The Writing Process

The writing process consists of four basic stages — generating ideas, planning and drafting, revising, and editing. The flowchart below shows the four basic stages of the writing process and the steps within each stage.

THE WRITING PROCESS

Generate ideas

CONSIDER: What is my purpose in writing? Given this purpose, what interests me? What connections can I make among ideas? Who will read what I am writing? What do they need to know?

  • Determine your audience and purpose (see “Audience and Purpose”).
  • Find and explore your topic (see “Finding, Narrowing, and Exploring Your Topic”).
  • Make your point (see “Thesis Statements” in Chapter 3).
  • Support your point (see “Support for Your Thesis” in Chapter 3).

Plan and Draft

CONSIDER: How can I organize and present my ideas effectively for my readers?

  • Arrange your ideas, and make an outline (see “Arrange Your Ideas” in Chapter 3).
  • Write a draft, including an introduction that will interest your readers, a strong conclusion, and a title (see Chapter 4).

Revise

CONSIDER: How can I make my draft clearer or more convincing to my readers?

  • Look for ideas that do not fit (see Chapter 4).
  • Look for ideas that could use more detailed support (see Chapter 4).
  • Connect ideas with transitional words and sentences (see Chapter 4).

Edit

CONSIDER: What errors could confuse my readers and weaken my point?

  • Find and correct the most serious errors in grammar (Chapter 16).
  • Look for other errors in grammar and style (Chapter 17).
  • Check your punctuation and capitalization (Chapter 18).