Organizing Freewriting: A Checklist for Revision
EngC1011 University Writing and Critical Reading
Kevin L. Callahan
EngC1011 Writing Instructor
E-mail: call0031@tc.umn.edu
Telephone: (612) 623-7685
(Sources: Stephen Reid (2000) The Prentice Hall Guide for College Writers 5th Ed. Prentice Hall: New Jersey, and L. Kirzner and S. Mandell (2001) Patterns for College Writing 8th Ed. Bedford/St. Martin’s: Boston.)
Who specifically is your audience for this writing and what is your purpose in writing this?
Are you writing for yourself, your family, the general public, your professors? Who will read your writing? What are their expectations and what is their level of knowledge of the subject matter?
Do you have a thesis?
A thesis is your central point. It is the main idea. A thesis needs support. The support can be an example (or examples) or other forms of evidence. Is your thesis statement clear and specific? Is it consistent with the body of your text? Will your central point be interesting and significant to your audience?
Is the body of your text organized, clear, and does it support your thesis?
Paragraphs should be organized to have a topic sentence and supporting information or explanatory support. Organization can be chronological, spatial, a comparison and then a contrast, an argument by example, an argument for a value, policy, or cause and effect, a definition and example, etc. Comparison and contrast uses words and phrases like "on the other hand, similarly, however, nonetheless, but, yet, or still." What exactly is your principle of organization?
Are your sentences clear and pleasing to the ear and the eye?
Find a private place and read your writing out loud in a strong voice. Do not just read it silently. Reading your writing aloud slows your eye down. Your voice will catch awkward phrases. The ideal way to catch errors is to have someone else read it aloud. This will catch the choppy sentences, the missing words, and any awkward phrases that just did not come out right. Are your sentences varied in length and structure and "easy on the ear?" Do you have a pleasant flow to your sentences and transitions? Are you using active rather than passive verbs e.g. "I ran the race" instead of "I had run the race?" Have you broken up overly long run-on sentences into smaller sentences? Would your text sound better in the third-person or the first-person e.g. "He (you are describing yourself) ran the marathon in eight hours" as opposed to "I ran the marathon in eight hours?"
Do you have an Introduction and Conclusion?
Are the introduction and conclusion interesting and do they reinforce your main idea or thesis? Usually the introduction and conclusion are written and revised after the body of the text is completed.
Do you have a Title?
A title is your reader’s first impression and should be clear, reflect your purpose, tone, and hopefully spark their interest. It should be interesting.
Examples:
"The embalming of Mr. Jones"
"A night on Mount Fuji"
"Why I carry a gun."
"How the Republicans Stole Winter."
"My Dad, the movie mogul."
"Pica and its connection to the production of rock art around the world"
Academic papers sometimes use a colon e.g.
"Grant and Patton: A study of contrasting leadership styles"
Leave yourself time to revise.
Get your week organized and schedule a specific time and place to: