c. decide on a topic for the essay
a. create an outline for the essay
e. write a draft of the essay
d. revise and rewrite the draft of the essay
b. skim and edit the essay for surface errors
In order for you to begin any piece of writing or planning for your essay, you first need to know what you're writing about so deciding on a topic is first. Second, it is helpful to have a general outline or road map for your essay. This helps you to stay on topic with your paragraphs as well as point out any immediate problems with organizational structure. The next is to write a rough draft for the essay. Once you have the draft and know exactly how it all goes together, you can go back and revise for major errors and better language. It's not worth the time to check for minor errors if you end up making major revisions at this stage. Once all of the major revisions are completed, then it's important to spell and grammar check the essay for things that may have been overlooked.
