Ｗｒｉｔｉｎｇ Ｓｋｉｌｌ——Ｔｈｅ Ｐｒｅｗｒｉｔｉｎｇ Ｐｒｏｃｅｓｓ

郑雪薇

Nowadaya Chinese college students tend to be poor in writing,either for their poor grammar or for their small vocabulary.Above all,I think,one of the writing skill:prewriting is very important in college writing.

Sometimes when were reading some great works,we would consider some questions that good writers think about as they prepare to write.Experienced writers might go over some of these prewriting matters almost unconsciously and perhaps as they write instead of before.But in other to explain how to get the process going for you,we will present these considerations one by one.

I,Who are my reader?

Unless you are writing a journal or a diary for your own satisfaction,your writing always has an audience:the person or group of people who will read it.You need to keep this audience in mind as you plan what to say and as youchoose the best way to express your ideas.And for college students,your audience will be the teachers who are responsible to judge your writing.

(Analyze the Audience)

No doubt you already have considerable audience awareness.You would never write a job application letter using the lastest in-group slang,nor would you normally correspond with your dear Aunt Minnie in impersonal formal English.Writing for diverse groups about whom you know little is more difficult than writing for a specific audience whom you know well..

II.Why am I writing?

Every kind of writing,even a grocery list,has a purpose.You seldom sit down to write without some aim in mind,and this purpose affects your whole approach to writing.The immediate response to the question”Why am I writing?”may be that your teacher or your employer asked you to.But that answer will not help you understand the reasons that make writing worth doing and worth reading.

(Different Purposes to Write Different Paper)

Sometimes you may write in order to express your own feelings,as in a diary or a love letter.More frequently,though,you will be writing for several other people,and the response you want your audience to be amused by your writing,your purpose is to entertain.If you want your readers to gain some knowledge from your writing,then you are writing to inform.If you want your readers to agree with an opinion or to accept an idea,then you are writing to persuade.

Most of your writing in this course,as in real life,will attempt to persuade in one way of another.Your purpose is often to convince your reader to agree with the points you are making.Logical ideas set down in clear,interesting writing should prove convincing and keep your readers reading..

III.What ideas should I use?

(In Directed Freewriting)

Many people find that they can best bring ideas to the surface by writing freely,with no restrictions about correctness.But,after writing for ten minutes,please stop and read over what you have said.Underline any idea that might serve as the focus for a paper.

A word of advice:Do not think of our freewriting as a first draft.The ideas produced here need to be organized into a unified,logical plan,a process which may not be discussed here.

(In Clustering)

Another useful way of getting ideas out of your head and down on paper involves clustering.Begin with a blank sheet of paper.In the center write a crucial question about the story that you what to investigate.And circle the words,then,draw a line out from the circle,write an idea or a question related to the central idea,and circle that.spiraling out from that circle,add and circle any further associations that you can make.Continue drawing lines from the center,like spokes radiating from a wheel,and record any other ideas of questions that are related.When you finish,you will have a cluster of related ideas resembling.

You can see that this technique workswell for exploring ang aspect of a work..As you progress through this course,you may decide to write in the middle of the page point of view,setting,imagery,or whatever element you think might serve as a meaningful focus for your paper.If you have trouble finding out enough material,you need to try another element.If you produce too much,you can narrow your focus.