When I imagine revising my writing is going back and rewriting my work. I know that once I complete a draft I need to get feedback and after I get that feedback and I know I am pretty much going to have to recompose my paper. In my opinion revision is not limited to school papers but anything really. Something as simple as a business email can and sometimes should be revised.
The few times I have found revision really helpful it was because I was not looking at it as something irritating but rather a tool for me to use to better my work. For example, for one my classes in college we were told to write a business memo. I followed the instructions and when I thought my work was complete I consulted a fellow classmate to give some feedback. Once I received feedback form him I realized that I misinterpreted the assignment and therefore had to go back and start from square one. He also commented on the structure and content of my email. I then put myself and his shoes and started all over again. Did I enjoy doing that? Not at all but had I never received his feedback I wouldn’t have done well on that assignment and I wouldn’t have reached a higher potential of writing.
Revising, editing, and proofreading are three different tools used in the writing process for the benefit of the writer. Revising is going back and rethinking certain elements of your paper. Perhaps even seeing it from a different point of view. It involves looking at the bigger picture. Editing is fine tuning sentence structure and making sure that each sentence is serving its purpose. While proofreading is the what I like to think of as the final sweep before handing in your piece. Here you are focusing more on the grammar and making sure everything makes sense.
Diethier’s piece was very relatable and eye opening to me. He made me feel that it was okay to be angry when someone gives you feedback that you do not agree with. The problem I realized I had after reading this is I usually see this a negative aspect that is not really helping me. When I realized that revising does make a huge difference in my writing it was an open door to success. This piece also really spoke to me because there were many steps that I didn’t even think to use. For example, beneath the understanding where he gave the steps to think of revision positively.(page 8) I never thought to ask the responder for further explanation but after reading this I know realized that it is okay to ask questions and understand there thinking. Diethier speaks about the resistance to revision I honestly agreed with all the bullet points but after reading what he had to say about revision I can now see what he meant. I think that is its okay to “rescramble a paragraph” and find different ways to make it work. I know realize that revision is crucial is being a successful writer. We need to find the time to revise and it may not be easy but essential.