Paper Editing Worksheet
Writer:________________________
Editor: ________________________
Complete the form as directed below. Remember you are reading these papers for content as well as format. You should evaluate and critique the writer's ideas and argument. If you do not complete all the editing guides for your group during class, do so outside of class and make arrangements to get them and your copies of the papers you're editing to the writers. This sheet along with the drafts read by fellow students and the writer's sheet you completed for today are to be handed in with the final paper, I will not accept the final papers without them.
For the Writer
Please answer the following questions BEFORE handing the paper to your readers.
In working on this paper, I have worked on these specific aspects of my writing:
Given 24 hours more to work on this paper, I would do the following:
I would like my readers to consider the following questions: (You can ask about specific arguments, evidence, interpretations, style, etc.)
For the Editor
Read the first paragraph. STOP. Are you interested in continuing to read, explain briefly why or why not? In your own words, state what you think this essay will discuss.
Finish reading the essay, marking passages that seem vague or unclear to you, then state the main point of the essay in your own words.
Are the opening and closing paragraphs accurate guides to the paper's theme and focus?
What is the single strongest feature of the essay, the one thing that should not be lost in editing?
What unanswered questions remain in your mind when you've finished the essay?
For the moment accept the writer's point of view. Try to extend the essay's argument by providing additional examples, by suggesting questions that might provoke further thought, and by discussing parallels.
What objections might be raised against this argument? Provide counter-evidence and counter-arguments for the author. Are there other solutions or interpretations for this problem?
Based on your experience as a writer, what suggestions might you give the writer of this paper?