REVISING AND EDITING
• Presenter Monica E. Taylor
THE WRITING PROCESS
• Prewriting and Shaping
• Writing/drafting
• Rewriting
– Revising
– Editing
– Proofreading
REVISING IS
• Rethinking
• A creative part of the writing
process
• Adding, deleting or
rearranging information in
the essay to correct global
problems of focus,coherence
and organization
PREPARATION
FOR REVISION
• Write on one side of the
paper.
• Leave wide margins on both
sides of each page.
• Construct a reverse outline
to help you see the structure
of the essay.
REVISING PURPOSE
AND THESIS
• Is thesis statement clearly
and specifically worded?
• Does it reflect your essay’s
purpose?
• Does it suggest the
direction, emphasis and
scope of the essay?
REVISING
ORGANIZATION
• Are thesis and support logically
related, with each body
paragraph supporting your
thesis?
• Have you presented your ideas
in a logical, easy-to-follow
sequence?
• Have you discussed everything
promised in your thesis
statement?
REVISING
ORGANIZATION
• Have you included any
irrelevant points?
• Are there clear
transitions between
paragraphs to allow your
readers to follow the
essay’s structure?
REVISING FOR VOICE
• Does the essay sound natural?
• Does it sound like you?
¾ Find your authentic voice as you
– State your own opinions
– Draw your own conclusions
– Manipulate style (distinctive way
of using sentences and words)
– Manipulate tone (attitude to
subject and audience)
REVISING IDEAS AND
EVIDENCE
ƒ Does each body paragraph have
one main idea?
ƒ Are ideas clearly and fully
developed in each paragraph?
ƒ Is evidence current and reliable?
ƒ Are facts and opinions clearly
distinguished?
EDITING FOR ERRORS
• Read aloud and listen for some of the
errors you cannot see.
• Read backwards to isolate sentence
errors:
“Migration is often triggered by two main
factor termed push and pull factors. Push
factors being those that will discourage an
individual from staying in a particular area
and pull factors being those that entice an
individual to a particular area.”
EDITING FOR ERRORS
• Use editing tricks to treat problems
re punctuation and grammar:
¾ To treat comma splices, remember that
you use a comma to separate two
independent clauses joined by one of the
FANBOYS.
¾ FANBOYS (coordinating conjunctions:
for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)
“Many persons speak only Jamaican
Creole, (yet) they do not agree that Creole
is a language.”
EDITING FOR ERRORS
• Another editing trick:
It is true that ” test to find
¾ Use the “
fragments:
“Although many Jamaicans speak only
Creole. They refuse to accept it as a
language.”
It is true that although many Jamaicans
speak only Creole (F)
It is true that they refuse to accept it as
a language. (S)
EDITING FOR ERRORS
• Eliminate common irritantsespecially your own “demons”.
• Remember:
9Consequently vs subsequently
9Has, have, had + been
9Am, is, are, was, were + being
9One of Jamaica’s major problems
is crime.
EDITING
• Avoid sexist language.
9 Change:
– mankind>humanity
– policeman>police officer
– manmade>synthetic
– fireman>firefighter
– poetess>poet
– lady lawyer>lawyer
– woman judge>judge
9 Use the plural to avoid clumsy uses of
“he or she”
FINAL CHECKLIST
‰ Does my thesis adequately reflect the focus and
scope of the essay?
‰ Do body paragraphs contain the necessary main
points ?
‰ Is each major point well developed with enough
detailed supporting evidence?
‰ Are paragraphs and sentences smoothly linked?
‰ Are sentences clear, concise and coherent?
‰ Are all words accurate, necessary and meaningful?
‰ Have all errors in grammar, punctuation and spelling
been eliminated?
YES TO ALL? PAPER IS NOW READY FOR
SUBMISSION.