On Writing

When I write, I need to set aside enough time so I can leave my writing for a few hours, or days. By taking that time off, am really able to notice the weak areas of my paper once I return, whether it is the supporting evidence, word choice, flow of the paragraphs, etc. One of the main things I look for when revising is my argument, and making sure the information and evidence I have included supports that argument and is not unnecessary. I also read from paragraph to paragraph to make sure the progression of my ideas is natural and easy for the reader to follow. At this point I also ask others to help by reading through the essay to make sure my ideas are not just clear to me, but to everyone else too.

I think what is helping me most as I write this paper is constantly referring back to the passage to be sure I stay focused. I can often diverge from my original thoughts as the paper progresses, as one idea leads to another and soon I am talking about an idea that only vaguely references the passage. By continuously referencing the passage and my argument, I can also notice how my argument evolves as I write. I think my main claim about the passage is what changed the most throughout my paper. As I wrote I would think of new ideas, which could quickly have become a garbled mess of thoughts. But, by having others read through the essay and also continuing to refer back to the passage, I was able to reconfigure my argument to address these new ideas.