Step-by-Step Revision Plan for Essay #2
1.) Number each of the paragraphs in your draft.
2.) On a separate sheet of paper, and using the paragraph numbers in your draft, make up an "outline" of your paper. Use key words, fragments, phrases, or complete sentences -- your choice.
3.) Recheck your draft against your outline. Are all the paragraphs focused and unified on one major idea? Do any paragraphs have more than one main idea? If so, perhaps there should be two paragraphs instead of one.
4.) Study the order of the paragraphs. Imagine rearranging them. What might be the result? Play with different orders, either in your mind, on paper, or actually cut out the paragraphs and move them around. Write a note to yourself about what is the best order and WHY.
5.) Study each body paragraph, one at a time. Look for a clear statement of the main idea -- we call this the topic sentence, and it functions in a paragraph much the same way the thesis functions in an essay. The topic sentence is the "umbrella" for the paragraph, just like the thesis statement is the "umbrella" for the essay. The topic sentence (or the thesis statement) is usually an assertion or claim or statement that the paragraph (or essay) will support.
6.) Study your introduction. Here are some ideas:
Be sure that you include the author's full name and the title of her book.
Perhaps summarize her purpose/aim in writing the book.
Be sure to include your thesis statement.
Perhaps include a "forecast" statement which "predicts" the main ideas of your essay.
7.) Study your conclusion. Here are some ideas:
What will make your readers think BEYOND the book?
What will make your readers think BEYOND your essay?
What will happen in the future in this sort of thing continues? Speculate! Hypothesize!
Call your readers to action!
Put in a brief story/anecdote from your own personal experience.
Put in personal commentary you couldn't fit into the essay.
Evaluate the book -- did you like reading it? was it good or bad? etc.