THE WRITING PROCESS

AND PREWRITING
HOW TO FIND AND FOCUS IDEAS

WHEN STARTING TO WRITE

Take into consideration the following:
Writing takes time
Drafts

Think about the following elements

Topic
Audience
Genre
Style
Purpose

ASK YOURSELF THE FOLLOWING

QUESTIONS
Who is the audience for your writing?
Do you think your audience is interested in the topic?
Why or why not?
Why should your audience be interested in this topic?
What does your audience already know about this
topic?
What does your audience need to know about this
topic?
What experiences has your audience had that would
influence them on this topic?
What do you hope the audience will gain from your
text?

CHOOSING A TOPIC

Invest time in making your choice

Focus on questions and ideas rather than topics
Keep and use a journal as a source of ideas
Discuss possible topics with a friend
Consult your course materials for possible ideas.

NARROWING A TOPIC
Use a branching diagram
Ask questions to narrow a broad topic
Example: College

THINKING ABOUT YOUR

PURPOSE, AUDIENCE AND
POINT OF VIEW

DETERMINING YOUR PURPOSE

Three main purposes for writing
Express yourself
Inform your reader
Persuade your reader

CONSIDERING YOUR AUDIENCE

Your readers:
Are not present and cannot observe or participate
in what you are writing about.
May not know everything that you do about your
topic.
May not share your opinions or value.
May not respond the same way that you do to
situations.

CHOOSING A POINT OF VIEW

Point of view: perspective from which you write an
essay.
First person: I, Me, Mine, We, Ours
Ex: Narrating event in which you participated

Second person: You, Yours, Yours

Ex: Explaining how to do something

Third person: He, She, They

Ex: Writer report was he or she sees

DISCOVERING IDEAS TO
WRITE ABOUT

FREEWRITING
Be sure to write nonstop.
Dont be concerned with grammar, punctuation or
spelling.
Write fast!
Record ideas as they come to you.
If you are free writing on a computer, darken the
screen.

FREE WRITING EXERCISE

Topic: The weekend.
Write non-stop for 5 minutes about this topic.

MAPPING OR CLUSTERING

Visual way to discover ideas and

relationships.
Example: Pollution

BRAINSTORMING
List everything that comes to mind when you think
about your topic.
Record words or phrases rather then sentences.
Brainstorming is more structured than freewriting.
Brainstorming works well when its done in groups

QUESTIONING
Write down every question you can
think of about your topic.
Focus on ideas, not grammatical
correctness