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Module 2: Pre-Writing

Welcome to Module 2!. Here you are going to scrutinize the things to do in pre-writing
stage. Break a leg!
Prewriting is the first stage during which the writer needs to consider three main
factors: topic, audience, and purpose.
A student may have to deal with two different types of topics: assigned topics or
chosen topics. If the topic is assigned the directions for the assignment will limit and
determine the approach to take. Instructions must be read carefully and directions must
be followed exactly. If the student is free to select a topic, it is important to reflect on the
value and meaning of the finished product. A writer should select something he is
interested in and knowledgeable about, but he should also anticipate the desired effect
he hopes to achieve and the reader's reaction he is looking for. Any topic can generate
an interesting discussion, if one considers the following possibilities: selecting an
uncommon topic or using a new and original approach for an old topic.
At the end of this module, the pre-service teachers shall be able to:

1. identify techniques in pre-writing for creative writing; and

2. present plans as an important part in the creative writing process.

This is comprised of the following lessons:

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 1

 Module 2 Pre-Writing Concerns
Lesson 1
Learning 1. Identify the concerns in pre-writing stage; and
Target/s 2. Point out the relevance of pre-writing concerns in actual writing.
Reference/s Nordquist, R. (2021). Prewriting for Composition. Retrieved March 26,
2022 from [Link]
1691676

Welcome to Lesson Module 2 Lesson 1! This is another one in a million

experiences that you have to go through. You really are becoming an expert in creative
writing. Wow!

ACTIVITY Freewriting
Look out of the window. Focus on one image from the outside.
Think about the image. What comes to your mind when you
concentrate on that image. Set your clock for five minutes. In five minutes start
scribbling anything without stopping. When you hear the alarm, stop what you are
doing. Examine what you’ve got?
Read it over carefully to see if you can find a keyword or phrase or maybe even a
sentence or two that can be developed into a longer piece of writing. Share your
experience to your groupmates.
Using the table below, classify your similar experiences and different experiences about
the activity. Point out also your individual keywords or phrases or maybe sentences that
can be developed into a longer piece of writing.
Similar Experiences Different Experiences Key
Words/Phrases/Sentence
s than can be Developed
into Longer Piece of
Writing

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 2

 What’s with the Activity?
ANALYSIS Answer the following questions pertaining to the activity:

1. In general, how was the activity?

2. Were you able to get a right frame of mind for writing?
3. Do you think the activity is a good starting point for writing?
4. In your own opinion, what is necessary before you write?
5. Suggest any other activity which is effective to do before writing.

In composition, the term prewriting refers to any activity that

ABSTRACTION helps a writer think about a topic, determine a purpose,
analyze an audience, and prepare to write. Prewriting is
closely related to the art of invention in classical rhetoric.

"The objective
of prewriting,"
according to
Roger Caswell
and Brenda
Mahler, "is to
prepare students
for writing by
allowing them to
discover what
they know and
what else they
need to know.
Prewriting invites
exploration and
promotes the
motivation to
write" (Strategies
for Teaching
Writing, 2004).

Because various kinds of writing (such as note-taking, listing, and freewriting) usually
occur during this stage of the writing process, the term prewriting is somewhat
misleading. A number of teachers and researchers prefer the term exploratory writing.

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 3

Types of Prewriting Activities

 Brainstorming
 Clustering
 Freewriting
 Journalists' Questions
 Journal Writing
 Listing
 Outline
 Pentad
 Reading

Examples and Observations

"Prewriting is the 'getting ready to write' stage. The traditional notion that writers have a
topic completely thought out and ready to flow onto the page is ridiculous. Writers begin
tentatively—talking, reading, brainstorming—to see what they know and in what
direction they want to go." -Gail Tompkins, Rod Campbell, and David Green, Literacy
for the 21st Century. Pearson Australia, 2010

"Prewriting involves anything you do to help yourself decide what your central idea is or
what details, examples, reasons, or content you will include. Freewriting, brainstorming,
and clustering . . . are types of prewriting. Thinking, talking to other people, reading
related material, outlining or organizing ideas—all are forms of prewriting. Obviously,
you can prewrite at any time in the writing process. Whenever you want to think up new
material, simply stop what you are doing and start using one of [these] techniques..." -
Stephen McDonald and William Salomone, The Writer's Response, 5th ed. Wadsworth,
2012

The Aims of Prewriting. "Usually, the prewriting activities help you find a good topic,
narrow topics that are too broad, and look at purpose. You should finish the prewriting
activities with at least a sentence and a list. Or you may have something as formal as a
three-part thesis sentence and a fully developed outline. Either way, you'll have laid the
groundwork." -Sharon Sorenson, Webster's New World Student Writing Handbook.
Wiley, 2010
Prewriting as a Method of Discovery. "Jeannette Harris stresses prewriting while
stating that discovery occurs throughout the composing process, even in revision, when
the writer is still 'retrieving additional information, making further connections,
recognizing emerging patterns' [Expressive Discourse, 15]. In prewriting as well as free-
writing and keeping journals, ideas and forms are discovered by provoking memory. In
addition, the personal nature of much prewriting and freewriting serve as an affirmation
that the memory of the student writer has a valid place in the writing classroom." -

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 4

Janine Rider, The Writer's Book of Memory: An Interdisciplinary Study for Writing
Teachers. Routledge, 1995
Prewriting and Revising. "[P]rewriting plans are not carved in stone; they are simply
tools for generating and organizing ideas. Writers frequently change their minds as they
write, eliminating some details, adding and changing others. That's why some writers
say that 'prewriting' is a misnomer; they return to their plans over and over during all
stages of the writing process, often revising and adjusting the plans as they go." -Lori
Jamison Rog, Marvelous Minilessons for Teaching Intermediate Writing. International
Reading Association, 2011.

Writing from Reading

After you have gone through reading and
APPLICATION discussing the lesson on Pre-Writing
Concerns, write an essay pointing out the
relevance of pre-writing concerns in actual writing.

Criteria :
Snappy title (3-5 words) – 5 pts.
Interesting and catchy introductory paragraph – 10 pts.
Substantial 3-5 body paragraph – 25 pts.
Relevant and appropriate concluding paragraph – 10 pts.

Closure:
Congratulations! You have just done Module 2 Lesson 1!. You are now getting deeper
into the realm of creative writing. Keep going!

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 5

EL 121 – CREATIVE WRITING 6