1. CLEAR
THINKING
AND WRITING
JOHN LANGAN
© Townsend Press

2. Chapter Seven: The Writing Process
Writing a paper is a process.
See page 29 in textbook.

3. The process of writing a paper can be divided into five steps.
THE FIVE STEPS
The process of writing a paper can be divided into five steps.
STEP 1 Getting started through prewriting
STEP 2 Preparing a scratch outline
STEP 3 Writing the first draft
STEP 4 Revising
STEP 5 Editing
See page 29 in textbook.

4. • Freewriting • Questioning • List making
1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
Here are three helpful prewriting techniques to help you get started writing a paper:
• Freewriting
• Questioning
• List making
See page 29 in textbook.

5. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
Freewriting
Freewriting is just sitting down and writing whatever comes into your mind about a topic.
Write without stopping and without worrying about spelling, grammar, and the like.
See page 29 in textbook.

6. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
Freewriting
On page 24 in the textbook is a paragraph on bullies that was written by a student named Carla.
Here is part of the freewriting Carla did for that paragraph.
Example of Freewriting
Bullying is part of school most of the time teachers dont have a clue. I really never thought about it and was just glad I wasn't part of it. At least for the most part. I'd see some phisikal stuff now and then but kind of turned my head not wanting to look at it. The worst thing with girls was words, they meant more than phisikal stuff. I rember once being called a name and it stung me so bad and it bothered me for weeks
See page 29 in textbook.
See the Freewriting Activity on page 30.
Carla is not worried about spelling, grammar, and punctuation at this prewriting stage. Instead she is concentrating on getting ideas and details down on paper.

7. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
Questioning
Questioning means that you generate details about your topic by writing down a series of questions and answers about it.
Your questions can start with words like what, when, where, why, and how.
See page 30 in textbook.

8. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
Questioning
Here are some of the questions that Carla might have asked while developing her paper.
Example of Questioning
• Who was bullied?
• Who were the bullies?
• When did bullying take place?
• Where did it happen?
• Were there different kinds of bullying?
• Why were some kids teased and bullied?
See page 30 in textbook.
See the Questioning Activity on page 30.

9. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
List Making
List making is also known as brainstorming. You make a list of ideas and details that could go into your paper.
Try to think of as many details as possible. Don’t worry about putting them in any special order.
See pages 30 and 31 in textbook.

10. 1 GETTING STARTED — PREWRITING
List Making
After Carla did her freewriting, she made up a list of details. Here is part of her list.
Example of List Making
some bullies were phisikal
boys would push kids around
kids would be tripped in hallways
some kids would cry
names would be used
"dummy" or "creep" or "fairy"
no one would sit near some kids
some kids never chosen for games
See pages 30 and 31 in textbook.
See the List Making Activity on page 31.
By the time Carla had finished her list, she was ready to plan an outline and to write her first draft.

11. A scratch outline is a brief plan for a paragraph.
2 PREPARING A SCRATCH OUTLINE
A scratch outline is a brief plan for a paragraph.
It shows, at a glance, the point of the paragraph and the support for that point.
See page 31 in textbook.

12. 2 PREPARING A SCRATCH OUTLINE
As Carla was working on her list of details, she discovered what the plan of her paragraph could be. She wrote it down as a scratch outline.
Example of a Scratch Outline
There are three kinds of bullies.
1. Physical
2. Verbal
3. Social
See page 31 in textbook.
See the Scratch Outline Activity on page 31.
Carla was now ready to write the first draft of her paper.

13. 3 WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT
When you do a first draft, be prepared to put in additional thoughts and details that didn’t show up in your prewriting.
Don’t worry yet about grammar, punctuation, or spelling. Your goal in your first draft is to develop the content of your paper with plenty of specific details.
See pages 31 and 32 in textbook.

14. 3 WRITING THE FIRST DRAFT
Here are a few lines of Carla’s first draft.
Example of a First Draft
There are different kinds of bullies that can be seen in schools. One kind of bullying that goes on is done by phisikal bullies. You see kids who will get pushed around on the playground. You see kids getting shoved into lockers and that kind of stuff. There was a girl I knew who was a real bully and a bit crazy because of a really bad home life. She would shove gum into another girl's hair and would also pull her hair. Other bullying went on with words and the calling of names. There were awful names that kids would use with each other, words included "creep" and "weirdo" and names that I don't even want to write here
See pages 31 and 32 in textbook.
See the First Draft Activity on page 32.
Carla is not worried about spelling, grammar, and punctuation at this stage. She is concentrating on developing the content with specific details.

15. 4 REVISING
Revising means that you rewrite a paper, building upon what has been done, to make it stronger and better.
A typical revision means writing at least one or two more drafts, adding and omitting details, organizing more clearly, and beginning to correct spelling and grammar.
See page 32 in textbook.

16. 4 REVISING Here are a few lines of Carla’s second draft.
Example of a Second Draft
There are three kinds of bullies in schools. First of all, there are the physical bullies. They are the bigger kids who try to hurt smaller kids. They'll push kids off of swings in the playground or shove them into lockers. Other examples are knocking books out of the hands of kids or waiting for them after school and slapping them around or yanking their hair. Another kind of bullying is by verbal bullies. The aim here is to hurt with words rather than with fists. A victim will be called a "creep" or "weirdo" or "fatty" or will be told "You are such a loser." . . .
See page 32 in textbook.
See the Revising the Draft Activity on page 33.
Carla has added transitions (First of all and Another). She has also removed details that were not relevant. And she has added supporting details in the form of examples for types of bullies.

17. 5 EDITING
Editing means checking the paper carefully for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and other errors.
When you are satisfied that your point is clear, your supporting details are good, and your paper is well organized, you will be ready to edit your paper.
See page 33 in textbook.

18. 5 EDITING
An important part of editing is to read your paper out loud. This will help you pick up grammar and punctuation problems.
Chances are that you will find sentence mistakes at every spot where your paper does not read smoothly and clearly.
See page 33 in textbook.

19. 5 EDITING
This is very important: to find mistakes in your paper, read it out loud.
See page 33 in textbook.
See the Editing Activity on page 33.

20. THE FIVE STEPS OF THE WRITING PROCESS
Prewriting
Freewriting Questioning List Making
Scratch Outline
First Draft
See page 29 in textbook.
Revising - Drafts 2, 3, etc.
Editing

21. • Does my paper or essay have a clear point, stated in one sentence?
A WRITING CHECKLIST
Here are four questions to ask yourself to help you decide if your paper is finished.
• Does my paper or essay have a clear point, stated in one sentence?
• Is there enough detailed support for my point?
• Do I use transitions such as first of all, in addition, and finally to help organize my support?
• Does the final draft of my paper flow smoothly and clearly when read aloud?
See page 34 in textbook.

22. Writing the First Draft
THE WRITING PROCESS
Remember:
Step 5
Editing
Step 4
Revising
Step 3
Writing the First Draft
Step 2
Preparing a Scratch Outline
See page 29 in textbook.
Step 1
Getting Started through Prewriting

23. CHAPTER 8: WRITING ASSIGNMENTS
Chapter 8 (pages 35-40) suggests a variety of writing assignments. Your instructor may ask you to choose some of these topics
CHAPTER 9: WRITING AND READING—
and a Special Offer
Chapter 9 (page 41) explains the importance of reading as a key to success in education. It also offers you a reading challenge.