Abstract: Pausing during the L2 writing process is an effective writing strategy used by ESL learners. The present study aims to explore the functions of pauses in the L2 writing process, different contexts where pausing occurs in the writing process, and interactions enhanced during pauses. Twenty ESL learners at the tertiary level were employed as the study sample following the convenient sampling technique. A semi-structured interview was administered as the data collection instrument. The data were analyzed through content analysis. The results indicate that pauses in L2 writing activate cognitive, metacognitive, memory, and social functions. Moreover, ESL learners pause at different text-boundary levels: word, phrase, sentence, and paragraph depending on their linguistic competency. Additionally, the results indicated that ESL learners interact with varied social (human) resources and physical during the pauses in writing to improve the quality of their writing. Hence, meaningful pauses are a successful L2 writing strategy that enhances the quality of writing.