by Haley Schabes
Have you ever been so frustrated with a paper that you just want to rip it up? It turns out that you can—and have it be helpful.
When writing, sometimes I struggle with the direction and the clarity of my paper, or I struggle to keep all the information straight. For example, there might be paragraphs that have overlapping material or points that I feel like I can’t connect well. In cases like these, when I revise my paper, it feels like the paper is either repetitive or not cohesive. It can be frustrating as a writer to have all your evidence there, but seemingly jumbled on the page. But there is a fun and easy solution to this!
- Take some scissors (yes, scissors!) and “rip up” a hard copy of your paper by cutting between paragraphs.
- From there, find a big open space (like a table or the floor) and place your introduction and conclusion on opposite ends of the area.
- Begin experimenting with the remaining paragraphs’ order by placing them between the two. This will help you see what information connects and flows together.
- If there is a part of a paragraph that does not fit and should be moved, just take the scissors, carefully cut away the sentences, and slide them to a better position. In some cases, you may find that you need to create a new paragraph.
- When you are satisfied with the flow and order of your paragraphs, make the changes in your digital copy.
- Double check to make sure your thesis and topic sentences still hold despite having rearranged information. You may need to place additional transition sentences or make small edits to topic sentences to solidify connections between your thesis and other paragraphs.
- Read through your paper to make any further changes, finalize it, and celebrate!
This hands-on exercise allows you to visualize your paper’s direction more easily. By seeing all the components side-by-side (instead of just on the computer screen), you can see your thought process throughout the entire paper. This exercise can help you rearrange your evidence from a new angle, understand which material should be taken out, unveil where more transitions are needed, and improve the clarity and flow of your paper.
But remember: changes do not need to be revolutionary! Sometimes just changing the order of your paragraphs can make a big difference. By the end of this exercise, your seemingly jumbled information should be presented in a clean and logical order. For another take on this strategy, click here!
Happy organizing!
Haley Schabes is a junior majoring in business administration with minors in economics, Asian studies, and education.