Questions to Ask in Evaluating a Piece of Your Own Writing

CONTENT
Have I thought carefully about what I’m saying here?
Have I attempted to do some original thinking on my own?
Is this piece of writing appropriate to this situation?
Does it fulfill the assignment, or answer the questions?
Do I really know what I’m talking about here, or do I need to use other resources?
Is what I’m saying true? Are my facts correct?
Have I exaggerated, or have I left out important information?
Have I included any unnecessary or inappropriate information?
Is my writing clear or “foggy”?
VOICE, TONE, PURPOSE, AND STYLE
Does my writing sound natural?
Am I talking down to my reader?
Am I trying too hard to impress my reader, and am I sounding pretentious as a result?
Is my tone (whether comic, somber, informative, etc.) appropriate to my subject?
Am I clearly aware of the purpose of this piece of writing? Does everything in this piece of writing relate to and help develop that purpose?
Did I KISS (“Keep It Simple, Sweetheart”)? Do I need to KISS?
INTRODUCTION AND CONCLUSION
Does my introduction arouse interest?
Does my introduction include a thesis statement?
Is the thesis statement in the right place?
Is my introduction appropriate?
Does my conclusion sound like a conclusion?
Does this piece of writing end too abruptly?
Does the conclusion do more than just summarize or restate the thesis?
BODY
Is my organization effective? Is there another, more effective way to organize the material?
Have I used specific and concrete examples and details to make my points?
Does each paragraph develop one main idea clearly related to the thesis?
Within a paragraph, does each sentence clearly relate to the main idea or topic sentence of the paragraph?
Have I left anything important out of the paragraphs?
Does each paragraph contain at least three sentences (exception: dialogue)?
MECHANICS, USAGE, AND SPELLING
Are my word choices clear, varied, and appropriate?
Do my sentence structures show variety and fluidity?
Are my paragraph beginnings varied?
Are any words misspelled? Have I run a spell-check? Have I asked someone to proofread for me?
Are my verb tenses consistent?
Have I eliminated sentence fragments and run-on sentences?
Have I checked my punctuation carefully?
Have I checked for other problems, such as grammatical and usage errors?
AND FINALLY,
Does this piece of writing represent me at my very best, as a careful and intelligent person?