Revising with higher order concerns
Revision implies a “re-seeing” of your text, not just a quick clean up. To effectively revise, or re-see, writers should focus on rhetorical concerns that have significant impact on the text. For example, focusing on purpose and organization will have more impact than smaller concerns such as commas. Additionally, editing is best saved for the end of your process because any changes you make to higher order concerns will create a need to edit later.
Purpose and focus
Purpose and focus have a few implications for writing, including a clear claim and depth of discussion (rather than breadth). You want your purpose/focus to be clear to yourself—you should be able to easily explain your focus to a younger or less experienced person.
Tips for checking purpose
- Write your focus/purpose in one sentence without looking at your paper.
- Highlight the thesis statement and ask yourself if your evidence supports the statement.
- Be willing to adjust your thesis to match your evidence.
Organization
Organization is a key focus for revision because the order in which ideas make it from our minds to the page is not always the most effective. With increased use of technology, many writers skip pre-writing or planning and jump into drafting, which requires attention to organization during revision.
Tips for checking organization
- Identify your main points throughout the paper. If you have more than one main point per paragraph, split the ideas into separate paragraphs and review development for each main point.
- Check if you have positioned your strongest points at the beginning of the text or at the end.
- The first paragraph after the introduction is a good place for points that will be engaging to your audience (to hold their attention further into the paper).
- The last paragraph before the conclusion is a good place for points that have high persuasive appeals for the audience (because it is the last point your audience will remember).
Audience
Audience is often a forgotten concern during revision; however, targeting a specific audience with all of your document’s elements is crucial to a successful text.
Tips for checking audience concerns
- Outline the specific audience you are addressing by describing demographics (e.g. age, gender, culture, religious/political affiliation, socio-economic status, etc.) of your audience.
- Check if evidence would be interesting and persuasive to your target audience.
Development
Development is crucial to a successful text because you want to have enough evidence, explanation, and synthesis to substantiate the claim(s) you are making.
Tips for checking development
- Analyze the sources/evidence you have included to make sure they are credible, relevant, and the most current.
- Check to see if you have introduced, explained, and connected to your purpose all evidence/sources.