Thank you for being in charge of your own writing and asking me to participate in your process. A “dear editor letter” looks like this. A “dear editor letter” should be turned in with EVERY draft you give me, Debbie--including the final. Dear Editor: 1. I am proud of the following in the work I am handing in to you: [and here you tell me what you are proud of. Maybe you explain that it is something you have attempted and failed before. Maybe you tell me that this isn’t your best writing but you are proud that you overcame your perfectionist tendencies and turned it in anyway. In short, this should be you telling me how you feel about the piece of writing you are turning in. 2. I would like your help or suggestions with the following: [and here you tell me what you would like me to edit. Perhaps you know that your conclusion doesn’t work, perhaps you want help with transitions, or a thesis, or being more descriptive. Whatever you want, ask for it. Please do not ask me to check spelling because you should be using spell check. And please do not ask me to check grammar because I do not do that until the piece is almost final. And by the way, the piece isn’t final until I do that.] 3. [This one is optional.] Tell me if you have any plans for further work on this piece. [I ask you to do this because it could be that you are turning the assignment in to be on time or to get some immediate feedback, but you have every intention of adding this or that when I return it to you.] Sincerely, Your Name Here [please do not attach this letter to the end of the paper, but rather to the front of it, so I read it before reading your paper, not after. Thank you very much. These letters have revolutionized my teaching of writing and I greatly appreciate the time you put into writing them. If you ever have any suggestions for how to improve the style of the letter, or if you just want to tell me something else, please do not hesitate to tell me.] |
Academics > Language Arts >