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PowerPoints for WritersStyle, Sentences, and
Mechanics
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The Five Cs of Style
1. Cut repetition, wordiness, and references to yourintentions.
2. Check for action by scrutinizing passiveconstructions and there are orit is sentences.
3. Connect ideas within and between yourparagraphs.
4. Commit to a personal presence, an appropriatetone, and a confident stance.
5. Choose words that are exact, are inclusive, andconvey the right tone.
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Sentence Variety
1. Vary sentence types and clauseconnections.
2. Vary the length of your sentences.
3. Use coordination to connect clauses ofequal importance.
4. Balance coordination with subordination.Subordinate less important ideas.
5. Vary the beginnings of your sentences.
6. Experiment with word order.
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Avoid Formulaic Phrases
Formulaic
at the present time
due to the fact that
are of the opinion thathave the ability to
in spite of the fact that
last but not least
prior to
Concise
now
because
believecan
although
finally
before
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Avoid Exclusionary Language
Avoid using divisive terms or mentioning traitsunnecessarily.
Gender
Race Place
Age
Politics
Religion Health and abilities
Sexual orientation
The word normal
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Tips for Style
1. Be adaptable. Consider the style your
readers will expect.
2. When in doubt, favor a plain style.
3. Less is often better. Don't overload your
writing with adjectives and adverbs.
4. Focus on rhythm, not rules. Ask yourself
how you can provide pleasant surprises foryour readers.
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Top Ten Sentence Problems
1. Fragment
2. Run-on sentence
3. Sentence snarl
4. Wrong verb form or tense5. Tense shift
6. Lack of subject-verb agreement
7. Pronoun error
8. Pronoun case and reference9. Adjective/adverb confusion
10.Double negative
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Parts of Speech: Part 1
Nouns Name people, places, things, concepts.
Pronouns Represent a noun or noun phrase.
Verbs Tell what a person, place, thing, or concept does
or is.
Adjectives Describe, point to, or tell quantity of nouns or
pronouns.
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Parts of Speech: Part 2
Adverbs
Modify verbs, adjectives, adverbs, or clauses.
Conjunctions
Join words, phrases, or clauses.
Prepositions
Make an adjectival or adverbial phrase.
Interjections Express emotion.
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Use the Passive Voice . . .
Sparingly.
When the doer or agent in your sentence is
unknown or unimportant.
In scientific writing to indicate objective
procedures.
To connect the subject of a sentence to what
has gone before.
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Types of Pronouns
Personal (I, me, you, him)
Possessive + noun (my, your, her)
Possessive, no noun (mine, yours)
Demonstrative (this, that, these)Indefinite (any, anybody)
Reflexive/intensive (myself, yourself)
Interrogative (who, what)Relative (who, which, that)
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Relative Pronouns
Human antecedentSubject: who
Object: whom, that
Possessive: whose
Nonhuman antecedentSubject: that, which
Object: that, whichPossessive: of which, whose
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When to Use a Comma
1. Before a coordinating conjunction (for, and,nor, but, or, yet, so) that connectsindependent clauses
2. After most introductory words, phrases, orclauses
3. To set off extra (nonrestrictive) information
4. To set off a transitional expression
5. To separate three or more items in a series
6. Between adjectives that can be reversed
7. After a verb that introduces a quotation
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Semicolon: Yes and No
Use a semicolon... Between independent clauses
Between clauses or items in a series containinginternal commas
Do not use a semicolon... Interchangeably with a colon
After an introductory phrase or dependent clause
When you can use a period instead
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When to Use an Apostrophe
Use -s for the possessive form of all nouns
except plurals that end with -s.
Use alone for the possessive form of plural
nouns that end in -s.
Use an apostrophe in contracted forms.
Use its only for it is or it has.
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Quotation Marks: Guidelines
1. Quote the writers exact words.
2. Pair opening and closing quotation marks to indicatewhere the quotation ends and your ideas begin.
3. Use correct punctuation to introduce and end a
quotation.4. Enclose titles of articles, short stories, songs, and
poems in quotation marks.
5. Enclose any added or changed material in squarebrackets. Show omitted material with ellipsis dots.
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Titles: Quotation Marks
or Italics/Underlining
Use quotation marks with the title of an article,
short story, poem, song, or chapter.
Use italics or underlining with the title of a
book, journal, magazine, newspaper, film,
play, or a long poem published alone.
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When to Use a Colon
1. After an independent clause to introduce a list
2. After an independent clause to introduce an
explanation, expansion, or elaboration
3. To introduce a rule or principle, which may beginwith a capital letter
4. To introduce a quotation not integrated into your
sentence and not introduced by a verb
5. In salutations, precise time notations, titles, andbiblical citations
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When to Use a Hyphen
With some prefixes
In some compound words
In spelled-out numbers
At the end of a line
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Online Punctuation and Mechanics
1. Include all punctuation in URLs and e-mail
addresses.
2. Be sure capitalization is exact.
3. Avoid splitting URLs and addresses.4. In writing for the Web, underlining indicates a
hyperlink. To indicate titles, use italics instead.
5. In formal contexts, avoid abbreviations such as BTW
(by the way).6. Avoid shouting. Use capitals with restraint.