Revising at Length
Revise a long piece by diagnosis: read for the argument first, move or cut whole sections, and leave the sentence work until the shape has settled.
What a learner can do afterwards
- Summarise your own draft in one paragraph and find where the draft does not match the summary
- Move or delete a whole section and repair the joins it leaves
- Hold back line editing until the structural pass is done, and say why
1 · Read
Summarise the draft's actual argument in one paragraph. State what it recommends and keep conditions that limit that recommendation. Compare the summary with the question, each section and the conclusion. Diagnose mismatches before cutting: the summary may omit a condition, or the draft may recommend more than its evidence supports. Keep and address relevant counterarguments. Evidence about a proposal's drawbacks can require a response, a narrower claim or a changed answer.
Outline the current draft to test section moves before shifting the text. After a move or cut, read the new neighbours aloud and check their logic. Fix references, and make sure ideas follow the explanations they need. A bridge sentence can explain a valid connection. If evidence or reasoning is missing, restore it or revise the order or claim. Smooth wording cannot replace missing support.
When major structural changes are still needed, leave detailed line editing until later. Settle the argument and section order, revise the paragraphs, then check sentences, spelling and punctuation. Some earlier edits may survive a move. Polishing text you later remove gives no benefit to the final essay. After structural work, check the retained text again in its new context.
Diagnose mismatches before cutting. Test section moves with an outline, repair logic and links, and leave detailed sentence editing until the structure settles.
Lesson, questions and flashcards written for this dataset.
Three original readings and six flashcards written for this dataset about diagnosing drafts, moving sections and repairing joins.
More to read
Investigate a mismatch before cutting
Summarise the argument that is actually on the page, including qualifications that affect its answer. Compare the summary with the question and with the sections of the draft.
A mismatch needs investigation. A section might answer a different question, but the summary might also leave out something necessary. Relevant evidence may reveal that the claim needs changing.
Do not use the summary test to remove everything that challenges your position. Examine a serious objection and explain its effect on the answer. You may need to answer it, narrow the claim or reach a different conclusion.
Check both sides of a moved section
Moving a section creates new neighbours at its entrance and exit. A cut also brings passages together that were previously separated. Read these joins in their new order.
Listen for abrupt changes, then inspect the reasoning. Does a term appear before it is explained? Does a reference still identify the right section? Has a conclusion lost evidence that was removed?
A bridge can explain an existing relationship between ideas. It cannot create the missing basis for a conclusion. Restore the needed support or revise the argument. Check the passage again after the repair.
Plan revision from the current draft
Make an outline of the sections you have written, even if they no longer follow the original plan. Describe each section's role in a short line. These lines let you test moves without rewriting whole passages.
Once the order works, move the existing text and repair the joins. Revise the paragraphs you intend to keep, then turn to detailed sentence editing.
This order reduces time spent polishing material that will be removed. Some early corrections can survive a move. Check retained text again because its references, neighbours and role may have changed.
2 · Watch
به انگلیسیTake it off screen
Where it sits
This opens up
Nothing builds on it yet.
Where this leads
Jobs that lean on this skill. Follow one to see everything it is built on.
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.