The Writing Process

I usually start by putting the subject matter through a literature review. During the Lit. Review I am searching for gaps in knowledge, and asking questions. My goal is to identify a gap in knowledge and then proceed to make a contribution with my efforts to that knowledge, and usually it all starts by asking a great question. A great question is not a complex, hard to understand nugget of intellectual genius. A great question helps fill a gap in knowledge – so I have learned. The Lit. Review also aids in shaping your understanding of the subject matter which will usually take the form of an outline. The outline then becomes the strategy for your contribution to the knowledge gap you have identified. With the outline you will usually have identified a few key areas to do more research. Those key areas can sometimes become the major sections of your outline, or the body of your work. Any number of things can be a part of this development such as surveys, interviews, testing, experiments, more literature review, and so on. Once the major sections are completed you can begin editing and shaping your thoughts so as to answer your question specifically. I usually work on the conclusion after the body. The last thing I write is the introduction and preface. Then everything has to be edited for grammar, punctuation, spelling, but you also have to edit for flow, sequence, tightness or prose, transitions, and logic. You have to read the APA Manuel, read the APA Manuel again, did I mention the part about the APA Manuel… I usually get friends (who are English nerds) to read over every letter of my writing to rip it apart – there are usually several rewrites involved. Oh, you have to read the APA Manuel. This practice goes on and on and on, until the due date becomes reality. Then I hand it in knowing full well it needs more rewrites and editing, and that it will FAIL miserably! In a nut shell that is my process.