3rd party mouse. One of our devs also uses a different mouse and his always shows up, what you need to do is change your system preferences to show it "When Scrolling," for most 3rd party mice it shows up "Always."
