One useful way of looking at the writing process is to see it through the metaphor of a life lived. The Prewriting stage is the conception and early development in the womb. The drafting stage is the birth of the writing project. But the real work of writing is in revising, just as the real work in life is living. It is also important to remember, that a process, if effective, always ends in a product. Instructors generally evaluate the final product, but the quality of that product will be determined by the quality of the process involved in creating the product.
| Stage | Purpose | What to Do | What to Avoid | Mark of Success | Questions to Ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prewriting (conception through pregnancy--9 months) | (Expand) To gather details |
Write as much as possible without worrying about errors or meaning Use techniques for generating details: freewriting, listing, brainstorming, reporter's formula, cubing |
the blank page | lots of details | What details have I omitted that another reader might need in order to understand this? Have I provided details that are specific and precise, including, where relevant, mathematical, statistical, or scientific data? Have I included sensory details: touch, taste, smell, hearing, sight? |
| Drafting (birth--less than one day) | (Limit)
To create meaning through structure |
Organize details around some central idea or focus--an idea that seems very important or at the heart of what is written Techniques include focused writing, clustering, or mapping Organize into main ideas, subordinate ideas, and supporting details |
rambling | a draft that has one thing to say | What is my main idea? What seems to be most interesting? What is most important to me? Why did I want to write about this? What is Significant, Important, Relevant, or Valuable (SIRV) about this topic? |
| Revising (life--where the real work begins--70 years on average) | (Refine)
Logos: To clarify meaning for the reader (through unity, coherence, cohesion, development, sentence structure, and word choice) Pathos: To seek to interest and engage the reader Ethos: To correctly format (edit and proofread) the draft according to appropriate rules for English usage and documentation format. |
*Read the essay quickly to see if it focuses on a single idea which the essay develops clearly, the sentences flowing smoothly as if spoken by a single "voice." Read the essay again, more slowly, paragraph by paragraph--the lead should catch the reader's interest and give a clear indication of where the essay is headed; the body paragraphs should be complete, with details persuading the reader of the "truth" of the thesis, and presented in an effective order; the conclusion should leave the reader satisfied that what the essay has promised was delivered. Read the essay again, sentence by sentence, word by word, to see that each sentence and word is appropriate for the meaning and purpose set in the lead. Finally, edit by reading the essay slowly--bottom to top--for grammar, punctuation, spelling, typographical, or formatting errors. |
ineffectiveness
|
a clear, meaningful, compelling, correctly formatted final draft. | Does the essay have a single focus which each paragraph develops? Does each paragraph move the essay towards the principle goal the essay sets forth in the thesis; that is, does each paragraph develop some aspect of the central idea, making it clearer, more understandable, and/or more appealing to the reader for which the essay is intended? Is each declarative sentence clear? Is each supportive sentence compelling or "convincing evidence"? Is each word the best word possible: necessary, precise, appropriate, or compelling? Does the essay follow appropriate conventions for English usage? |
*The first three ways of reading an essay are adapted from Murray, Donald M. "Making Meaning Clear: The Logic of Revision." Learning by Teaching: Selected Articles on Writing and Teaching. Boynton/Cook Publishers, 1982. 88-95. Print.