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Composing texts involves a sequenced, step-by-step process, from generating ideas to publishing a finished piece of writing. Understanding the stages in the writing process gives apprentice writers a clear mental map of the steps they need to take to produce a piece of writing which fits its purpose and engages the reader. It develops their skills in both their authorial (the drafting and revision) and secretarial (editing) stages. It makes visible each step in the process of crafting a text, the strategies that can be adopted at each stage, and, with effective feedback given at each step, it scaffolds the writing task. It helps to develop an apprentice writer’s self-efficacy – the confidence to tackle a piece of writing by believing in their ability, and that, through their own efforts and the strategies they adopt, they can improve their writing.
The writing process involves the following stages:
1. Audience and purpose
- Why am I writing this?
- What am I writing?
- Who am I writing it for?
2. Brainstorming ideas
- Events
- Places
- Characters
- Key moments
- Key ideas
- Information about a topic
3. Planning and rehearsing
- Sorting ideas
- Developing ideas, plots, descriptions
- Organising ideas, information, themes
- Rehearsing the writing: retelling the story aloud to an audience, who ask questions about any information, events etc. that are unclear
Each writer has a preferred method of planning. Some like a boxed plan, others story webs or illustrated storyboards. Some like to just get their ideas down on paper without much planning; others prefer to plan in a methodical, detailed way using an outline for each element of the story (setting, character, plot, problem and resolution) or topic. It is important to explore each method to find which one suits each individual writer.
4. Drafting
- Recording ideas in a first draft
Very few professional writers get the draft ‘right’ the first time, and many rewrite their text dozens of times. They see the draft as a time of discovery: a small step in the writing process. It is a testing ground to explore ideas and decide:
- What you want to write
- How you want to write it
The blank page is the first major obstacle any writer needs to overcome. There is nothing but white space staring back at you. The best way to overcome this is to ignore it and just start writing words: even one word on the page means it is no longer blank. Freewriting is a useful strategy to ‘open the mind’ and helps overcome the ‘blank page syndrome.’ A freewriting exercise is included in Chapter 3.
5. Revising
Improving the effectiveness of the writing:
- Whole text
- Sentences
- Word choice
Professional writers do not regard first drafts as failures or a sign that they cannot write. In fact, they don’t expect them to be particularly good, but instead see them as a step along the writing journey: a stage that leads the writer closer to their final destination – publication!
Step 1: Does the organisation of the text convey its meaning and aid understanding?
Re-seeing the text as a whole – its organisation, structure and development of detail – helps us to assess whether its message, idea or theme is fully developed, clear and complete so that it assists in understanding its purpose, and its content and construction engage the reader.
Step 2: What does each sentence or phrase add to the overall effectiveness of the text?
a. Sentence level
- Does the sentence make sense?
- Does it aid the flow of the writing, or is there a lack of variety in how the sentences are started, or the type and length of the sentences?
For example:
- Does each sentence start the same way?
- Are they all simple sentences?
- Are some of the sentences too long and, therefore, confusing?
- Is the length varied to build highs and lows and vary the pace of the writing?
Zoom in to examine each line to assess what it adds (or detracts) to the effectiveness of the text.
b. Word choice
- Are the verbs powerful and varied?
- Is good use made of specific nouns, adjectives, expanded noun phrases and figurati...
