Writing is a Process

1. Writing is a Process Just as building doesn’t begin with a hammer, writing doesn’t begin with a pen. Both activities involve several stages- from the first idea to a finished product.

2. Prewriting • The prewriting stage begins with selecting and exploring a topic. • One useful technique is to search your memory for experiences you’d like to share. • Think about which ideas you’d enjoy writing about and which might interest others • Decide how to organize these ideas.

3. Drafting • When you draft, you turn your prewriting notes into sentences and paragraphs. • You arrange your ideas in the order you chose in prewriting. • New ideas will continue to come. • Write them all down. Some will work, and some won’t. • Your draft may look messy, but don’t worry. You can fix it later.

4. Revising • Step back and look over what you’ve written. • Read it aloud to peer reviewers. • Answer questions like the following: • Are your ideas clear? • Do they fit together? • What other details might help your readers understand and enjoy what you’ve written?

5. I felt nervous walking in that first morning. The halls were crowded. People seemed happy to be starting a new year. They didn’t seem to need to know a new person, and one from another country at that.

6. I felt nervous walking into Carver Junior High School that first morning. The halls were crowded. Friends greeted each other,people seemed happy to be starting a new year together. They didn’t seem to need to know a new person, andespecially one from faraway Japananother country at that. • Why do you think these changes were made?

7. Editing/Proofing • In the editing/proofreading stage, you examine each word, phrase, and sentence in your writing. • This is the time to find and correct any errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. • Your goal is to make a neat, error-free copy for others to read and enjoy.

8. Two-Minute Skill Drill • Write this sentence down on your sheet of paper: i haven’t ever tried cooking things. • First, REVISE this sentence (adding details.) • Now, rewrite the sentence with your revisions. • Lastly, EDIT this sentence (punctuation/grammar)

9. Publishing/Presenting • In the publishing/presenting stage, you share your writing. • You can read a report aloud in class. • You can work with others to publish a class poetry book. • You can write a letter to the editor of the school newspaper. • What other ways can you think of to share your work?

10. Be Flexible • Writing is a messy process. Ideas rarely flow in an orderly way. • Novelist James A. Michener once said, “I have never thought of myself as a good writer. Anyone who wants reassurance of that should read one of my first drafts. But I’m one of the world’s great rewriters.”

11. At any stage in the writing process, a writer can think of new ideas to include and better ways to say something. • Feel free to move backward and forward in the writing process. • For example if you get stuck while writing your draft, go back to prewriting and add to your notes. • In editing, if a sentence doesn’t say what you mean, return to drafting. If you have a new idea, insert it. • One of this writer’s best ideas about a small world came during a revision.

12. How wrong I was! The first surprise came when I met Ms. Osaka. I couldn’t believe that she’d moved here just a year ago from Kushiro, my native city in Japan. How wrong I was! The first surpriseicebreaker came when I met Ms. Osaka, the school librarian. I couldn’t believe that she’d moved here just a year ago from Kushiro, my native city in Japan. Immediately, I understood the meaning of the term “small world.” Why does the addition about the term “small world” improve the piece?