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                             PROCESS
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	As a mode of expository writing, the process paper often
looks the easiest to write.  After all, a process paper concerns
itself with how something happens.  It relates a series of steps,
changes, actions or operations in an ongoing, chronological
order.  Its clear, concise thesis statement tightly governs the
structure of the essay and enables the reader to see the changes
which will occur or are described in the essay.


PRINCIPLES

	Perhaps it is because of these seemingly simple facts that
many writers find the process paper more complicated than it
looks.  While for most writers it is not as difficult to write as
a cause and effect or argumentative paper, there are three
criteria which poorly written process papers overlook.

	First, a good process paper shows the importance of the
process in the introduction.  Not many people would want to read
a process paper about playing the English handbell, for instance,
if they do not know that there is a proper way to accomplish this
and that the handbell has one of the most melodious sounds in the
world.  A good process paper will make these facts clear.

	Second, the steps or actions in the process paper must be
presented to the reader without omission in a chronological
fashion.  It is very easy for an writer who knows the process
well to omit steps.  In a process paper on changing the oil in a
car, for instance, the writer should make sure to include
information on draining the old oil.

	Third, the writer of a good process paper recognizes and
understands audience.  Only through a clear understanding of the
audience can the writer know which diction, or what explanation
is necessary to communicate.  For instance, when outlining the
process of nuclear fusion, the writer must consider whether the
audience consists of physicists or laypeople.

CONVENTIONS

1.  The introduction of a process paper must show the
significance of the process.

2.  Diction, or word choice, plays an important role in the
process paper.  This role is determined not only by audience, but
also by the topic of the paper.  If a paper about changing the
oil in a car has inflated diction, the result bridges on satire.


3.  Be sure to select a topic familiar to you.  If you select the
topic of jogging without ever trying it, the chances are that
your paper will be neither concise nor believable.

4.  The plague of the process paper is that authors tend to write
it in such a sterile fashion that it is dull at best and boring
at worst.

5.  A consistent point of view is necessary in a good process
paper.  If you begin writing to the audience using "you," then
continue to use "you" throughout the paper.  If you choose to use
"one" or "he/she," then you must stick with these terms
throughout the paper.  Your instructor might have preferences,
and you should honor them.

STRATEGIES

1.  Try organizing your process not only in a time sequence, but
in a simple-to-complex fashion.  This often works well for
scientific topics.

2.  Don't omit trying the humorous.  Topics such "How to Drive
Your Roommate Crazy" or "How to Bore a Date" can often be
delightful to write and read.

3.  Organize the steps of your paper by location, importance or
position.

4.  Tracing a process by using curiosity (known to unknown) is
one way to keeping the reader's interest.

5.  The conclusion of your process paper should not be merely a
summary.  Try instead to challenge the readers to complete the
process, or initiate a new hobby, or provoke them to thought.











Washburn University Writing Center, 257 Morgan Hall, Topeka, KS

This handout adapted and revised from one originally prepared by
the Purdue University Writing Lab, West Lafayette, IN.


[org-process.wm]