ELEMENTS OF PROCESS WRITING

INTRODUCTION TO PROCESS WRITING

It has always been a challenge to produce a good piece of writing that serves the intended purpose. More often, the writer is more concerned with putting his or her ideas on paper with little concern on the reader’s reaction towards the written piece. It is important to remember that at the end of the day, what matter is how the reader will react to the writing and not what the writer has submitted. Without a good plan or map to direct your writing task, there is a danger that you might wander off topic. Thus, it is important that before you start the writing, spend time to produce a working plan or map. With all the ideas already written on a piece of paper, it also helps identify your strengths and weaknesses (knowledge) regarding the topic you wish to write about. This planning will help you achieve consistency and effectively achieve your objective.

Stages of Writing

Often, the writer has many interesting ideas to convey and these can also be quite complex. However, the writing that explains them need not be complex. To fulfil your reader’s understanding of your ideas, there are steps that the writer must follow. The following chart illustrates the five

basic steps:

Step 1: Pre-Writing – Getting your thoughts down on paper

• Who is my reader (audience)? Do they have any background knowledge of my topic?

• What is my purpose? Is it to inform, analyse or persuade?

• What do I want to say? Do I need to research information in completing the assignment?

• Brainstorm. Which ideas best suit the topic (usually 3 or 4 main points for the whole essay).

Step 2: Drafting – Putting your thoughts together in sentences and paragraphs

• Are my thoughts well organised? Am I making more points than

planned?

• Which ideas do I want to develop? Which ones do I develop further?

• What order should I use, namely direct (deductive) or indirect (inductive)?

Step 3: Revising – Rewriting sentences to make sense

• Are my details clear (correct terms, facts or numbers, reasons, anecdotes and examples)?

• Should I add or take out parts? Remove unrelated information.

  Stay on topic. Elaborate your main and supporting ideas clearly.

• Is the writing in sensible and logical order? Should I utilise charts, tables or diagrams to better         illustrate the points?

Step 4: Editing – Correcting grammar and punctuation

• Are the sentences complete (Subject (S) + Verb (Vb) + Object (Ob))?

• Are my language conventions correct? (Spelling, capitalization, punctuation)

• Am I using correct grammar and time zone (present tense, past and future)?

Step 5: Presenting – Sharing your work

• Is the title catchy and interesting?

• Is the final print neat and meets the requirements (length, APA referencing etc.) Format text.

• Should I read it aloud?