Writing a Draft
Sometimes we are so eager to get on with the actual writing that we begin before we are ready, and the results are disappointing. Before beginning to write, therefore, ask yourself, “Am I ready to write?” If you have done a thorough job of gathering ideas and information, if you feel you can accomplish the purpose of your paper, and if you are comfortable with your organizational plan, your answer will be “yes.”
If, however, you feel uneasy, review the steps in the planning stage to get at the cause of your uneasiness. Do you need to gather more information? Adjust your thesis? Rethink your purpose? Refine your organization? Now is the time to engage in critical thinking, to evaluate and clarify your writing plan. Time spent at this juncture is time well spent, and although it may not exactly feel as if you are making progress, you are making critical decisions that will affect the outcome of your composition.
Choose a Good Title
When you write your title is a matter of preference. Some people like to write it first, using it as a banner to guide the rest of the writing. Others prefer to write it last, after they have seen the final development of their ideas. Either way, when you decide to write your title, instead of trying to create the best one, brainstorm about a half dozen so you can choose among them.
A good title announces your subject and prepares your reader for the approach you take. For example, “Why We Crave Horror Movies” by Stephen King is an essay that delivers what its title promises: it explains what for many people is a difficult phenomenon to understand. A good title also hooks your reader. It sets up a question that makes your reader want to read on for an answer. Some titles, such as “Cholesterol” or “The Campus Bookstore” are merely labels. They are not bad, but they do not grab the reader’s interest the way these titles do: “Never Get Sick in July” (why is July worse than other months?); “When Television is a School for Criminals” (can criminals get ideas by watching television?).
WPTips
Capturing Titles
As you work on your composition, titles will occur to you. Do not lose your good ideas; designate an area at the beginning or end of your file and label it “Title Ideas,” so that when a good idea comes along, you can quickly move to that area of the file and type it in. Then, when it comes time to decide on a title, you will have some possibilities and not have to start from scratch.
