edit First Draft Blues

You've finished your paper and you love it like your own child. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean there's no room for improvement. Revision is a vital stage in writing your paper: it's what pulls a C paper up to a B, and a B to an A with a distinction.

edit Tips on Revising

• Sleep on it if you can. Try to revise after some time away, so that you can look at your work with fresh eyes.

• Revise on paper, not on the screen. You will find it easier both to mark up and to find connections when all 12 pages of your essay are laid out in front of you and you can scribble on it as you wish.

• Read out what you've written.

• Go through your paper paragraph by paragraph. Does each paragraph link to the next one?

• How can you make your writing tighter? Loose and prolix writing is boring and your reader's attention will soon wander.

• Co-opt a friend to read the paper and give comments. Even if they're not specialists in the field, they will often be able to tell you where your connections don't make sense.

• Take a good look at your thesis. You may realise that you have to rethink your thesis statement, because your paper's argument is a shade or two different from what you had originally planned.

• Does the structure of your paper work?

• Can your opening and ending be made catchier?

edit When Not To Revise

The short answer: never.

The long answer: never, not ever.