Writing a college essay can be a very
difficult task. However, there are
techniques to help make this task easier.
The writing process is a three stage approach to planning and creating a
college essay. These stages are known as
prewriting, writing, and revising. If a
student follows this process, she will write a good paper.
The first stage of the writing process is
called prewriting. There are five
prewriting techniques that help writers to understand the topic and purpose of
the writing assignment and limit the topic to a manageable and appropriate
idea. The techniques are brainstorming,
freewriting,
diagramming, making a list, and preparing an outline. In brainstorming, you generate ideas for you
writing. A writer might view a film and
discuss or write their impressions, write a list of ideas for an essay, or
discuss a topic with a group of students.
You might ask yourself some questions such as What? Why? When? Where?
How? and Who? In freewriting, you write
non-stop about a subject for a certain amount of time. Spelling or punctuation, mistakes, and
finding exact words do not matter. It
helps you to get a clearer picture of what you are trying you say. Diagramming is helpful for people who think
in a visual way. You can put your idea
in a circle or block and branch off examples or other ideas pertaining to
it. The fourth technique is making a
list. You list as many items you can
that has a relation to your topic. Your
goal is to make details and to gather as much material as possible so you have
something to start with when you go to write your paper. The last technique is preparing an
outline. The thesis statement is clearly
stated on the outline and a specific outline format is followed. Outlining gives you a sense of organization
and allows you to see quickly if you have enough support for your ideas. After the writer is done prewriting, she
moves on to the next step.
The second stage for the writing process
is called writing. In the writing phase,
you make decisions about developing and organizing your ideas into writing and
discover what you know about the subject.
Insights gained from the prewriting phase help shape ideas into meaning
for yourself and others. The writer may
prepare a rough draft, focusing on the purpose of the writing and choosing a
suitable form for a specific audience.
You need a thesis to work with first.
The thesis will be your guide while you write your essay. An effective thesis statement should not be
an obvious opinion that every reader already shares and focuses on an idea that
can be supported evidence rather than emotion.
Writers might develop ideas using imagery, logical argument, supporting
detail, examples, etc. After the writer
is done with the writing stage, she moves on the third step.
The third stage of the writing process is
called revising. You clarify and refine
your writing in thesis stage. After you
have finished one our more drafts of the essay, you should begin revising your
paper. Revising might involve reworking
the written expression, so that it clearly and actively conveys the ideas,
rearranging words or sentences to create and effect, and inserting punctuation
and correcting spelling to assist the reader.
At this stage of the writing process, you are interested in clarifying
the message by changing words, sentences, or even whole paragraphs. Two examples of revising are editing and
proofreading. When you edit your paper,
you are looking for mistakes in grammar, mechanics, punctuation, and
usage. Proofreading comes after you edit
in the final copy for any mistakes in typing or handwriting. Revising might also involve redrafting.
As you can clearly see, the writing
process is a three step approach that makes writing easier. If you follow these steps, you should be able
to write a good college essay.
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