How to revise anything

expository writing High School
By Max N.

a tribute o my frinds since grade school (2)The most important part of writing is rewriting. Whether you’re working on a term paper, a personal statement, or a lab report, getting words on the page is just the first step. Even if you’re writing from an outline, the process of writing inevitably leads you to unexpected and interesting places. That’s part of the joy of writing, but it’s also why revision—literally, looking again—is all the more important. If the first part of writing is a mix of planning and inspiration, revision is where writing becomes craft. Through editing, a bunch of good ideas turns into a structured argument; a passionate statement of purpose, or a first-person essay, becomes a work of art.

So, what’s the best way to revise? Start with these 3 steps:

1. Identify the key points.

Ask yourself: what am I trying to say? Don’t let the simplicity of this question fool you: it’s often quite difficult to answer. Try to state in one or two sentences what you are trying to communicate in your essay. Then, write down that statement. It doesn’t need to be the most eloquent thing ever written, but take time to make sure it captures the scope (whether narrow or wide) of your paper, and reflects, even if very generally, the movement of your argument or narrative.

2. Make sure each paragraph fulfills its function.

Go through each paragraph and try to identify its function in your argument or narrative. You can even try to give it a title: i.e., introduction, analysis paragraph, transition from section one to two, etc. Often it helps to identify and mark the most important sentence in a paragraph.

3. Create a reverse outline of the paper.

The easiest way to do this is to take your one- or two-sentence summary, and put it at the top of a new document. Then, copy the most important sentence from each paragraph. You can use additional formatting, if you like, to indicate sections.

You’ve now x-rayed your paper. Does everything look like it’s in its place? If not, rearrange your paragraphs so that the logic flows smoothly.

Now, replicate the same process on the level of the paragraph.

1. Position your topic sentences. You’ve already identified the most important sentence/thought in each paragraph. Make sure that that sentence occupies a prominent position, usually at the beginning or the end of the paragraph. Paragraphs should only really make one point, so if you have several sentences, break up the paragraph and repeat.

2. Ruthlessly get rid of unnecessary sentences. Go through each sentence in the paragraph and ask how it relates to the function of that paragraph. Often, we keep sentences because they are interesting or well-written. But, sometimes they don’t actually have that much to do with what we’re talking about: they’re like stowaways from earlier drafts, or little trinkets that we just can’t bear to throw away. If something is interesting but irrelevant (if a sentence seems too cumbersome or introduces information that requires too much explanation), copy and paste it into another document, or copy it into a notebook, so that you can return to it in another project.

3. Mind the transitions. Finally, make sure your transitions between paragraphs are clear.

You can repeat this process as many times as necessary. You will know that you have finished when you can account for every section, every paragraph, every sentence, and even every word in your piece, and explain what it’s doing there. Don’t go crazy—or do. Ultimately, see what works and what doesn’t; develop your own techniques for revision. We often talk about developing a personal voice as a writer. But, just as important is developing an editor’s eye and ear.

Cambridge Coaching was founded by doctoral candidates in English, and instruction in reading and writing is one of our particular strengths. Our tutors are published authors, as well as Ph.D candidates from the top English graduate programs in America, with most hailing from Harvard or the prestigious Iowa Writers’ Workshop--or both.

We have a long history of helping high school, college, and graduate students become more astute critical readers and writers capable of producing their own polished academic essays. Many of our students come to us looking for help with basic composition or reading comprehension, but our expert tutors have coached our clients through everything from business English to doctoral dissertations. Whether you need to learn how to tell a participle from a pronoun, or need help making sense of Shakespeare, we can design a syllabus to suit your specific goal.

Contact us!

Check out some other blog posts regarding writing below!:

Betwixt and between: difficult grammar rules explained

Five strategies to improve your writing

It’s All Greek to Me—How to Build Vocabulary from the Ground Up

Comments

topicTopics
academics study skills MCAT medical school admissions SAT expository writing college admissions English MD/PhD admissions strategy writing LSAT GMAT GRE physics chemistry math biology graduate admissions academic advice ACT interview prep law school admissions test anxiety language learning premed MBA admissions career advice personal statements homework help AP exams creative writing MD study schedules computer science test prep Common Application summer activities history mathematics philosophy organic chemistry secondary applications economics supplements research 1L PSAT admissions coaching grammar law psychology statistics & probability legal studies ESL CARS SSAT covid-19 dental admissions logic games reading comprehension engineering USMLE calculus PhD admissions Spanish mentorship parents Latin biochemistry case coaching verbal reasoning DAT English literature STEM excel medical school political science skills AMCAS French Linguistics MBA coursework Tutoring Approaches academic integrity chinese letters of recommendation Anki DO Social Advocacy admissions advice algebra artificial intelligence astrophysics business cell biology classics diversity statement gap year genetics geometry kinematics linear algebra mechanical engineering mental health presentations quantitative reasoning study abroad technical interviews time management work and activities 2L DMD IB exams ISEE MD/PhD programs Sentence Correction adjusting to college algorithms amino acids analysis essay art history athletics business skills careers cold emails data science dental school finance first generation student functions information sessions international students internships logic networking poetry resume revising science social sciences software engineering tech industry trigonometry writer's block 3L AAMC Academic Interest EMT FlexMed Fourier Series Greek Health Professional Shortage Area Italian Lagrange multipliers London MD vs PhD MMI Montessori National Health Service Corps Pythagorean Theorem Python Shakespeare Step 2 TMDSAS Taylor Series Truss Analysis Zoom acids and bases active learning architecture argumentative writing art art and design schools art portfolios bacteriology bibliographies biomedicine brain teaser campus visits cantonese capacitors capital markets central limit theorem centrifugal force chemical engineering chess chromatography class participation climate change clinical experience community service constitutional law consulting cover letters curriculum dementia demonstrated interest dimensional analysis distance learning econometrics electric engineering electricity and magnetism escape velocity evolution executive function freewriting genomics graphing harmonics health policy history of medicine history of science hybrid vehicles hydrophobic effect ideal gas law immunology induction infinite institutional actions integrated reasoning intermolecular forces intern investing investment banking lab reports linear maps mandarin chinese matrices mba medical physics meiosis microeconomics mitosis mnemonics music music theory nervous system neurology neuroscience object-oriented programming office hours operating systems