Look, and then look again Revision strategies

Writing is revision…. There are no good writers; there are only good rewriters. – unknown

What do you see?

What do you see? Is the book facing away from you or towards you?

What do you see?

What do you see?

When you say something, make sure you have said it When you say something, make sure you have said it. The chances of your having said it are only fair. – E. B. White

What is Revision? Like writing itself, revision is a process Revision and reading go together Revision is taking a step back from your writing and looking at it again with a fresh perspective Once you do this, you can make appropriate changes to better meet the purpose of your message and better address your audience

Revision Is NOT Editing Revision is about “higher-order concerns” Clear communication of ideas Organization of paper Paragraph structure Strong introduction and conclusion Editing is about “later-order concerns” Sentence mechanics Punctuation Spelling Capitalization Documentation Style

Revision is Necessary Few writers can produce polished writing on the first pass Revision ensures that you said exactly what you wanted to say in a manner most appropriate for your audience

Revision involves adding, cutting, moving material, and after that, editing and proofreading. – Handbook Lynn Troyka.

Risks of Not Revising An ineffective message is a waste of everyone’s time Your reader may misunderstand or be confused by what you have written Your reader may form a low opinion of your abilities

Careless, hasty, unrevised writing is always apparent.

How Do I Revise? Try the ECR method evaluate, change, reevaluate Try ACRM method add, cut, replace, move Wait Be honest with yourself Throw stuff away Don’t edit Look again

Take a Break from Writing After your first draft, take a break and do something else Return to it later with a fresh perspective Switch your role from writer to reader Let your literary compositions be kept from the public eye for nine years at least. – Horace

To be a writer is to throw away a great deal, not to be satisfied, to type again, and then again and once more, and over and over. – John Hersey

Activities During Revision Shift mentally from suspending judgment; read your draft critically to evaluate it. Decide whether to write an entirely new draft or to revise what you have. Don’t be too critical. Most early drafts are sufficient to allow for revision. Be systematic. Move from higher- to lower-level concerns. organization paragraphs sentences word choice

1 2 Revise on Two Levels… Global Level whole essay and paragraphs Local Level sentences and words

Do you have writer’s block? Fear of writing Mental paralysis Frustration Panic Procrastination Avoidance

Treating the Block Stop hating the block—refocus your energy Be comfortable with chaos Do a good job at prewriting Turn off the internal editor Picture an image or scene that relates to your topic Try writing your material as if your were someone else Avoid staring at a blank page Visualize yourself writing Write about your topic to a friend Start in the middle Use focused freewriting Change your method of writing

Vigorous writing is concise Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts. —The Elements of Style William Strunk, Jr.

To write is to write is to write is to write is to write is to write is to write. – Gertrude Stein

Writing is revision…. There are no good writers; there are only good rewriters. – unknown