Revision Strategies

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Choose a work to revise. You may choose:

• Post 2.1 or 2.3  from your Writing Journal
• A draft of a poem, picture book, or short story that you've written this semester
• Up to 1500 words of a longer work that you've written this semester

Tips for Revision:

• Can you eliminate any clichés or recast them so that they are fresh and original?
• Can you replace vague or abstract nouns with more specific or concrete ones?
• Can you replace linking verbs or soft action verbs with strong action verbs?
• If your verbs end in -ing or require helping verbs, can you rewrite, using a stronger verb form?
• In poems and in prose, each syllable must be earned. Can you cut, compress or shorten your words?
• Can you choose words that are more precise and more definite?
• Did you title your work?
• And, most importantly, did you dare to experiment? Did you dare to risk?

Reminder: You may not submit the same piece to workshop two weeks in a row. If you choose to submit a second piece (after the two week waiting period), it must show substantial revision. You may not submit the same piece more than twice during the semester.

Why? Because too often we tend to get stuck in one piece, trying to make it perfect. We need to get over trying to make a piece perfect and embrace the idea of making our poem or story "good."

Post 2.4 Writing Workshop

Submit your revised work to your assigned workshop group by the time and date listed on your syllabus.

Submit a peer critique to each member of your workshop by the time and date listed on your syllabus.

Refer back to the critique requirements and expectations from the syllabus.

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