Anderson 10
Savannah Anderson
Instructor: Jeff Sturges
English 101
21 October 2004
Workshop Draft
The Basics of Good Writing
"A writer is a person for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people." This was said by Thomas Mann. Did he realize how right he was? Writing is difficult. Good writing is just plain hard. It takes not only time and practice; skill and patience are also necessary. Stephen Kings says that “If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot” (145). From an early age, everyone is taught how to write. This is a skill that will undoubtedly become essential in everyone’s life at one time or another. Writing starts out small--a letter, a word, a sentence. Gradually, it will build momentum and writing can become a magazine article, a poem, even a book! Like every skill that is learned, there is a way in which to proceed, certain steps that can be very important. In academic writing steps are very important to follow. When writing at an academic level one is expected to already have the basic mechanics of writing down. Spelling and grammatical errors should rarely occur and the format should be impeccable. Yet even with all these basic writing skills, many people still have a problem writing. The problem that most people have is getting started and following it through. This is why in order to have good writing academically one must also follow steps, five important steps. These steps include planning, drafting, revising, editing and publishing.
Steps are important in many skills. If a dress were to be made steps need to be followed. The individual needs to decide on what type of dress is desired. Then a pattern is made. The next step is to piece the pattern together. The outcome may look a little rough, but that is okay, the dress is not done yet. After piecing the pattern together the person will want to try it on to see how it fits or what needs to be fixed. Later the mistakes are corrected and the finishing touches can be added. Details like ribbon or buttons are sewn on. Finally, what is left is the finished product, an outfit worthy of the attention it receives. The maker can take pride in the accomplishment, knowing that after following the correct steps in the right order, the finished product was well worth it.
The first step on a writer’s road toward the finished product is planning. This step includes not only organizing ideas, but also making the skeleton, or “pattern,” for the paper. Many college students have a major problem in this area. It is referred to as “writer’s block”. To help overcome this all too common problem often times it will help to make a list of all ideas. Simply put the ideas down in the order that they occur. This technique is known as “brainstorming.” “Brainstorming” is when sudden enlightenment or inspiration happens. This is great for getting innovative ideas and concepts. Later on, the ideas can be rearranged according to the order they will appear in the paper. This strategy is known as “clustering” or “grouping,” when one organizes ideas based on similarity or how they will appear in the paper. Clustering also helps to highlight the relationship between certain ideas. In an academic paper keeping ideas together allow the reader to follow along easier.
After grouping the ideas, it is important to set a tentative focus for the paper. This means knowing which direction the paper will take. There will probably be many ways that the paper could be written, but it is essential to focus on a central idea. It is in this way that the paper will stay organized and to the point. The main goal for good writing is to keep the reader’s attention. The whole purpose of academic writing is focused more on enlightening the audience more than entertaining them. Harry Teitelbaum says that “The audience—readers for whom the paper is being written—plays an important role in the limitation and treatment of the topic. Idealistically, the writer should not assume that the paper is being done for the sole benefit for the instructor and simply to pass the class” (4). One must make sure that the paper has a topic and that it does not sway from that topic. This will better help to keep the audience involved with what is being read. By keeping similar ideas together, it will keep the paper from rambling. After gathering all the ideas comes the hardest and most important step: writing the thesis.
The thesis is the backbone of any academic paper. It is what the paper revolves around. The thesis is the key element of what the paper is about. Normally for an academic paper, a thesis is written with the main idea presented and shown how it will be brought out and supported in the following paragraphs. Sometimes these points will be written in the forecasting statement. A forecasting statement will either be contained in, or follow after, the thesis. What the forecasting statement does is let the reader know what the paper will be covering and in what order. If all of these areas are covered in the planning step then it is on to the next one, drafting. A good thesis that is fully supported will definitely turn into a well written academic paper. Once the thesis is written it is time to write up a draft.
Drafting can be likened to piecing a dress together. After organizing the ideas and making a blueprint, or "pattern,” then one can start on writing the paper. The important thing is to not feel overwhelmed or scared. That is why it is called a draft and not a final copy. If is takes more than one draft don’t worry, all good writers go through the same thing. Authoress Anne Lamott has this to about the process of drafting “…the only way I can get anything written at all is to write really, really shitty first drafts” (22). Take some time with this step and do not get frustrated. With this step one can get a feel for who the paper will end up. A draft can be written as many times as needed until it becomes the oh-so-perfect final draft. When writing the draft it is important to remember the fundamentals such as starting off with a hook in the introduction then stating the thesis and forecasting statement. This will be followed by fully developed paragraphs that support the thesis. Nikki Gemmell once said "I want to shine through in the first paragraph. I want to hit people in the gut if I can with my very first line”. In life one can never make another first impression. The same is true where writing is concerned.
The introductory paragraph is where the reader where get their first glimpse of the writer and it is best not to leave them with a bad taste in their mouth. An attention grabber is one good way to open up your paper. This will be the “hook”. What the writer wants to do is have something that will get the reader’s attention and keep them reading on. In The Bedford Guide for College Writers on page 291it says that “Even writers with something to say may find it hard to begin. Often they are so intent on writing a brilliant opening that they freeze, unable to write at all”. Some ways to do this include telling an anecdote, starting with a quote, or a thought provoking question. Also analogies or interesting stories are good ways to grab the reader’s attention. After the reader becomes interested in the paper and continues to read on then the writer can state the actual purpose of the paper. This is called the thesis statement.
The thesis is written at the end of the introduction. The thesis lets the reader know what will ultimately be discussed. Several body paragraphs should be written after the introduction. Each body paragraph needs a strong topic sentence which states a point that will be supported in the remainder of the paragraph. It helps to make a list of all the points that need to be made in the paper, but all the points need to also follow the blueprint set up by the thesis. This helps to keep the paper streamlined and prevents from rambling. Following the body paragraphs is the conclusion or ending. This will be where the clincher is set. The conclusion will not only summarize the paper, but it also can help to drive the main idea home. In the conclusion, it is best if the reader is really left with a sense that a point has been made. The reader should never be left with the feeling of “What was that about?” If this is the case, more than likely the writer has missed the mark of not only stating an idea and supporting it, but also having the reader understand what the paper was about in the first place. It is very important to keep the paper organized and streamlined so the reader does not feel confused. If all goes well during this process, it is time to move on.
After the drafting stage then the paper can be revised. During revision is when someone else such as, a teacher, a peer or oneself, reads and critiques the paper. It is best if the person doing the revision not only mentions the weaknesses, but the strengths as well. This will help the writer to know what they are good at and what may need a little work. One reason to have someone else read over a paper is because if it was written on a computer, many times there are little errors. This would include the misuse of words such as “then” when it should be “than” or small grammatical errors. Even reading the paper aloud, slowly, will help the reader catch little mistakes. Sometimes whole sentences can be taken out or perhaps a couple of paragraphs might be rewritten into one. Another reason for having someone else read the paper is because they can give a reader's opinion. Is the point brought out and supported? Is the paper organized? These questions, and more, can be answered during the revision stage. The only way mistakes can be fixed is if they are first addressed.
Another type of revision is often called “global revision,” which helps to address bigger issues than just spelling and grammar. What global revision focuses on are issues such as “…- the focus, organization, paragraphing, content, and overall strategy.” (A Writer’s Reference 17) The content of the paper could change drastically during this process, but the whole process is for the best. If the paper needs to be revised by the writer then this is a little more difficult. Sometimes it is hard to distance oneself from the paper as a writer and look at it from an objective point of view. One way to do this is to leave your paper overnight or even longer. After returning to the paper try and read it from an audience’s point of view. Whether doing personal revising, or enlisting the help of other reviewers, try to follow the checklist for Global reviewing which can be found on page 18 of A Writer’s Reference. Once the writer has found out what mistakes there are within the paper, it is time to fix them. This is the editing stage.
The definition of editing is revision and preparation for publication. It is also the next important step to good writing. This is the process when the mistakes found during revision are taken into consideration and fixed. Just like when one is sewing, this step is important because if you did not fix the mistakes, then it just would not have the right fit. A paper is, in a way, similar to a dress. If the paper does not have the right “fit”, the readers will not enjoy it as much. As mentioned before, one of the main purposes for good writing is to captivate the audience. This means that the audience needs to not only be able to recognize the focus of the paper, but also be able to realize the standpoint of the author on the matter. One more piece of advice for this stage is to take a break before the paper is reread and rewritten. Natalie Goldberg states that “Often while you are writing you have no idea whether you have written anything good or not” (162). After taking a break one can begin the editing process and there are many ways to go about this.
One way is to go over what needs to be fixed. Usually, it helps to make a list and check it off once it has been fixed. After that, the writer can double check the paper for unnecessary words. When dealing with a word choice issue a thesaurus will help if the writer is trying to get rid of repetitive words or perhaps just looking for words that will liven up the text. If there are a couple of short or choppy sentences, try to make them all flow together. Another thing to check for is that there are nice transitions between each paragraph. This will help to keep the paper unitary and flowing, instead of stopping on one topic and picking up another. When all of the mistakes have been fixed and the writer feels confident about moving on, there is one more thing that needs to be done. This is proofreading. Proofreading is when the whole paper is reread after the revisions and editing has been made, just to make sure that there is nothing else that needs to be fixed. After taking one last look at what could be called the “rough draft” the writer can then move on to the last and final step.
There is only one more thing that needs to be accomplished before the paper can officially be called done. This is the publishing step. (What is included is basically to put on the finishing touches to make sure that everything is as it should be.) After this step is completed is left over with is the final draft or the finished product. What needs to be remembered is that the final draft is ultimately a reflection of the writer.
What needs to be within the final draft is the introduction, with a “grabber” at the beginning, along with the thesis statement and forecasting statement. Following the introduction is the body paragraphs. The body paragraphs need to begin with a strong topic sentence which makes a point that is supported in the rest of the paragraph. All of the body paragraphs need to support some portion of the main idea brought out in thesis statement. Lastly there should be the conclusion which needs to either summarize the paper, restate the main idea, or both. All of these elements need to be found within the paper and in the right order. If this is done and done correctly what is left is a paper that a writer could be proud of and a reader would enjoy. Writing is a skill that everyone learns yet not everyone is good at. All of this could change if the five steps are followed.