Proofreading vs. Revising
Think Globally
Sweat the Small Stuff
Local surface-level issues are still significant!
- Word choice
- Sentence structure
- Grammar
- Style
Read Your Writing
Read, re-read, and re-read again
- Take breaks in between revision
- This could mean reading your draft a couple of times, making revisions, and then not looking at it for a day. Come back in a day or two and re-read again to revise further.
- Read your paper out loud to yourself
Have Others Read
Go Back to the Text(s)
- Re-read the course texts that you are citing (if you are citing any - which you should) to ensure you understand what is being said.
- Look at the painting again, this is also a “text”
- Consider if there is anything you did not see originally in the painting
Consider Your Examples
Do your examples say what you are saying it says? Pay special attention to whether your example actually supports your argument, and whether your example and what it is supposed to exemplify are united.
Ask "As Opposed to What?"
In this case, this would likely look like addressing that visual culture is usually emphasized in art
Move it Up!
Move up your most important/strongest point and the “so what” in your paper towards the beginning! This way the reader will gain interest
Take "Uh-Oh" Moments Seriously
Keep an eye out for unanticipated implications of your writing
- If you see a place where you may be contradicting yourself or arguing/stating something you do not intend to argue, take this seriously and revise.
Don't Let the Mess Show
Revising in a global, substantial way is messy - make sure to clean everything up when revising. For example:
- If you find a problem with your thesis, you need to not only reframe your thesis but also make sure that all of your supporting claims, evidence, and examples match that thesis
- If you find a section that doesn’t make sense, you need to revise it until it does or eliminate that section altogether.
Final Revision Reminders
- Make sure you utilize transitions and pointing words (TSIS Ch. 8)
- Even if your draft had “high pass” in any categories, this does not mean you should not revise - your final draft still needs to have revisions!
- Be as specific as possible with your descriptions - avoid words such as:
- “it"
- "very"
- "really"
- "thing”
- e.g. “very colorful” → “vibrant”