Procedures

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Creative Writing Peer Editing Assignment

Due January ___, 201_

 It is said by some that the art of writing is rewriting.  For a few ideas from different writers about revision, and to warm up for the assignment, read the article “Writers on Rewriting, Quotations From Writers on Revising and Rewriting, ” by Richard Nordquist, About.com Guide  at http://grammar.about.com/od/advicefromthepros/a/rewritequotes.htm

 

Enjoy your own writing process. 

Use the following format to be each other’s peer editors for two of your writing pieces. Depending on what you are writing, let each piece be a collection, an excerpt, or something that totals 3-5 pages long.  Your writing is about your own thoughts, but also about sharing them with an audience, a reader. Bringing readers into your writing process clarifies your writing, you “thinking on paper” (or “on screen”, as the case may be). 

Since you are not all in one classroom, you can use the class web site and various forms of video chat to visit with each other over your respective work. You will go through many revisions of your pieces. Then you will post the final drafts on the class blog site. You can meet somewhere like the library. You can email your papers and your notes as attachments to each other, but it’s very important to talk to each other out loud about your work.

This editing process will prepare you for the final project, which is either :

·         your own blog site with 5 of your edited, polished pieces (or 10 pgs whichever is more) from this class,

·         or an actual small book of 10 pages, that will be on display for two weeks.

·         or a collaboration of 3 or more students to make one blog or book with five each of their pieces

·         or another type of publishing  

Peer Editing Format

1.       Choose someone from the class who is ready to edit her rough draft when you are. (When folks in a classroom are ready, they can write their names in a running list in order on the board or online. Their editing partner is the next person who is ready on the list (no pickiness---we are writing for any reader who comes across our work). They can put a check mark after their name when they finish the editing process)

2.       Read your piece out loud to your partner, pencil in hand, taking quick notes on your paper where you need to adjust something, but keep reading. Hearing your words often lets you catch things your eye doesn’t. Your listening partner is also writing notes on a sticky note or a form about:

a.       What is strong and interesting in your piece (2 or 3 things)

b.      2 or 3 questions they have about the piece. What the piece leads them to want to know more about.

c.       Suggestions about what might make the piece “work” more strongly

d.      This editing is about content, not about grammar or spelling unless it really hampers understanding of the content or its flow.

3.       No discussion yet. Just look over your piece more while you wait.

4.        When your partner’s notes are finished, you do just what your partner did. No talking yet. Listen to your partner read HER paper to YOU and take the same kind of notes.

5.       No talking yet. Now exchange papers and read each other’s paper silently. Think about a., b., and c., above. Write a few more notes. Perhaps put “?” marks on her paper in pencil, or use the “comment,” “tracking” and editing  features of your word processing program.

6.       Then, in turn, NOW talk about your notes, questions and suggestions that you have for the other person. Remember to honor the person’s unique “voice,” whether you are of the same mind or not. Take about 5 minutes each to discuss the ideas in each paper. Then take your paper and your partner’s notes back to your writing desk.

7.       Rewrite the things you need to or want to and create the second draft. Move your partner’s notes (if on sticies) to another page and explain on it why or why not you decided to use his ideas. (These will be turned in with your final, second and first drafts)

8.       When you are done with the second draft, do this process, steps 1-7,  all over again for the second draft with a different person.

9.       Write the final draft.

10.   Turn in, all clipped together, the final draft on top, second underneath it, rough under that, and last, the papers with your two editing partners’ notes and your explanations of why or why not you used their suggestions.  If you’re doing this digitally, you may need to scan and attach different documents.

11.   On the last of those pages of the writing process, evaluate in detail the peer editing process you just used. Also make suggestions. Title that piece “Evaluation of Editing Process for (final title for your piece)”

12.   Now get out your second piece of writing and find two other peers to help you edit it as you did for the first one, and turn it in the same way with your first writing pieces’s  group of drafts and notes.

 

Don’t forget to print hard copies of each draft or save each draft with a different file name.

Some of the pieces will go on display to inspire us all.

 Possible Variations for Peer Editing Format

 The important parts of the peer editing are underlined.

All the steps are important. Don’t skip any.

Don’t  just do a one-way edit.  Edit each other’s stuff.