Revising your Paper

What is Revision? Revision literally means to “see again.” When you revise, you look at something from a fresh, critical perspective. Revision is an ongoing process of rethinking your paper: reconsidering your arguments reviewing your evidence/details refining your purpose reorganizing your presentation reviving uninteresting information.

But I thought revision was just fixing the commas, capitalization and spelling. Nope. That’s called editing and proofreading which is an important step before turning your paper in. But if your ideas are unclear, your message is weak, and your organization is a mess, then editing and proofreading will just be putting a band-aid on a bullet wound. Editing and proofreading is not done until you finish revising.

How about if I just reword things: look for better words, avoid repetition, etc.? Is that revision? Well, that’s a part of revision called editing. It’s an important final step in polishing your Work when revising is complete. Revision means you must think through your ideas, then rephrase them to be clear to the reader or all of your hard work won’t make any difference.

Why is revision important? Writing is a process of discovery. Writers don’t always produce their best “stuff” when they first get started. Revision is a chance for you to look critically at what you have written to see if it’s: really worth saying says what you really wanted to say if the reader will understand what you’re saying.

What steps should I use when I begin to revise? First, don’t be lazy. Ask yourself what you really think about the paper. Check the focus of the paper: Is it appropriate to the assignment? Is the topic too big or too narrow? Did you stay on track through the entire paper? Did you give examples for the statements you make? Think honestly about your message: Is your message general instead of giving specific details to support the topic sentences in each paragraph? Think about your purpose in writing: Does your introduction state clearly the purpose of the letter? Is the organization clear to your readers or do you have information that is out of place? Is there information that doesn’t maintain the focus of the paper?

Examine the balance within your paper: Are some paragraphs out of proportion with others? Do you spend too much time on one trivial point and neglect a more important point? Do you give lots of detail early on and then let your points get vague by the end? Check that you have kept your promises to your readers: Does your paper follow through on what the introduction promises? Do you support all the claims in your message? Are the tone and formality of the language appropriate for your audience?

Check the organization: Does your paper follow a pattern that makes sense? Do the transitions move your readers smoothly from one point to the next? Do the topic sentences of each paragraph appropriately introduce what that paragraph is about? Would your paper work better if you moved some things around? Check your information: Are all your facts accurate? Are any of your statements misleading? Have you provided enough detail to satisfy readers’ curiosity? Check your conclusion: Does the last paragraph tie the paper together smoothly and end on a stimulating note, or does the paper just die a slow, redundant, lame, or abrupt death?

Once you have checked over the clarity of your paper, you are ready to edit for word choice, punctuation, spelling, capitalization and grammar. When editing is complete, write your final copy. Finally Time to Edit!

Wait! You’re not finished yet! When you have completed your final copy, reread the final copy to make sure you have not made any mistakes. Get a friend to read the paper, too. If you find mistakes, correct them. Consider the following: Is my paper neat? Are there spaces between all words? Are my letters clear and correctly formed? Is the format of my paper correct for the type of paper written? If you can honestly answer yes to each question, you are finally finished and ready to turn your assignment in.