The first attempt of even the most talented artists, musicians, and writers is seldom a masterpiece, If you
consider your drafts as dress rehearsals (彩排), or tryouts, revising will seem a natural part of the writing 1 .
What is the purpose of the dress rehearsals and the out-of-town previews that many Broadway shows go
through? The answer is adding, deleting, replacing, reordering, 2 revising. Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical
Phantom of the Opera underwent such a process.
When Lloyd Webber began writing in 1984, he had in mind a funny, exciting production. However, when
Phantom opened in London in 1986, the audience saw a moving psychological love story set to music. The
musical had. 3 several revisions due, in part, to problems with costuming and makeup (戏服和化妆). For
instance, Lloyd Webber 4 some of the music because the Phantom's makeup prevented the actor from
singing certain sounds.
When you revise, you change aspects of your work in 5 to your evolving purpose, or to include 6
ideas or newly discovered information.
Revision is not just an afterthought that gets only as much time as you have at the end of an assignment.
7 , it is a major stage of the writing process, and writers revise every step of the way. Even your decision
to 8 . topics while prewriting is a type of revising. However. don't make the mistake of skipping the revision
stage that follows 9 . Always make time to become your own 10 and view your dress rehearsal, so to speak.
Reviewing your work in this way can give you 11 new ideas.
Revising involves 12 the effectiveness and appropriateness of all aspects of your writing, making your
purpose more clearly, and refocusing or developing the facts and ideas you present. When you revise, ask
yourself the following questions, keeping in mind the audience for whom you are writing: Is my main idea or
purpose 13 throughout my draft? Do I ever lose sight of my purpose? Have I given my readers all of the 14
that is, facts, opinions, inferences-that they need in order to understand my main idea? Finally, have I included
too many 15 details that may confuse readers? |