Writing Process

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is the initial stage of writing and includes inventing, thinking, imagining, developing, and organizing the writing project. The process of writing begins with planning. During the brainstorming stage, writers begin to formulate and write down ideas for the writing project. Even though this endeavor is usually done independently, some writers engage in discussions with colleagues during this stage to determine the range of potential topics and research questions and to create a project that responds to established scholarship.

This prewriting stage allows writers to consider a plethora of possibilities that will later be narrowed down significantly. Brainstorming can be in the form of an outline, a list, a set of questions, or free writing that will eventually become the first draft. Free writing allows writers to be spontaneous and unstructured, thinking, feeling, seeing, and experiencing new things as they write. This prewriting occurs during the process of collecting and organizing information so that the writer can consider what the purpose and goal of the writing is. Additionally, researchers must make a commitment to connect their writing to their audience (other scholars, participants, students) and contribute to knowledge through their scholarship.

Writing

Writing about the topic of interest is the second stage in the writing process. The activity of writing allows the writer to engage and teach the audience about the topic and the specific procedures followed. The writing stage [Page 950]also includes active researching and gathering of information needed to establish and support the main objectives of the assignment. Writers must determine what the goals of the project are, what side they are taking, and what others have said about the subject.

The writing stage involves translating the raw data or fragments collected in fieldnotes and research into accessible and readable passages. Depending on the scope of research, a researcher will write based on his or her research experience or based on the research literature. A writer engages in his or her topic at various stages and builds upon his or her knowledge by writing about it. The writing process reflects and expresses the thoughts of the writer, allowing the writer to discover realizations about the topic and him- or herself simultaneously. The writing involves thinking, predicting, asking or answering questions, and finding answers.

...