A1: Personal Editing Assignment
Editing for Usage and Style by Tiffani Tijerina is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 International
Editing for Usage and Style by Tiffani Tijerina is licensed CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 International
Editing your own writing requires shifting from the mindset of a writer (focused on generating ideas) to the mindset of an editor (focused on clarity, structural coherence, and audience experience).
In this project, you will apply the core concepts from Chapter 1 and Chapter 8 to perform a structural edit on a piece of your own past academic writing. You will construct a reverse outline to analyze your draft's high-level logic, identify structural flaws, and execute a comprehensive structural revision.
Length/Scope: Select an existing academic paper of approximately 1,000 - 2,500 words, of your own writing.
Deliverables/Submissions: Submit three separate files in one Blackboard submission.
Original Draft
Reverse Outline
Structurally Edited Revision
Select a piece of academic writing you have written for a previous college course (e.g., a research paper, rhetorical analysis, position paper, or literature review).
Note: Do not choose a creative essay or a paper shorter than 1,000 words; structural editing requires sufficient length and complexity.
Perform a reverse outline of your original draft. Create a structured table or list that documents the following for every paragraph in your original text:
Paragraph # & Current Focus: Write a 1-sentence summary of what the paragraph actually says (not what you intended to say).
Function: Identify the paragraph's purpose (e.g., Introduction, Background/Context, Evidence A, Counterargument, Synthesis, Conclusion).
Thesis Alignment: Briefly note how this paragraph directly supports your core thesis or main argument.
Transition Quality: Evaluate how smoothly this paragraph connects to the next.
Tip: If a paragraph contains two or three distinct main ideas, note that. It's a sign that the paragraph needs to be split up!
Submit this section a working document in either table or list format.
Based on your reverse outline, conduct a comprehensive structural edit. At this stage, focus exclusively on macro-level elements:
Thesis & Core Argument: Clarify or refine the central claim so it acts as an effective roadmap for the document.
Organization & Sequence: Reorder paragraphs or sections so the logical flow moves predictably and persuasively from point to point.
Paragraph Architecture: Split compoun paragraphs, merge fragmented ones, eliminate redundant content that diverges from your central purpose.
Signposting & Transitions: Add or revise section headings, topic sentences, and transitional phrases to guide the reader through the logic.
Submit this section as a clean, revised draft. Do not spend time fixing small typos or punctuation unless they impair basic structural readability. Keep your primary focus on structure!