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Writing StudioAcademic Writing

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Revising

Revise your draft in the right order, fixing argument and structure before sentences, using a reverse outline to see what you actually wrote.

Do this first

Beside each paragraph of your draft, write one short phrase for what it says and one for what it does (for example, “gives evidence for reason 2”). Then read only those notes and mark any paragraph that repeats another or does not serve the thesis.

Steps

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  1. Get some distance

    Leave the draft for at least a day if you can, then read it straight through without editing, as a reader would. Mark where you got lost, bored or unconvinced. Those marks become your first list of global problems.

  2. Revise globally before locally

    Work in order: argument and thesis, then structure, then paragraphs, then sentences, and proofreading last. Polishing sentences first wastes time on text you may cut. List the global problems before touching any wording.

  3. Reverse outline the draft

    For each paragraph, note its main point in a few words and its function (introduces, gives evidence, answers an objection). Read the list on its own and look for repeated points, paragraphs doing two jobs, missing steps and anything that does not serve the thesis. Then reorder, merge, split or cut, using the outline as your plan.

  4. Check the thesis against the conclusion

    Writers often discover their real argument while drafting, so the conclusion may state a sharper claim than the introduction. If it does, move that claim into the introduction and revise the body to support it. Confirm that every section still answers the question set.

  5. Strengthen paragraphs

    Check that each topic sentence states the claim its paragraph actually makes, and that analysis follows every piece of evidence. Add transitions that name the logical link to the previous paragraph. Split paragraphs that make two separate claims or run well over a page.

  6. Then revise sentences

    Put the main subject and verb early and close together, cut empty openers (“It should be noted that”, “There are many factors that”), and prefer verbs to abstract nouns (“analyse” rather than “conduct an analysis of”). Read the text aloud and mark every sentence you stumble over for rewriting.

Templates

Reverse outline table

Para | What it says | What it does | Serves thesis? | Action
1 | [main point] | [introduces / gives evidence / answers objection] | [yes / partly / no] | [keep / move / merge / split / cut]
2 | [main point] | [function] | [yes / partly / no] | [action]
3 | [main point] | [function] | [yes / partly / no] | [action]

Revision plan, in order

1. Argument: My final thesis is [claim]. Changes needed: [list]
2. Structure: Sections to move, merge or cut: [list]
3. Paragraphs: Topic sentences to rewrite: [list]. Analysis missing in: [list]
4. Sentences: Patterns to fix (long openers, wordiness, noun-heavy phrasing): [list]
5. Citations and proofreading: [date booked]

Asking for useful feedback

I am revising at the [argument and structure / sentence] level. Could you read [section or pages] and tell me:
1. What do you think my main argument is?
2. Where did you get lost or stop being convinced?
3. [One specific question, e.g. Is the objection in section 3 answered fairly?]
Please ignore [typos / formatting] for now.

Check your draft

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In your field

Revise the discussion so it interprets results rather than repeating them, and check that figures, tables and text report the same numbers. Co-author and peer-review comments often drive revision, so keep a log of each comment and your response.

Read more about this stage

Global revision deals with what the paper argues and how it is organised; local revision deals with how each sentence says it. The order matters because global changes create new text: a moved section needs new transitions, and a sharper thesis can change every topic sentence.

For a thesis or dissertation, revise chapter by chapter but keep a one-page summary of the whole argument beside you. After major changes to one chapter, check that the introduction and conclusion chapters still describe what the dissertation now does.