A Three-Level System for Revision
There are three major stages of any revision. Following these steps will make the most efficient use of your revising time by sparing you from having to correct small mistakes again and again. If you’ve ever felt plagued by mechanical errors, or if you have trouble focusing on anything but where commas go, then this system may feel uncomfortable at first — or it may feel freeing. Practicing it will assist you in completing your best work, no matter what the deadline.
Our three levels are: Global Revision, Section Revision, and Line Revision.
Global Revision
It is absolutely possible to turn in a paper that has beautifully crafted sentences, gorgeous detail, an engaging opening paragraph, and a conclusion that brings its readers to tears and to still see a failing grade come back at the top. How? Why? Usually when this happens, it’s because the writer has completed the wrong assignment: Answered the wrong question, used the wrong sources, described the wrong event, or read the wrong piece.
Global Revision is the way to guard against this gigantic waste of time because Global Revision takes us back to where we started.
In Global Revision, we look at the piece as a whole, and then ask:
- Does this meet the criteria of the original idea, prompt, assignment, or requirement?
- Does the writing use the correct source material?
- Does the writing consider its audience correctly?
- Does the writing have a clear purpose?
- Does the writing have a clear point that can be summed up in a single sentence?
These questions may sound familiar because we’ve seen them before — during our assignment analysis. Global Revision asks us to return to those original ideas and compare our finished product — meaning we’ve got to figure out if the paper we wrote actually answers its assignment, in the right length, with the right tone, using the right sources, and for the right audience.
To do this, make sure the original assignment sheet — or your initial notes from analyzing the assignment — are next to you as you re-read your paper. This can be a helpful thing to do with an outside reader, such as a peer editor or a writing center tutor. This first check will establish that the paper is on the right topic.
If there are flaws here, you may need to do a complete re-write of the paper — meaning going back to analyzing the assignment again. That’s why having extra time between revision and the deadline is crucial — it’s better to find out you’ve answered the wrong question with two days left to go than to find it out with two hours left — or to find it out after you’ve already received your paper back!
Global Revision with Reverse Outlines
Another step that can be helpful in Global Revision is to look at the paper’s overall organization. Once we’ve established that it’s answering the right question, we can look at how the information within the paper is organized to be certain that it will line up easily for the reader.
One great way to do this is to complete a Reverse Outline. This is most helpful for essays of at least 5 paragraphs, but it can be tailored down to even smaller assignments.
When completing a Reverse Outline, we take an already produced work and try to outline what we see on the page. It’s important to stick to what’s actually in front of us instead of trying to outline what we wish was there — which can be tricky when dealing with your own paper.
Watch the video at this Web site to see how to create a good Reverse Outline.
Use this outline to fix any organizational problems by shifting whole chunks of the paper from place to place. You can also consider what the best method of organization will be for this paper: Should the most important point come first, or should you save it for the end? Is it better to start this story in the middle and then flashback to the beginning, or should it all be told in the order it happened? Think of your audience as you consider this, and remember it’s their attention you’ll need to hold.