Revision

Revision is a very generous and helpful aspect of writing.  It allows you to see your paper, and the notes that the teacher took telling you what you could have done better.  By taking those things and not only changing them in your paper, but in your writing style, you can become a much better writer.  Sometimes I am too lazy to revise, but it really is a wonderful opportunity to improve.

Reading and using sources

Sources are a very important part of writing, especially when it comes to a research paper.  By looking up sources about your topic you can find evidence and logos to help back your claim, while also broaden your view.  Reading about your topic can also do the same thing.  The more you know about your topic, the more effectively you will be able to write about it.  I really enjoyed finding sources to back up my claims through the library website.

Drafting

Sometimes writing a paper is difficult, because you have so many different ideas in your head.  This is where drafting comes in.  It is very beneficial to write a rough draft, where you basically just get your ideas down on paper and then go away from it.  After this you can go back and edit it into the next level of draft, and so on until you are satisfied with your work and can create a final draft.  From draft to draft you can take out what you don't like and add what you do.

Entering the Conversation

No topic is that original, or deals solely with original information, so there are bound to be opinions of others on each and every topic.  The term 'entering the conversation' is used because there are already many views on your topic and different articles and works written about it and you are just adding to that.  In order to be effective in writing you need to check to see how your views align with those other views in the same 'conversation'.  It is helpful to do research on your own topic and others views on it in order to effectively find what works and what doesn't.

Invention

Invention is the stage of writing a paper before you even start writing.  It is when you take time to analyze the topic of the paper, and decide which approach you want to take and how you want to go about doing it.  Inventing is good in that it can allow you to come up with a variety of ideas, and gives you a chance to sort through them until you find what you believe to be the most effective way to approach the topic.  This can be very helpful in creating an outline as well. 

Audience, Purpose, Genre

Outlining

Outlining is one of the most powerful tools in writing a good paper.  For me, throughout my life, I have really struggled with outlining papers before I write them.  It is something so simple, that if done, can make the writing process much more enjoyable and more effective.  Outlining can help you organize your thoughts and figure out what you want to say.  It can also help you by splitting up your paper into various sections, which makes it easier to write it a little bit at a time.