Five Steps to Writing
Writing is a work in progress. To produce an article, let alone a compelling article, it cannot be done once. Each writer has a different way of starting writing. There is no way that suits all writers. They develop according to the manner and style of each.
There are at least five stages in writing (Tompskin; 1994):
1. Prewriting Phase
Donald Murray believes that more than 70 percent of our time in writing lies in the prewriting stage. It's like cutting down a tree using an ax. If we provide 10 hours, then we use about seven hours to sharpen the ax and within three hours the tree has fallen. But if you don't sharpen the ax, maybe 15 hours the tree hasn't fallen yet.
Adequate preparation makes us fluent in writing, not confused in the middle of the road which then kills the enthusiasm of writing.
For long and ‘serious’ writing, it usually requires research in both library research, field research, and interviews with related sources. However, for short writing such as teen short stories, my own personal experience is largely without research. Even sometimes without any ideas, I immediately write a short story. The idea can be in the process of writing.
Where did the idea come from?
My personal experience, my ideas are obtained from friends' stories, writing diaries, watching films, personal experiences, environment, etc. Prepare your mind to get ideas that are circulating around us.
2. Drafting phase
Starting to write is the hardest part for a beginner. However, if you force yourself to start with beautiful sentences, writing usually never happens. In conclusion, start from the easy and lightweight.
3. Revision phase
Revisions can only be made when all drafts have been completed. Revising the writing before completing it will make writing difficult. When new ideas come up in writing, just save them in the revised notes folder.
Some tips on revising:
a. Send to friends who have the ability to write and ask for input.
b. Read books to enrich insight.
c. Reread the writing in a different time and mood.
d. Watching movies.
e. Listening to music.
f. etc.
4. Editing process
Stages relating to writing in the final. If the previous stage is focused on content, editing is more focused on mechanical problems such as spelling, word fragments, sentence structure, etc. The quality of an article is also determined by strong editing.
5. The publishing phase
In publishing an article, it depends on two things; who we are and which media we will send. A well-known writer, his writing will be easily accepted by editors, maybe even requested by editors. But novice writers should not be inferior by not sending writing. In the beginning, the famous writer was also a beginner writer who often experienced rejection. The difference is, he keeps writing and keeps learning.[]
