Prewriting

I have many teachers who have sworn on beginning prewriting with charts, charts, charts. You must begin with a general topic, then come up with ideas branching from the broad topic, slowly shrinking the ideas until you have a thesis. this gives a visual of the actual thought process which can help later on in the writing process. There were numerous charts like this, but the one I remember and used the most was a web diagram. In the center would be a broad topic, such as the Civil War, and branching from there were topics pertaining to the broad topic (slavery, Abraham Lincoln, etc.). From there, I could create more branches from these topics until I had my thesis. I have had other teachers who have pushed me to create lists, keeping the idea that I must start with a general idea, then shrink it down until I have a thesis. Once a thesis is formed, across the board, I have always been taught to outline my paper. What will my paper look like? What research is needed in order to fill in the blanks? These prewriting tools have always been taught in order to fully organize my thoughts before I face the daunting blank page. Generally, my teachers have only attempted to give me the tools I need in order to keep everything organized so that, in the end, my paper will be more organized. Prewriting prepares the way for an organized, well-thought piece of writing. No matter the process, the key to prewriting is organization.