After you have completed a rough draft, you can begin the process of revision. Revising involves rethinking and re-envisioning your document. It focuses on such big-picture issues as whether the document you’ve drafted is appropriate for your writing situation, whether your argument is sound and well supported, and whether you’ve organized and presented your information, ideas, and arguments clearly.

Polishing and editing, the final stages of a writing project, focus on improving your style and assessing the effectiveness, accuracy, and appropriateness of the words and sentences in your document. During these final stages, you’ll also make sure that you’ve given credit to the writers whose ideas you’ve used in your work and that you have fully documented your sources. Chapter 20 offers strategies for revising and editing your writing. Chapters 21 and 22 provide information about documenting sources.

Revising your essay often relies on peer-review activities conducted in collaboration with other writers. Chapter 4 discusses peer review and other collaborative activities. You’ll also find peer-review guidelines in Chapters 5 through 10, as well as a wide range of Working Together activities throughout this book.