Notes on Revision

Each semester, as I teach another course, developmental writing, I provide my class with notes on how to revise an argumentative, three hour, in-class paper, but most of these notes apply to most academic writing; so, I decided to share them with you. Find them below:

Here’s the real secret to good writing: revision. As with most profound ideas, it sounds simple, but it’s not. Good writers revise as they draft, AND they go through multiple revisions after a draft is complete. The first manner of revision is easy to get your head around. Because most of us now write on the computer, we tend to see revision as an ongoing part of writing, and we tend to believe a paper is finished when we draft the last paragraph and read back through it once or twice. This isn’t revision.

It is next to impossible to revise completely as you draft and as you proofread. My brother once told me, “If a girl is worth asking out, she is worth your full and undivided attention.” He was right. The same rule applies to revision. When you revise, you revise. Take the time. Just as with a date, you will be happier with the results. Of course, the problem is, just as with that date, if you don’t take the time to give revision your full attention, you may come to the mistaken belief that what you are experiencing is the best date out there. If for no other reason, revise because you want a higher score.

Tips for Revision:

1. Print out a hard copy of your draft.

2. Spend individual time revising, and print out a new copy.

3. Read the new copy *out loud*, and revise it again.

4. Print out yet a new hard copy, and get a second reader to help you revise it.

Here are the most important, general questions you need to answer at as you revise?

• Is there another idea(s) you might introduce which would make your claim(s) sound more reasonable or clarify your thinking?
• Could your paper be organized in a better way? For a moment, play with the idea of moving your paragraphs or sections into a new order.
• Do you provide sufficient evidence to support each of your claims, both the major claim you make in your thesis statement AND the other claims you make in each paragraph? Look at each claim and sub-claim, ask yourself, “What additional evidence could I provide?” “Do I provide enough evidence?” The secret number is three. If I provide three reasons or three pieces of evidence to support an idea, then I know—in general—I’ve provided enough.
• Do you define the terms you use and illustrate them with examples, stories, etc.?
• Do I stay on topic? Do I introduce ideas I need to cut, or do I introduce ideas to which I need to devote their own paragraph?
• Could I add a phrase or sentence which would clarify what I want to say?

Here are questions to ask of each section of your paper?

Introduction:

• Does the introduction hook the reader and draw them into the paper?
• Does the introduction lead in a logical straightforward way to my thesis statement?
• If I introduce unfamiliar terms, do I define them in the introduction?
• Does the introduction provide context for my take on the topic and my thesis?

Thesis:

• Is my thesis narrow enough? Can I fully develop this thesis in the time I have to write?
• Is my thesis too broad? Have I written a thesis which is so broad that everything I have to say about it seems vague and too general?
• Does my thesis say what I want to say about my topic?
• Does my thesis make a point worth considering? Will my reader care about my point? Do I care about the point I am making?
• Does my thesis provide the reader with a sense of the structure of the paper?
• Does my paper fulfill the promises I make in the thesis?

Structure:

• Is my structure logical?
• Are there gaps in the reasons I give my reader to believe my thesis?
• Do I require my reader to make logical leaps for which I haven’t prepared her?
• Is each of my sub-claims, points, and pieces adequately developed?
• Is each point equally developed?
• Is each point interesting?
• Is each point relevant to the case I am making?

Body Paragraphs:

• Does each paragraph have a topic sentence which controls the paragraph?
• Does each paragraph establish a single focus and stay on focus?
• Do I provide adequate transitions from paragraph to paragraph?
• Is each paragraph clearly related to my thesis?

Conclusion:

• Does your conclusion sum up my main point?
• Does my conclusion introduce a completely new idea?
• Does my conclusion leave the reader with something to think about?