Improving Your Writing3

8/2/2019 Improving Your Writing3

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By: Tom Jordan,

Selvin Turcios,

& Eduardo Avalos

The Key to Success

IMPROVINGYOUR

WRITING


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Rewriting is theessence of writing well:

its where the game is

won or lost. [WilliamZinsser, On Writing

Well. 2006)


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IMPROVING WRITING

Why do I need

to rewrite my

essay?

I wrote it once.

Isnt Thatenough?


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OBSERVATIONS

Writing is revising, andthe writers craft is largely amatter of knowing how to

discover what you have tosay, develop, and clarify it,each requiring the craft ofrevision. (Donald M.Murray, The Craft of

Revision, 5th ed.Wadsworth Publishing,2003)


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WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCEBETWEEN REVISINGAND

EDITING?


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REVISING

Big Picture

Idea Level

Making changes incontent and organization

to improve a draft.


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EDITINGo Improve a draft by making sentences

and words clearer.

o Proofreading

o Correcting grammar, spelling andpunctuation errors.


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LAYERS OF WRITING

Usage (word choice, grammar,punctuation,etc.)

Style (approptiate tone, sentencevariety,word choice)

Organization (order and flow ofparagraphs, linking ofideas and

sentences)

Content (order ofideas,thesis,andits development)


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REVISION

During revision, writers may add, remove, move andsubstitute text (the ARMS treatment).


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Does my introductory paragraph start

with a hook to catch the readers

interest?

Do I have a clear thesis statement in myopening paragraph?

CONTENT


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Do my body paragraphs relate to and support mythesis statement?

Will the reader learn something new from mypaper?

CONTENT


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ORGANIZATION

Do I need to rearrange the order of ideas or paragraphs in

my essay?

Do I have a strong conclusion which restates my main

point?


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REVISION Do I need to add,remove, move or

substitute text in myessay?

Are effective

transitions used toconnect my details

and examples to

help my readerfollow my point

easily?


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Isn't revision just fixing the commas and spelling?

No. That is called proofreading and is important, but

proofreading comes after revision.

How can I cut my writing when I already put so much

effort into it?

We as writers come up with many ideas, yet we must

reread them to cut so we can choose the best material.

REVISION OR

P

ROOF

READING

?


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Theres no sense in revising

a sentence to a hard shining

beauty if the passageincluding that sentence will

have to be cut. (Philip Gerard,

Creative Nonfiction: Researching

and Crafting Stories of Real Life.

StoryPress, 1996)


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EDITING

Sentence style

Word choice

Grammar, Spelling,Punctuation


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Is every sentence complete?

Are there fragments that need to be

completed?

Style


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Are some sentences short or choppy? Cansome be combined?

Are there run-on sentences that need to be

improved?

Style


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Have I run a spelling check?

Sometime I can be tricked by spellcheck.

USAGE


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Are words clear and appropriate?Have I used some words too often?

Have I used strong verbs?

USAGE


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Have I used commas, colons, semicolons

and periods correctly?

PUNCTUATION


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GRAMMARHas someone else read my paper to help

me find grammatical errors?

Come to the

Englishlanguage lab for

help.

Be sure to makean appointment


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QUESTIONS FOR EDITING

Is every sentence clear?

Does it say what you want it to say?

Are there effective

transitions between

ideas and paragraph?

Sentence Style:


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PLANNING

Give yourself enough time to revise and edit.

Revise and edit at least three drafts.

This means write at least two weeks ahead of time.


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DISCIPLINE

Writing, like anything else, takes discipline

and practice.


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You write to communicate to the hearts and minds of

others whats burning inside you. And we edit to let the

fire show through the smoke.

Arnold Polotnik


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Interviewer: How much rewriting do you do?

Hemmingway: It depends. I rewrote the ending to Farewell

to Arms, the last page of it, 39 times before I was satisfied.

Interviewer: Was there some

technical problem there?What was it that had

stumped you?

Hemingway: Getting the

words right.

(Ernest Hemingway, The Artof Fiction, The Paris Review

Interview, 1956)

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Improving Your Writing3