The Writing Process

Before you begin writing, make sure you understand what is required. Interpreting the task is essential, as it affects the quality and relevance of your work.

Guidelines and Requirements

Assignment guidelines usually provide information about length, format, structure, and genre. 

Guidelines also indicate which referencing system to use and how the assignment will be graded. If anything is unclear, consult your course teacher for clarification.

Instruction Words

Instruction words indicate the type of text you are expected to write and guide how you should respond.

Common examples include:

• Analyze – examine in detail

• Discuss – explore different perspectives

• Compare – highlight similarities and differences

• Evaluate – assess strengths and weaknesses

• Describe – give a detailed account

Choosing a Topic

If a topic isn’t assigned, you’ll need to choose one. Use invention techniques like brainstorming or mind mapping to generate ideas. Often, initial topics are too broad and need to be narrowed for a focused paper.

Narrowing Your Focus

Your paper should have a clear focus. In academic writing, this is done through a thesis statement or research questions:

• Thesis statement: Presents the main idea and your position in an academic argument. Usually included in the introduction.
  Example: Reading aloud to pre-school children stimulates reading skills, expands vocabulary, and supports cognitive development.

• Research question: A question that guides your paper and requires an evidence-based argument rather than a simple yes/no answer.
  Example: How does reading aloud to pre-school children affect the development of their reading abilities?

Revising Focus During Writing

As you write, your topic or focus may shift. You can refine your topic, thesis, or research questions as you gain more insight from your research and writing.

Watch this short video from Lund University about research questions and thesis statements:

During the pre-writing phase you also research your topic and look for relevant sources. Often finding relevant literature is part of the final assessment of the assignment, as is the correct use of citations and references in the text.

The library search pages contain tips on how to search for literature.

You may have to return to the search or reading process as your project progresses and new aspects or problems become apparent.

When you read and take notes it is important to keep track of references. Always write down your sources when you take notes and mark out if you write down any quotations. This will make it easier to handle your references during the writing process and also help you avoid plagiarism.

More information about reading strategies and note-taking skills.

Even though the outer framework of the structure might be given, you still need to decide how and in what order you should present your material and your argument. Outlining is when you create a plan that presents your material in a logical order.

Watch a video to gain an understanding of why it is important to present your points in a logical order:

Tips for creating an outline:

• Make a list of points to gain an overview of your material. Include any evidence and counter-evidence you have for your points or statements.
• How are your points connected (does one lead to the other as a consequence/logical development?), can they be grouped together and how? Considering these questions will help you find a logical order for your points.
• Do your points answer your thesis statement or research questions and how?
• Identify your main points and use these as headings in your outline. Order the rest of your points under these headings.
• Use ordering principles that take their starting point in a reader’s understanding of the text or argument. Present necessary background information to your reader before developing an argument based on this information.

Considering your material in this manner will also give you the opportunity to evaluate whether all your points are relevant and should be included in your finished text. If something does not seem to fit in your line of argument, consider whether it belongs in the text at all.

In many university courses giving and receiving feedback is part of the writing process. In some courses it is also part of the final assessment. But above all, giving and receiving feedback is a learning experience and the process will help you become a better reader and writer.

Tips for giving feedback:

• Read the text thoroughly and all the way through before you begin commenting.
• Write down your comments. Make notes to support you when you have to present the feedback orally. Make notes in the document that the author can use when revising.
• Consider the structure: Does the text follow the assigned structure? Are the points presented in a logical order?
• Consider the language: Does the language align to academic standards? Are there any sentences or passages you do not understand? Does the writer make a particular type of mistake throughout the paper?
• Consider the contents: Are the claims or questions that are raised in the introduction clearly stated and answered in the paper? Does the writer provide sufficient evidence? Is the argument coherent and easy to follow?
• Find something positive and begin with this. This gives the author an idea of what works well in the text.
• Explain why certain passages work and others do not. Be specific and give examples and suggestions.
• Ask questions to the writer if something in the text is unclear.
• Think and comment as a reader. You do not have to provide all the solutions.
• Use a helpful and respectful tone.

Tips for receiving feedback

• Perhaps write down questions you would like the respondent to answer and hand these over together with your paper.
• Be open to feedback on your text. This is your chance to learn how the text is received and understood by a reader – before you hand in the final version.
• Listen and take notes when you receive feedback.
• Answer questions from the respondent. Be aware that they might indicate unclarities in your text.
• You do not have to argue or defend your text if you do not agree with the comments.
• Not everything has to be changed according to the feedback that you receive but you should carefully consider the advice that you get.
• If more than one fellow student reads your paper you might get comments that point in different directions. Instead of being frustrated with this, see it as an indication that this part of the paper needs revision and that the problem might be solved in different ways.
• After the feedback session you will have to rework your text, at least to some extent.

Read through your text and revise it according to the following points (note that not all points apply to all texts):

• Structure. Does your text follow the chosen or assigned structure?
• Outline. Are your points presented in a logical order? Edit for relevance - perhaps not all text that you have produced during the writing process belongs in the final product.
• Contents. Are your argument and claims supported with evidence? Does your text support the thesis statement or answer the research questions?
• Check your introduction, particularly if you wrote it early in the process. Does it correspond with what you have written in the rest of the text?
• Language. Is the language keeping in line with academic standards? Is it explicit, objective and formal? Have you avoided subjective expressions and clichés?
• References and citations. Are all sources cited correctly and included in the list of references? Do your references follow the assigned referencing system and are you consistent in your use of references?
• Check for coherence. Think from the reader's perspective. Rewrite any passages that are unclear.
• Check for consistency. Make sure that there are no shifts in the language and style. This is particularly important when you are writing in a group - remember that you should sound like you are one voice.
• Check paragraphing, grammar, spelling and punctuation.
• Formal requirements. Does your text follow the requirements for formal aspects such as length, spacing and title page?
• Make sure you have the time to proofread! Allowing enough time to check your assignment ensures higher levels of quality and accuracy.