2. Stages of the
writing Process
There are several stages of the writing process.
Each stage is essential.
Prewriting
Outlining the structure of ideas
Drafting
Revising
Editing
3. Prewriting
Choose /narrow your topic
Determine your audience, purpose, tone,
point-of-view, and tense
Explore your topic
Make a plan
4. Choose a topic
Advice for Topic Selection
Thetopic should be interesting to you.
The topic should be researchable.
The topic should not be too broad.
Avoid topics that are overworked.
5. Prewriting
The four strategies below are best
used when initially deciding on a
topic:
Using experience and observations
Reading
Free writing
Asking questions
6. Determine
Your Audience
Your audience is composed of those who
will read your writing.
Ask yourself: Who are my readers?
What do my readers know
about my topic?
What do my readers need to
know about my topic?
How do my readers feel
about my topic?
7. Determine
Your Purpose
Purpose is the reason you are writing.
Whenever you write, you always have a
purpose. Most writing fits into one of 3
categories: expressive writing, informative
writing, or persuasive writing.
More than one of these may be used, but
one will be primary.
8. Determine Tone
Toneis the mood or attitude you adopt as
you write.
Seriousor humorous?
Intimate or detached?
9. Determine
Point-of-View
Point-of-view is the perspective from
which you write an essay.
There are 3 point-of-view: first person (I,
we), second person (you), and third
person (he, she, they)
One of the most common errors in writing
occurs when the writer shifts point-of-view
unnecessarily.
10. Determine
Tense
Tense is the voice you use to designate
the time of the action or state of being.
Present tense
Past tense
Future tense
11. Explore Your
Topic
Pre-writing Techniques:
Brainstorm
Freewriting
Ideal Mapping
Questioning
Searching the Internet
Discussing
12. Outlining
Organize ideas
Write a thesis statement
Write an outline
13. Organizing Ideas
Three common methods of organizing:
Chronological order - a method of organization
that arranges ideas according to time.
Spatial order - a method of organization that
arranges ideas according to physical
characteristics or appearance.
Order of importance - a method of organization
that arranges ideas according to their significance.
14. Advice for Organizing
Look at the question you answered when you were
developing you working thesis.
Look at your prewriting.
Find the main ideas or categories of your thinking.
Put less important items under more important
items.
Make an outline.
Decide how you will set up you paper.
How can you organize the paper to achieve your
objective?
15. Drafting
Strategies for drafting:
Begin writing with the part you know the most
about.
Write one paragraph at a time and then stop.
Take short breaks to refresh your mind.
Be reasonable with your goals.
Keep your audience and purpose in mind as you
write.
16. Basic Elements of
a First Draft
Introduction
Thesis statement
Topic Sentence
Supporting sentences
Conclusion
17. Revising
Revising is finding & correcting problems with
content; changing the ideas in you writing to make
them clearer, stronger, and more convincing.
Revising looks at the “Big Picture”.
19. Unity
Does everything refer back to the main
point?
Does each topic sentence refer to the
thesis?
Does each sentence in the paragraph
refer back to the topic sentence?
20. Detail and
Support
Does each paragraph contain at least
two examples?
Is each example followed by at least one
supporting detail?
21. Coherence
Are all points connecting to form a
whole?
Are transitions used to move from one
idea to the next?
22. Revision Tips
Take a break from your draft before
attempting to revise.
Read your draft out loud and listen to your
words.
Imagine yourself as your reader.
Look for consistent problem areas.
Get feedback from peers.
Get help from a tutor!
23. Editing
Editing is finding and correcting problems
with grammar, style, word choice &
usage, and punctuation.
Editing focuses on the “Little Picture” –
words.
24. Editing
Check list for editing
Are your capital letters correct?
Have you used your punctuation
correctly?
Have you avoided run-ons?
Are you using verbs, pronouns, and
modifiers correctly?
Have you read your work aloud to listen
for problems?
Did you check every possible misspelling
in a dictionary?
Notes de l'éditeur
Prewriting is the process of coming up with ideas for your essay.This is not a formal, polished writing.
Outlining comes after you already have the ideas for your paper.It is a way of laying out your thoughts before you begin writing.Use bullet points to write down each concept you want to mention in the order you want to mention them.
The draft is the first attempt to organize information.Typically called a rough draft for a reason.YOU WILL MAKE MISTAKES!Your eassy structure does not need to be perfect.
An introduction that piques the audience’s interest, tells what the essay is about, and motivates readers to keep reading.A thesis statement that presents the main point, or controlling idea, of the entire piece of writing.A topic sentence in each paragraph that states the main idea of the paragraph and implies how that main idea is connected to the thesis statement.Supporting sentences in each paragraph that develop or explain the topic sentence. These can be specific facts, examples, anecdotes, or other details that elaborate on the topic sentence.A conclusion that reinforces the thesis statement and leaves the audience with a feeling of completion.
Reworking your essay so that the ideas are expressed in the best way possible.Revising is not the editing stage.
Editing is eliminating punctuation, grammar, and spelling mistakes.Should be saved for the end of the writing process.Spell check can be a false friend.
