Revision Accounts:

• A 2-3 page “Revision Account” is required with your poetry submission.
   
• The Revision Account explains how the poem developed and was revised, especially through presentation-discussion or draft exchange. 

Expectations for Revision Accounts

Length: 2 - 3 double-spaced pages (equivalent)

Contents:

1. Did your poem draft pre-exist this course, or did you write it only for the assignment? Either way, how did your poem originate? How or why did you come up with the idea? What can you deduce about “where poems come from?”

2. Whether you presented the poem in class or did a draft exchange, what kind of response did you receive and what did you learn?

3. Quote and evaluate reactions. If you did a draft exchange, identify your reviewers and how you found them.

4. What changes or revisions did you make? What changes did you resist?

5. What is the current status of your submission?  What strengths? What further development? Is it part of a larger work?

5. Future developments: Possible publication? Additions or research required? What would you like to be able to accomplish for this manuscript that you can’t quite do yet?

Most common problem with Revision Accounts

• Most students don't write enough (mostly b/c they've never done an assignment like this).
   
• The required length of the revision account is 1 1/2 - 3 pages.
   
• The best Revision Accounts offer more material for the instructor to work with.
  
   
• Two ways to extend your revision account:
  • Write a little, rest a little; return, revise, and write some more
     
  • Examples! Keep looking at different parts of your poem, especially the parts that changed + how & why. But you can also defend not changing parts, even when your reviewers pushed you.

+ Look at examples of assignment from previous semesters:

2008 Poetry Submissions with Revision Accounts (Model Assignments)

Note: Even if you do a poetry presentation, you may also continue to revise your poem through informal draft exchanges, which you may report in revision accounts.