The LS Graph: A Methodology for Visualizing Writing Revision

The writing process has long been a subject for investigation. Until recently researchers have been restricted to written protocols for the analysis of writing sessions. These provide vast amounts of information from which it is impossible to create detailed mental representations of the writer’s movements around the text, revision activity, or pause behavior. Computer keystroke –logging programs, which record all keystrokes and mouse actions, facilitate the collection of quantitative data about text creation. This article presents the LS graph, a novel way of graphically representing and summarizing the quantitative data collected when keystroke logging. Further, the graph can be combined with a detailed manual analysis of the individual revisions that can be undertaken by playing back the logged writing session.