William Dietz Writing Specialist QU Writing Lab

Two reasons why this topic is more interesting than you might think Writing as a multifaceted process Your long term development as a writer

Revising vs. Editing As used in this presentation “Revising” and “Editing” refer to two different processes.

Revising Revising means rereading what you have written critically to see if it will make sense to the reader…

Editing “Editing” means checking your work for mistakes in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Question Which do you think you would do first?

If you said revising first you are right. But why is this?

When you revise , you may decide that whole sentences have to be omitted or substantially rewritten.

Therefore there is no real point in correcting the grammar, spelling or punctuation of a sentence which might not end up being included in the final version of your paper.

Let’s look then at revising first Let’s look then at revising first. As we mentioned , revising focuses on content and ideas rather than form and language.

As you reread your writing, how can you decide whether to change or omit something or leave it as it is?

Here are some questions that you can ask yourself: 1) Is there a clear and specific thesis statement?

1) Is there a smooth transition in the sentences leading up to the thesis statement?

2) Do all the body paragraphs begin with a clear topic sentences 2) Do all the body paragraphs begin with a clear topic sentences? 3) Are the topic sentences supported in the paragraph? 4) Is everything in the paragraph related to the topic sentence?

4) Are transitional words used to where there are shifts in focus?

Next we look at editing. If revising is on the “macro” level, editing is on the “micro” level.

Basically, once you have decided what sentences your paragraphs are going to consist of, then you can focus on issues of grammar, spelling, and punctuation within each sentence.

Again, the point is not to try to do everything at once but read through your writing several times, each times with one particular focus.

As with revising there is a short term as well as a long term rationale for editing your work. You want the particular piece of writing you are working on to be in the best final form possible.

But in addition over the long term you want develop your ability to independently distinguish between correct and incorrect usage.

You don’t want to be dependent forever on an “outside expert” to evaluate your writing- or at least not dependent for the same things.

Editing Strategies- Again, it is not very productive to try to read through your paper looking for every kind of error.

Instead reread your paper several times with a different focus each time. Examples of these would include:

Subject verb agreement Verb tenses Articles ( “a” and “the”) Noun forms ( singular vs. plural) Punctuation ( especially, full stops and commas)

Other Tips Work with a typed hard copy Read your essay aloud Read your essay backwards Do not over-rely on spell check Self review before peer review

Self-Review You should never move to peer review without first completing a self-review (revising & editing); you want your peer to look for mistakes that you were unable to catch yourself! After you have reviewed your own work, make the necessary corrections and print a clean, revised copy before moving on to peer review.

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