Rewriting

Step 4

Revising / Rewriting

When you begin to revise your writing, you try to make improvements to make your writing better. No writer can produce a perfect first draft!

1.	Reread Your First Draft.

Read your first draft ORALLY to yourself, and ask:

Do my ideas flow freely from sentence to sentence and paragraph to paragraph?

Are my ideas expressed clearly?

Did I stick to my topic?

Are my topic sentences interesting?

Are my sentence beginnings varied? (I don't start every sentence the same way!)

Do I need to add any necessary details?

Do I need to leave out any unnecessary details?

Do I need to use better, more descriptive words anywhere?

Have I accomplished what I wanted?

What changes should I make?

2.	Read and Reread!

As you read and reread:

Make pencil marks where your writing seems to be unclear, or wherever you feel you can make improvements.

Listen carefully for choppy sentences or parts that don't flow smoothly when read. Choosing the right words is important to good writing!

If you think parts of your writing are good, mark them as good with a pencil and keep them in your final draft.

2.	Make Changes.

Rewrite the sentences and paragraphs that need to be rewritten.
Rearrange words or ideas
Add or take out parts
Change words or ideas to better ones
Complete any unfinished thoughts
Replace overused or unclear words
Correct any grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure errors

Step 5 of the Writing Process: Proofreading

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