--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I number my drafts, and by the time a…" description: "\"I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.\" — Jennifer Egan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg" --- # I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll… ![“I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.” quote by Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg) > “I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.” [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Drafting extensively, with many revisions, refines ideas into polished work. **In simple terms:** Many drafts improve the final piece. Key Takeaway Iterate heavily to refine. Themes revision perseverance craftsmanship writing process Mood determined reflective Type practical motivational When to use this quote - novel writing - academic papers - marketing copy Key Concepts editing creative development Questions to Reflect On - How many drafts do you need? - When do you know it's finished? A Different Perspective Too many drafts can stall progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Writer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writer/) ## Related quotes > [I write by hand in my notebooks and number the drafts, so I know how crazy I can get with this. Some writers, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-orner/i-write-by-hand-in-my-notebooks-and-number-the-drafts-so-i-know-how/) [Peter Orner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-orner/) > [The bottom line is that I like my first drafts to be blind, unconscious, messy efforts; that's what gets me the best material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/the-bottom-line-is-that-i-like-my-first-drafts-to-be-blind/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [One of my strengths as a writer is that I'm a good problem-solver. I write these unthinking, ungoverned first drafts. The project for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/one-of-my-strengths-as-a-writer-is-that-i-m-a-good-problem-solver-i/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I haven't had trouble with writer's block. I think it's because my process involves writing very badly. My first drafts are filled with lurching,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-haven-t-had-trouble-with-writer-s-block-i-think-it-s-because-my/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I wrote the screenplay for 'This Is Where I Leave You' - all 40 drafts of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/i-wrote-the-screenplay-for-this-is-where-i-leave-you-all-40-drafts-of/) [Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/) > [The thing about our movies is, we write thirty drafts. That's a very detailed script. Which means that if you try to crank it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-chandrasekhar/the-thing-about-our-movies-is-we-write-thirty-drafts-that-s-a-very/) [Jay Chandrasekhar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-chandrasekhar/) > [It's always hard, but it's always fun to attack a premise that you think is interesting. It does take a few drafts for sure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-levin/it-s-always-hard-but-it-s-always-fun-to-attack-a-premise-that-you/) [Victor Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-levin/) > [I'm constantly at war with myself to quit goofing around, and the internet hasn't helped that any. I've learned that I have to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-abu-jaber/i-m-constantly-at-war-with-myself-to-quit-goofing-around-and-the/) [Diana Abu-Jaber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-abu-jaber/) > [I'm pretty obsessive-compulsive, and I'm very fast. I tend to not write for a long period of time until I can't not write, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-m-pretty-obsessive-compulsive-and-i-m-very-fast-i-tend-to-not-write/) [Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/) > [I'd really be happy with any team that drafts me. It means they see something in me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ja-morant/i-d-really-be-happy-with-any-team-that-drafts-me-it-means-they-see/) [Ja Morant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ja-morant/) > [Obviously, drafts sometimes are good ones, or bad ones; I think you can get a good, quality player late in the lottery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-hill/obviously-drafts-sometimes-are-good-ones-or-bad-ones-i-think-you-can/) [Grant Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-hill/) > [I don't read anything electronically. I don't write electronically, either - except e-mails to my family and friends. I write in longhand. I have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-don-t-read-anything-electronically-i-don-t-write-electronically/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I have to re-write a lot. I couldn't tell you how many drafts I write, but I know I've done at least twenty rewrites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-willis-holt/i-have-to-re-write-a-lot-i-couldn-t-tell-you-how-many-drafts-i-write/) [Kimberly Willis Holt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-willis-holt/) > [With my first book, I was hired to write a draft of the script. I was so young and less confident. They put me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-donoghue/with-my-first-book-i-was-hired-to-write-a-draft-of-the-script-i-was/) [Emma Donoghue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-donoghue/) > [Recently a study proved that working from a larger, less cluttered computer screen increases concentration. I could have told them that. And yes, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-schiff/recently-a-study-proved-that-working-from-a-larger-less-cluttered/) [Stacy Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-schiff/) ## More by Jennifer Egan > [“Behind the desk was nothing but view-the whole city flung out in front of us the way street vendors fling out their towels packed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/behind-the-desk-was-nothing-but-view-the-whole-city-flung-out-in/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I just think that, for my particular personality, feeling slightly invisible is always a help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-just-think-that-for-my-particular-personality-feeling-slightly/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Between books, I have to throw out everything I did before, because the tools I've used to write the previous book will not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/between-books-i-have-to-throw-out-everything-i-did-before-because-the/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [As a reader and a writer, I'm happiest when apparently mutually exclusive states can somehow coexist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/as-a-reader-and-a-writer-i-m-happiest-when-apparently-mutually/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I teach intermittently, and while I enjoy it, I don't find that it's a calling for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-teach-intermittently-and-while-i-enjoy-it-i-don-t-find-that-it-s-a/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Like all failed experiments, that one taught me something I didn’t expect: one key ingredient of so-called experience is the delusional faith that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/like-all-failed-experiments-that-one-taught-me-something-i-didn-t/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [“Thousands of solar panels lift and tilt at the same time, in the same way. I clutch at Dad's arm: "Why are they doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/thousands-of-solar-panels-lift-and-tilt-at-the-same-time-in-the-same/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [It was the hat. He looked sweet in the hat. How could a man in a fuzzy blue hat have used human bones to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/it-was-the-hat-he-looked-sweet-in-the-hat-how-could-a-man-in-a-fuzzy/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [“The seconds pass. I know what’s going on because it’s the same thing that always happens: give me something nice, something I love or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/the-seconds-pass-i-know-what-s-going-on-because-it-s-the-same-thing/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I had this idea that I could hire myself out as a person to go on archeological digs and dig, without any training! I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-had-this-idea-that-i-could-hire-myself-out-as-a-person-to-go-on/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [At night, the house thick with sleep, she would peer out her bedroom window at the trees and sky and feel the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/at-night-the-house-thick-with-sleep-she-would-peer-out-her-bedroom/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [Read at the level at which you want to write. Reading is the nourishment that feeds the kind of writing you want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/read-at-the-level-at-which-you-want-to-write-reading-is-the/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about-2/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) > [They resumed walking. Alex felt an ache in his eyes and throat. "I don't know what happened to me," he said, shaking his head.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/they-resumed-walking-alex-felt-an-ache-in-his-eyes-and-throat-i-don-t/) [Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) [Explore all 358 Jennifer Egan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jennifer Egan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de3/jennifer-egan-825_book_i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-boo_146205.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.” — Jennifer Egan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jennifer Egan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I number my drafts, and by...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```