Why is it important to revise the scholarly piece of writing?
by Aminat Abubakar – Sunday, 19 February 2017

Revising is the most important aspect of writing. The writers’ first written draft is mostly their first point of thought on what to write. Booth, Colomb, & William explained, “You must first know what readers look for, then determine whether your draft helps them find it…you have to analyze your draft objectively” (2008, p. 203). Revising involves taking a critical look at the whole structure of the paper, and see if there is a balance. In addition, to find out if the argument is correctly placed in the introduction, does the paper deliver on the topic, are the paragraphs coherent, do the sentences flow smoothly into the next; as well as check spelling and punctuation.

During revision, the writer has three things in mind for the reader. Where the introduction stops, where the conclusion begins, and which sentence states the main topic in the paper. Revising a paper helps the writer in the identification of the substances in the argument and the evaluation of the quality of work.

Real revision requires that you open yourself up to the possibility that parts of your paper – and even your entire paper – might need to be re-thought, and re-written, (www.dept.washington.edu).

Three-step revision process

References

1. Booth, W. C., Colomb, G. G., & Williams, J. M. (2008). The craft of research (3rd ed.). Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press. ISBN: 860-1400125373.
2. Pattheprofessor (Director). (2008, January 11). Three-step revision process [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ezI42BqJ4d4
3. Revising Your Paper. Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/owrc/Handouts/Revising%20Your%20Paper.pdf