RS1 - Polishing the Final Draft Lesson

Polishing the Final Draft

The Revision Process

When the revision of the rough draft is complete, the final copy is almost ready for publication. The revision process allows the writer to see any disconnections among ideas or lapses in organization that might confuse the reader. 

Before submitting the final copy, each writer needs to go through the proofreading process. In the publishing world, editors are often employed to revise and proofread an author's work; however, all writers should learn to edit and proofread their own writing to develop written communication.

Now that you have completed the Rough Draft and received instructor feedback, it is time to polish and submit the Final Draft. After making the necessary corrections, read through your essay silently and note further errors. Then, read the essay out loud in order to listen for any diction and syntax errors. Submit a "marked up" version of your essay to demonstrate an understanding of the revision process.

Remember these general rules:

Writing Academically - Good Practices -Indent paragraphs properly (MLA Formatting - check the handbook or reputable websites if you need help) -Do not use contractions (Don’t, shouldn’t, can’t, etc.) in formal writing. -Avoid vague, meaningless words such as: it, that, these, those -Avoid first and second person personal pronouns (I, me, my, you, your. us. we) -A lot is two words (do not combine to one as “a lot”) -Correctly use there, their, they’re -Correctly use to, too, two

Works Cited Reminders

Make sure to include the Works Cited. Remember that the Works Cited is a list of the source citations that reveal the publication information of the sources used in the essay. The Works Cited only needs proper formatting in the way:

  • MLA format
  • Works Cited centered as the title with no quotation marks, etc.
  • Alphabetical order by the first word in the source citation
  • No numbers or bullets next to the source citations
  • Hanging indent should be used after the first line of each source citation
  • Header should still appear in the upper right-hand corner.

Example of a Works Cited Links to an external site.

RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.