Time to begin writing that class paper? Ever felt overwhelmed with simply where to start? Would rather do anything but sit down and knock out that assignment? Those feelings are oh so common with writing assignments and can present roadblocks to effective communication.
Honestly, writing is often intimidating because we simply don’t know where to begin. But, I’m here to spread the exciting news that any student at any age can successfully submit stellar writing assignments by following a 6-step game plan.
Ready to dive in and get started?
~Well, first, we must be teachable and have realistic perspectives of our writing abilities. Most writers are average but believe themselves to be stellar because they can write fast, because they can write without an outline, or because they have written before and received rave reviews. And . . . none of those actually mean we’re stellar writers!
~Next, we must realize that stellar writing is hard work. It’s not writing one draft – or really even two. It’s writing multiple drafts until we’ve gotten our message across at its best. That’s going to require an investment of time to find just the right words to communicate just the right thoughts throughout our entire paper.
~Here comes the one that messes a lot of writers up – we must plan the writing process. Here’s where we have to get serious about what we’re doing. It’s important that we start early on writing assignments and leave no room for procrastination. Though it seems obvious, we also have to follow the instructor’s directions – in content, specific requirements, and formatting.
Part of planning also requires us to invest the time needed for proper organization and research on the front end. It may seem pointless to brainstorm topics and then later to craft an outline to lay out the key ideas for the paper; however, it’s a necessary step in the writing process.
~Once we complete all the steps above, we’re ready to actually write. Of course, we have to start with a clear thesis (direction) for our papers from the start. That means we have to know our why . . . Are we critiquing? persuading? informing? Once we know our why and have crafted a thesis, we’re ready to present that thesis to the reader so that he knows where we’re headed in the paper.
After we know our why, we’re ready to write our first rough draft. Yes! I said first rough draft—stellar writers know that one rough draft is just a start! If at all possible, we should write the first rough draft in one sitting to ensure stronger coherence in thought and organization. As we craft our rough drafts, it’s also important to write from abundance because it’s far easier to edit our papers and remove superfluous information than to create information after the fact.
Next, we’ve got to check all of our topic sentences and make certain that they align with our thesis and solidly frame, along with the clincher sentences, the discussion of the paragraph. The topic and clincher sentences are our needle and thread and help to weave all of our thoughts together. One tip is to highlight the first and last sentences of all of our body paragraphs to ensure we’re staying on topic throughout the paper.
~Now this next step is often completely skipped, but that simply will not do—we have to edit and proofread—we have to polish our thoughts. To edit and proofread effectively, we’re going to have to leave sufficient time to read and reread our drafts. Here’s where we can make use of available free tools like Grammarly, the VBC writing guide, and the Turabian Citation Quick Link.
Though we have those tools, we have to remember that ultimately we’re responsible for the final product.
In this polishing process, we should schedule writing conferences with instructors if we need to ask specific questions and receive one-on-one help. Scheduling these conferences in advance gives us more than enough time to apply the feedback and still submit our assignments on time. Taking the initiative to ask specific questions helps us to learn from our instructors throughout the entire writing process.
~Though it seems like the writing process would be done when we receive our earned grade, it’s not. There’s more learning to be gained! After receiving our papers, it’s important for us to follow up with instructors if we have any remaining questions about our errors. No need to just move forward and repeat the same errors when we can ensure we understand how to correct ourselves!
Communication truly is a gift from God, and it’s exciting to learn how to hone our writing skills and watch our ability to communicate with others grow and become more effective.
So, the next time a paper is due and we feel overwhelmed . . . we should stop, take a breath, and walk through steps one-by-one. Soon, the writing process will become more natural, and we’ll find our confidence growing and our communication more effective. No more roadblocks, no more late-night stress! With our 6-step game plan, we’re ready to roll!