Throughout the article “Decisions and Revisions: The Planning Strategies of a Publishing Writer,” author Carol Berkenkotter explained her findings when investigating how Donald M. Murray, a professional writer, approaches his writing process. She had the goal of better understanding how experienced writers engage with the different stages of writing, more specifically, the planning and revising aspects, and achieved this goal by observing and noting Murray’s brainstorming, drafting, and editing processes. With this, Berkenkotter discovered that expert-level writers like Murray do not simply plan, draft, and publish, their process involves many more periods of rethinking and re-evaluating. Moreover, this study proved that there is no set rules of how many times a writer should go back to rethink or edit their pieces, emphasizing that, when writers allows themselves to make revisions in their writing, they are ensuring that their piece is complex, coherent, and engaging.
When writing in educational and professional settings, it is incredibly beneficial to allow myself time to brainstorm, draft, and rethink before officially submitting or publishing my work to ensure that I am producing a piece that demonstrates my highest potential. Along with this, the planning and revising aspects of the writing process offer the writer a chance to add more details, making the final product present itself more clearly and credible for the audience. Donald M. Murray’s “Response of a Laboratory Rat: Or, Being Protocoled” reflects on Carol Berkenkotter’s research, which mentions that, as Berkenkotter found, writing is a cognitive and emotional process for writers of all experience levels. With this, writers are constantly faced with the challenge of making several decisions when planning, writing, and revising to formulate a well-thought-out piece that works for the author and their audiences.
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