Pre-Writing

• What a writer does before writing

• Assesses PAT

• Generates ideas

• Plans organization

Writing

• Generating a draft of a document

• Focuses on placing ideas on paper

• Isn’t overly concerned with correctness or “perfection”

Re-Writing

• What a writer does to improve a document

• Includes three phases—Revision, Editing, Proofreading

Revision

• Focuses on content and organization

• Emphasizes the “big” issues

• Tips: Lay the document aside first, seek input from others

Editing

• Making improvements in style and correcting errors in sentence structure, grammar, spelling, and punctuation

Proof-reading

• Checking the final copy for correctness, appearance, and format

• A final check

• Tips: See Style Book

Spelling

• Some writers are good spellers; some aren’t.

• Doesn’t matter.

• Correct spelling is a must.

• Spelling also one of the most common types of errors.

Why is it important?

• Clarity of content

• Image of the writer

Ways to Improve Spelling

• Don’t depend on spell check.

• Be aware of spell check shortcomings.

• Look for homonym errors.

• Work on personal “problem” words.

• Look up specialized or technical terms.

• Be familiar with basic spelling rules.