Writing Process

Writing is not just a mere activity, it is a systematic way of communicating one's feelings, ideas, emotions and thoughts. It is an organisation of the thought processes through the use of standardised orthographic symbols.

Background
Writing is simply a communicative skill, the fourth on the list after listening, speaking, reading and writing. The idea behind writing as a process is hinged on the need for logicality in writing as this serves as the bedrock to the achievement of the communicative purpose of writing (Zamel, 1982, p. 195).

Since writing is the expression of ideas through symbolic graphical representations as against the oral means in speaking, formal or informal writing is based on a ‘theme’, which is the topical issue, or the basis for the message that is meant to be communicated (Brown, 2001, p. 336). In formal writing, the theme of writing is presentment in organised paragraphs, hence the need for an understanding of how the writing themes can be developed. Relatively, to develop writing theme(s), the processes or stages involved in writing needs to be carefully observed.

Writing stages
The stages involved in a writing process and activity are four. These stages are often in a sequence, which make writing a systematic process. The four stages of writings are:

i.           Prewriting;

ii. Writing;

iii. Revising; and

iv. Proof Reading.

The prewriting process
Before the commencement of the actual writing activity, observing the prewriting process is necessary as this is the foundation for a successful writing business. At the prewriting stage, five steps are involves:

Step 1:              Choosing the Focus

Step 2:              Writing the Thesis Sentence

Step 3:              Choosing the Order

Step 4:              Writing the Topic Sentence

Step 5:              Selecting the Method of Development

Step 1: choosing the focus
Choosing a writing focus is the first task the writer is saddled with at the prewriting stage. To choose a focus of writing, the responsibility of the writer is the consideration of four things— Subject, Purpose, Audience, and Genre of writing. These entities are often interrelated and interwoven as one links to another and they are what a writer needs to engage with in his thought processes often regarded as BRAINSTORMING.

Brainstorming is the prewriting task or activity which involves the art of generating ideas that forms the basis of writing. The main objective of brainstorming is to stimulate the imagination of the writer so as to produce ideas on a topic (White & Arndt, 1991).

Figure 1: Focus of Writing

Elements of Writing Focus
; There are four elements of focus for a writer. These elements are expected to be considered by the writer before embarking on a writing task. The four elements are :

i. Subject;

ii. Purpose;

iii. Audience; and

iv. Genre.

subject
The first thing that is expected to occupy a writer’s thought at the beginning of a writing activity is the subject of writing. Here, the writer must be able to provide answer to the question, “What?”. By subject, we mean the topic to write on. A writer can get topics ideas from interaction with experts, or from everyday life situations. From life situations, topics could be coined to address social problems; such problems could be made a subject in writing. Consider the following subjects for examples,

a) Petroleum Scarcity in Nigeria

  b) ASSU Strike and the Possible Effect on the Nigerian Education System

  c) Projecting the Outcome of the 2023 General Election in Nigeria

purpose
Also at the prewriting stage, it is important for the writer to brainstorm on the purpose of writing. To do this, the writer needs to provide answer(s) to the question, “Why?”. Most likely, the common and prevalent purposes of writing are: exposition, didactic, persuasion and entertainment. In most cases, the writing purpose often dictates the subject, hence, the interconnectivity between the two concepts. Consider the following topics in relation to the purpose of writing:

a) A letter of reference given to a prospective employer             (persuasive)

 b) A Jingle for a Network Provider             (persuasive)

 c) A short story about a man who wakes up as a giant bug (entertainment)

 d) How to paint model gliders (exposition)

audience
Defining the audience, the person or a group whom the writing is meant for, is very central to writing due to their role as the main target of writing. Therefore, to achieve the purpose of writing which is communication or meaning making, the audience should be carefully defined and analysed at the prewriting stage. Audience analysis cuts across the consideration of the age, gender, nationality, educational background, occupation, intelligence, language spoken, etc. of the members of audience. Like purpose, audience analysis guides the writer in making choices of topics (subject) as addressing topical issues that deviate from the demographic analysis of the audience could be misleading.

genre
Before the actual writing activity, it is important for a writer to identify the actual type of writing; this often guides the choice of style, diction or language use. For instance, giving an account of a reality TV shows is quite different from writing an article in periodicals such as newspapers or magazines. These genres of writing have distinct styles and dictions.

a)  Describing a reality TV show:

·       is both narrative and expository in nature;

·      involves the use of past tense forms of verbs;

·      requires a sequential account of events, etc.

b) A newspaper article :

·      is a formal writing;

·      requires the use of present tense, and/ or mixed tenses as the case may be;

·      requires stating the name of the writer/ columnist, etc.

c) Letter to a friend:

·      is an informal letter;

·      requires a salutation and informal introduction like greeting;

·      allows the use of slangy expressions, etc.

The writing process
Writing is a thinking process, an organic developmental process and manner of transmitting, growing and cooking a message (Elbow, 1973). A writer produces a final written product based on his thoughts. Having undergone the prewriting tasks that were highlighted, described and exemplified in the foregoing, a writer can start the actual writing activity. At the writing stage, the writer creates a draft, in form of the writer’s thoughts put together in a logical sequence using varying sentences, through patterns of organisation, spelling, and grammar (Kroll, 1990).

For logicality to be achieved, in the actual writing or drafting process, the task of the writer is to put his thoughts together in three segments constituting:

i) Introduction

ii) Body

iii) Conclusion

The introduction
Every writing should have an introductory paragraph. An introductory paragraph should be composed to captivate the reader’s attention and set the tone for the writing. This can be achieved in various ways:

·      making a statement, asking a question or opening with a quote, which will be intriguing;

·      a description of a compelling scene or event to catch the attention of the reader(s);

·      making reference/ alluding to an event, often historical or trendy;

·      presenting a controversial situation or an unusual opinion; and

·      using an adage or proverb as a point of reference to initiate and emphasise a topical issue.

The body
At the prewriting stage, step four of the outlining process, after the key points have been outlined involves writing the topic sentence for each body paragraph. Every paragraph of the body could be initiated by the topic sentences, or the topic sentences could be at the middle or end of the paragraph, depending on the writer’s choice. The topic sentences could be introduced through the use of transitional markers such as:

·      Transitional devices introducing the first paragraph of the body

First of all, Firstly, To start with, In the first instance, etc.

·       Transitional devices introducing subsequent paragraphs of the body

Also, Apart from…, Aside…, Beside…, Secondly, Thirdly, Never the Less, etc.

·      Transitional devices used for creating contrasts and concession

However, Although, Even though, Despite…, Inspite of, Contrarily, etc.

After the presentation of the topic sentences in each paragraph of the body, the writer needs to develop supporting sentences to buttress the topic sentences. Supportive sentences can include statements, illustrations, descriptions or explanations, etc. each of which is expected to emphasise the message passed across by the topic sentence. Finally, it is expected that the body of any kind of formal writing constitute at least, three paragraphs. In each of the paragraphs, the concluding sentences must complement the topic sentences.

The conclusion
Like the introduction, the conclusion of a piece of writing is expected to be presented in a single paragraph. Relatively, the concluding paragraph is expected to be signaled by through the use of transitional or discourse markers that are meant for this purpose such as:

·      Finally, In conclusion, So far, etc.

Also, at this stage of the writing task, it is expected that the concluding paragraph should be synergised with all other paragraphs constituting the body of the writing. The conclusion is expected to summarise and re-emphasise, the main idea of the writing (the topical issue) through reference to the attention catchy introduction in the introductory paragraph.

Revising
The initial writing task is just one out of about three drafts of writing. Revising is the nomenclature for the process involved in polishing the first writing attempt or draft. This can be achieved by following the steps below:

i. The introductory paragraph should be revisited to check:

·      whether the right attention catchy device has been employed; and

·      whether there is connection between the introductory materials and the thesis sentence.

ii. It is important to re-assess the paragraphs constituting the body of the writing by cross-checking:

·      the use of appropriate transitional markers for connecting the paragraphs that constitute the body of the writing;

·      the topic sentences in connection with the supporting sentences;

·      the specificity and concreteness of the points to the theme of writing; and

·      the logicality of expressions and use of cohesive ties.

iii. The concluding paragraph needs to be reevaluated to check:

·      the use of appropriate sentences in terms of types and functions;

·      the use of varying sentences for the expression of singular opinion;

·      whether the sentences used carry emphasis of the idea presented;

·      the use of parallel structures;

·      the use of appositive expressions, appropriate prepositional phrases,  gerund. Infinitive and participles;  and

·      the use of appropriate vocabulary.

Proof reading
This stage, like the three writing stages that have been previously discussed is equally important. The negligence of this stage could mar the entire writing activity. At this stage, the major concern is the final revision of the writing piece. The revision at this stage produces the final draft for the writing by taking the following into consideration:

·      issues of mechanics, such as the omission of punctuations or their misuse;

·      grammatical usages,

·      the use and misuse of rhetorical tools, such as figures of speech;

·      spelling errors elimination;

·      correction of hanging structures, sentences or clauses; and

·      cross-checking the issues relating to other writing conventions.

After all of the items enlisted above have been considered, the writer can make a final draft.