Write down thoughts and ideas whenever and wherever they occur

Getting started: The paper topic

Read the assignment and make sure your paper addresses it

Find your focus Ask questions to guide you to form a

tentative thesis Write down preliminary answers, but don’t

hold to them if your evidence proves otherwise

Turn your ideas and thoughts into notes

Sort them out and begin to organize

Come up with an interesting title that captures your theme -- NOT “History Paper”

WRITE!

When to write an introduction To organize thoughts Start writing something Perhaps write last, but in any case revise

DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU

Put it aside for a day or two, then read it aloud

Begin revision

Imagine you are the reader, not the writer

Make sure your ideas are supported by evidence

Editing

First, backup your work

Ask yourself:

is this readable?

persuasive?

supported by facts and evidence?

Cross out excess words - concise andclear is ALWAYS better

Rewrite unclear sentencesCorrect anything that bothers you -

this might be some fact you really likebut that doesn’t work in the paper

Get rid of repetitions and redundancyof words or ideas

Edit for spelling, punctuation, grammar and typos

Make sure you use the ACTIVE voiceand forceful verbs as often as possible

Make sure you have used a consistentcitation style for footnotes

Use Chicago Manual of Style footnotes

Examples:First citation from a book:Jane Doe, A Brief History of the World

(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005), p. 1586.

Second citation:Doe, Brief History, p. 2431.

From an article:John Doe, “The Significance of Lentils in the Agricultural Revolution,” Journal of Medieval and Early

Modern Studies 26 (2003), p. 65.Second:Doe, “Significance,” p. 72.From the web:http://whatever.whateverWHEN TO CITE MATERIAL:Exact quotations or paraphrasesOriginal ideas

Make what you think will be the

final copy

THEN PROOFREAD IT AGAIN

and make final revisions

The IntroductionStart out with a quotation that captures

the theme of the paperor an anecdote or vignette from your

sources that makes the reader wantmore

The introductory paragraph will set thetone for the entire paper

Writing your introductionCapture reader’s attention

Do NOT tell the reader what you are going to do - just start doing it

Do not use “I” unless you cannot avoid it

Present some background facts about the subject of the paper

It’s acceptable to ask some questions you hope to answer

State thesis clearly

An introductory paragraph should be roughly 2/3 of a page in length

How not to start BAD:

“The environment that surrounds a person from an early age tends to be a major factor in determining their character.”

“This essay will study the satire of Monty Python.”

DUH! Do NOT use conjunctions in formal papers

Paragraphs:A good paragraph has

UnityOrganizationCoherence

Begin with a strong topic sentence that covers the theme and evidence of the paragraph

Conclusions

Do not restate the introductionA good conclusion rounds out the paper, beginning with a few summary remarksThen it goes further - with an inference

or an idea or statement that enriches what you’ve already said

Some possible ways to conclude:

End with a quotation that amplifies your thesis or something stated in the introductionEnd with an idea or detail from the introduction and bring it full circleEnd with an allusion, putting topic in a larger framework

THE GOAL: Round out your paper

Revising for Conciseness

Extra words and empty words

Eliminate extra words as well as vague or empty words or phrases

EXAMPLE:

Wordy:

“The economic situation of Miss Moody was also a crucial factor in the formation of her character.”

Concise (and stronger):

“Anne Moody’s poverty formed her character.”

PRACTICE: Print out an old essay and cross out every word that doesn’t add anything

Reword the following

The use of setting is also a major factor in conveying a terrifying type atmosphere.

It creates a better motivation of learning when students can design their own programs involving education. This way students’ interests can be focused on.

Weak Intensifiers and Qualifiers

At that time I was [very] idealistic.

We found the proposal [quite] plausible.

The remark, although unkind, was [entirely] accurate

It was a [rather] fatuous statement.

The scene was [extremely] typical.

The death scene is [truly] grotesque.

Etc.

CircumlocutionsI came to the realization that

She is of the opinion that

The question is supportive of

Concerning the matter of

During the course of

For the period of a week

In the event that

Regardless of the fact that

For the simple reason that

If the case was such that

At that point in time

Wordy Beginnings

Reword:

“By analyzing carefully the last lines in this stanza, you find the connections between the loose ends of the poem.”

[Better: “The last lines of the stanza tie the poem together.”]

“What the cartoonist is illustrating and trying to get across is the greed of the oil producers.”

[Better: “The cartoon illustrates the greed of the oil producers.”]

Empty Conclusions That Say Nothing

“’Those Winter Sundays’ is composed so that the reader can feel what the poet was saying.”

Being the first in my family to go to college was quite a learning experience.”

Wordy uses of “to be,” “to have” and “to

make” “The rising price of oil is reflective of the spiraling cost of all goods.”

[“The rising price of oil reflects the spiraling costs of all goods.”]

“The stanzas make a vivid contrast between Heaven and Hell.”[“The stanzas vividly contrast Heaven and Hell.”]

“The friar has knowledge that Juliet is alive.”[“The friar knows Juliet is alive.”]

Instead of Use

Is taking TakesAre indications IndicateAre suggestive SuggestHas drunk DrankIs eating Eats

NOW - Can you think of even stronger verbs to use in some of these cases?

Examples: “Drank” - compare different Meanings of

guzzledimbibedconsumedsippedthrew backgulped

Each implies something different about your subject

Redundancy

Unnecessary repetition in expression of ideas

Example: “I have no justification with which to excuse myself.”

[“I have no excuse.”]

Get rid of words in the following phrases:

Throughout the entire article

A conservative type suit

His own personal opinion

Elements common to both of them

Emotions and feelings

Shared together

Falsely padded expense accounts

Negative Constructions

“After reading the second paragraph you aren’t left with an immediate reaction as to how the story will end.”

“Housing for married students is not unworthy* of consideration.”

*The second sentence can work under certain circumstances -- say it out loud and you will see why.

Use of subordination

WORDY:

“The Book of Ruth was probably written in the fifth century BC. It was a time when women were considered the property of men.”

CONCISE:

“The Book of Ruth was probably written in

the fifth century BC, when women were considered the property of men.”

WORDY:“The first group was the largest. This group was seated in the center of the dining hall.”

CONCISE:“The first group, the largest, was seated in the center of the dining hall.”

Revising for Clarity

“Good writing is clear, not because it presents simple ideas, but because it presents ideas in the simplest form the subject permits. A clear analysis doesn’t falsely reduce a complex problem to a simple one; it breaks down into its simple, comprehensible parts and discusses them, one by one, in a logical order.”

General RulesUse the simplest, most exact, most specific language your subject allows.Put together what belongs together, in the essay, in the paragraph, and in the sentence.Keep your reader in mind, particularly when you revise.

Using the Right Word

Use the word with the right denotation (explicit meaning) Look at examples: Friend, boyfriend, young man, lover Dine, eat Underdeveloped nations, developing

nations, emerging nations Upbringing, conditioning, brainwashing Emigrate, defect, seek asylum Intelligence gathering, espionage, spying

Be specific VAGUE:“The clown’s part in Othello is very small.”

SPECIFIC:

“The clown appears in only two scenes in O.”

“The clown in O. speaks only thirty lines.”

Passive vs. Active Voice

Passive:

The student was kicked by Professor X.

Active:

Professor X kicked the student.

Last but not least…

Don’t use slang or colloquialisms

Vary sentence structure

***Give appropriate and interesting quotations as evidence -- it is your proof

Make sure paragraphs are neither too short or too long

NEVER hand in a first draft - we know ;)

Quotations

Use ample quotations from primary sources -- they provide evidence to prove your argument.

Grammar

Who, whom

That, which

Commas

Semicolons

What makes up a sentence?