First Draft
Abounding with advice for writing and editing English texts, the Internet comprises a wealth of information for native speakers of English to improve their own native writing skills. In addition, a sizeable number of sites for teachers of English to speakers of other languages (called ELT in this blog) provide demonstrations of teaching and teaching content of writing. Missing a resource for those teachers who wish to write texts for an ELT learner audience, the primary aim for this blog is to begin that resource.
Two bases inform this blog. The first examines those sites aimed at native speakers of English (NS) writing for other NS. The advice in these sites will be contrasted against the needs of writers for an NS audience. The second base takes actual examples and analyses of examples either by myself or taken from published textbooks. NS sites deal with both the macro and micro aspects of writing. Under 'macro' we see pages on how to develop characters, plot lines and other longer scale content (a typical, but unstylish example); for 'micro', pages about grammar or style. Some pages (e.g. Fifty Tools) try to cover both. Other sites deal with more psychological aspects of writing, like how to overcome writer's block or how to set goals in writing (see Angela Booth's writing blog). Nothing will be said about teaching sites in this blog due to their different focus.
Let me start with a simple example of a passage that requires editing. The following section is under consideration for a textbook I am currently writing. The topic is 'Inventions that you can't live without', and my chosen article is a coffee maker.
No-thought content outpour
My coffee maker is great. It's a combination of a coffee maker and a thermos flask. THat means that I can make a single pot in the mornign and have hot coffee all day. Th e coffee maker was invented by Laurens (first name?) in France in (when) and the theromos by some Scottish guy in the late 1890s. Pyrex invented glass atht is resitant to heat in the 1930s and if you put these together , you cna have a thermos-coffee pot. This machinge, invention is great for lazy poeple like me.
At 93 words, the length is just about right. The question now becomes how should this passage be edited? That's the topic of the next blog. Suggestions are welcome.
Two bases inform this blog. The first examines those sites aimed at native speakers of English (NS) writing for other NS. The advice in these sites will be contrasted against the needs of writers for an NS audience. The second base takes actual examples and analyses of examples either by myself or taken from published textbooks. NS sites deal with both the macro and micro aspects of writing. Under 'macro' we see pages on how to develop characters, plot lines and other longer scale content (a typical, but unstylish example); for 'micro', pages about grammar or style. Some pages (e.g. Fifty Tools) try to cover both. Other sites deal with more psychological aspects of writing, like how to overcome writer's block or how to set goals in writing (see Angela Booth's writing blog). Nothing will be said about teaching sites in this blog due to their different focus.
Let me start with a simple example of a passage that requires editing. The following section is under consideration for a textbook I am currently writing. The topic is 'Inventions that you can't live without', and my chosen article is a coffee maker.
No-thought content outpour
My coffee maker is great. It's a combination of a coffee maker and a thermos flask. THat means that I can make a single pot in the mornign and have hot coffee all day. Th e coffee maker was invented by Laurens (first name?) in France in (when) and the theromos by some Scottish guy in the late 1890s. Pyrex invented glass atht is resitant to heat in the 1930s and if you put these together , you cna have a thermos-coffee pot. This machinge, invention is great for lazy poeple like me.
At 93 words, the length is just about right. The question now becomes how should this passage be edited? That's the topic of the next blog. Suggestions are welcome.
Labels: editing, ELT, mission statement, passage needing work, writing
posted by Jim Smiley at
7:15 pm
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