Image by Petro Feketa
re·vise verb \ri-ˈvīz\ : to look over again in order to correct or improve
The birds are starting to chirp. Your bed is covered with open books and crumpled scraps of paper. The coffee you grabbed as they closed the dining hall is long gone and you have moved on to your roommate’s Red Bull.
You plan on running the spell check one last time and will consider your essay done. What a relief! You have about three hours to spare until the deadline. If your caffeine buzz fades a bit, you might even catch a nap before class.
Maybe you thrive under pressure and pride yourself on pulling your assignments together at the last minute. What some people call procrastination may be what you consider a reliable strategy for getting things done because, even if it requires an all-nighter or two, you still manage to pass in your work on time.
Thing is, your paper isn’t really finished if you are asking Microsoft Word to be your final proofreader. Revising is about more than making sure that you’ve caught all the incomplete sentences. It is also about more than a couple of quick edits that involve changing some words around so that sentences flow more smoothly. Revision involves even more than making certain that your paper is formatted correctly.
A revision process undertaken with the goal of achieving a true final draft that is as perfect as possible is every bit as important as assembling a first draft. You need to remember that revision can be an involved process. It generally requires more than just a final read-through in the computer lab before you print out your paper.
Revision is about determining whether:
- your argument is coherent throughout the entire essay
- the examples your provide support your initial thesis statement
- all details are relevant and essential
- your facts are correct and you do not mislead your readers in an attempt to prove your point
Some helpful tips for the revision process
- Time heals most (but not all) papers. Step away from your paper for at least a few hours before you start the revision process. A day or two is even better. Looking at your work with fresh eyes will make all the difference.
- Let the ending determine the beginning. If you find that your paper does not manage to support your initial thesis statement or the title that you gave your paper, consider changing the introductory information rather than rewriting your entire paper. Maybe you intended to write about how Salman Rushdie wanted to wreak havoc when he published The Satanic Verses, but upon closer examination you realize your research points in the opposite direction. It’s ok to change your title and initial paragraphs if your research caused you to rethink your hypothesis.
- Don’t “get married” to any parts of your work. You may spend hours on a particular section of your paper, but on second glance realize that it is a tangential argument that does not strengthen your overriding thesis statement. You have to be willing to click “delete” or “cut” and clear away the superfluous ideas that dim the brilliance of the rest of your work. Create a folder of paragraphs and concepts that were left at the altar – you never know whether they may be the perfect match for your next assignment.
You put so much time into the research and the writing of your paper, make sure that your ideas shine through clear, well organized prose in the final product. Give yourself time to revise your work and keep an open mind as you review it. And don’t forget to be sure that you have formatted your paper correctly according to the APA, MLA or Chicago Styles as assigned by your professor, and make the process simple by using StyleEase Software.”
Filed under: APA Style, Chicago/Turabian Style, General Writing Information, MLA Style
