What we talk about when we talk about writing
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This document provides guidance on reading, editing, and revising prose. It recommends starting with brainstorming and outlining ideas before writing a first draft. The drafting process involves writing, stepping away, and returning with fresh eyes to continue writing. Revisions should include reading as a reader to evaluate flow, clarity, support, and reasoning from the audience's perspective. The document outlines a multi-step revision process including global and local revisions, as well as seeking feedback and editing for conciseness through cutting or rewriting when needed. Calling a draft complete involves meeting deadlines through two rough drafts and a polished final version.
What we talk about when we talk about writing
- 1. Reading and editing prose
- 2. Map your journey for revision and editing
- 3. • Start with an idea • Brainstorm • Research • Read and take notes • Create an outline based on initial ideas and notes • Write a working introduction to center my ideas • Refer to notes and develop a rough outline or idea map • Begin working on content • Panic and reread notes • Go back to writing and finish draft • Leave it for a few days • Read it and panic again… • On to draft 2 Throughout it all, there is a lot of meandering, walking away from the computer in frustration, avoidance, and eventual settling down to write.
- 4. Find your power by learning from your mistakes
- 5. • Always remember, no one gets it right the first time. • While you’re writing, what makes you sweat? What makes you doubt yourself as a writer? • What are your grammar woes? • What can you learn about yourself as a writer by being aware of your weaknesses?
- 6. Learn to read and revise your own writing
- 7. • Step away and let your writing rest • Look at your writing as a reader, not a writer • Consider the big picture: • Do you sentences flow? • Are your thoughts clear? • Does your research support your arguments? • Are there any gaps in your reasoning? • Read your work and consider its value from the point of view of your intended audience.
- 8. • Create a plan to guide your revision • Revise as you write—in drafts 1. Read your work as a whole with an eye towards the big picture. • Take notes and create pointers to refer to while editing. 2. Read it again with an eye towards the small stuff. • Look for grammatical errors, awkward sentence construction, weak transitions, punctuation, and more. 3. Give it a final polish. • Make your changes and save it as a new draft. Read it again to polish it up—consider word choice, rewrite your introduction and/or conclusion, refine your ideas. NOTE: Save each draft under a separate file name to avoid confusion and keep your work in order.
- 9. Open yourself to positive feedback
- 10. • Letting another read our work can be difficult, but it a second pair of eyes allows us to see our work in a new light. • Peer Review helps us get outside of our heads. • Select your reader(s) with care • A reader who is familiar with your style is best, but also one who is willing to give good, honest, and critical feedback. • Critical feedback does NOT = criticism! • Critical feedback seeks to empower and strengthen your writing. It does not tear down, belittle, or try to deny the writer’s voice, but serves to support and encourage better writing.
- 11. Knowing when to cut, rewrite, and re-imagine
- 12. • Stay strong and don’t fear cutting out words, sentences, paragraphs, and/or pages. • Every word matters, but they don’t all have to be part of your final draft. • Reading and revising in drafts will help you decide what to keep and what to cut without becoming too attached. • NOTE: Save the pieces that you snip in a separate file in case you want to reuse them.
- 13. • Rewrite sentences, paragraphs, sections, or the entire essay as needed. • Careful revision and review will help you make sense of what works and what doesn’t. • And working within an appropriate time frame will ensure that you have ample time to rework your draft to produce the best essay possible.
- 14. • When to cut • Is it relevant to my overall theme, subject, or argument? • Does it serve a purpose other than padding? • Does it send the reader on a tangent? • When to rewrite • Is there enough information to support the point? • Is it relevant but missing something? • Do the ideas need further development to get my point across?
- 15. Are we there yet?
- 16. • If you’re writing on a deadline, it’s important to know when to call it complete. • Write within a timeframe to stay on target. • When writing a class assignment (an essay or term paper), a good rule of thumb is to go through two rough drafts and a polish. • Write the first, rough, working draft. • Read and note global revisions (the big picture). • Write and read through the second draft • Get feedback from a fellow reader (if possible). • Apply feedback and consider cuts and rewrites. • Polish the third draft by making local revisions (the small stuff) and call it ready for submission • unless your professor recommends further revision or allows for an essay to be resubmitted.