Writing an essay or
paper, no matter the topic, is a process.
At the beginning (on
a separate piece of paper)
- Establish
your topic: state
your thesis or theme
a sentence or two at most
- Define your
audience:
is it your instructor who
grades you or the Teaching
Assistant?
Your classmates who will
critique your work?
A conference of
professionals for review?
Keep your audience in
mind as you write
- Plan ahead:
set a time line and allow
for unexpected developments
and planned revision
Often a paper is best
finalized when it is
finished, then revised!
- Use good
logic in a reasoned argument
to develop the theme and/or
support the thesis
Your first paragraph
- Introduce
the topic!
- Inform the
reader of your point of
view!
- Entice the
reader to continue
with the rest of the paper!
The first
paragraph is often the most
difficult to write. If
you have trouble, just get
it down with the intention
of re-writing it later, even
after you have finished with
the rest. But remember
this first entry draws your
audience into your topic,
your perspective, and its
importance to continue with
the rest. So:
Development
- Establish
flow from paragraph to
paragraph
- transition
sentences, clauses, or
words at the beginning
of paragraph connect one
idea to the next
- topic sentence
in each paragraph, also
near the beginning,
define their place in
the overall scheme
- avoid one and
two sentence paragraphs
(which may reflect lack
of development of your
point)
- Keep your
voice active
- "The
Academic Committee
decided..." not
"It was decided
by..."
- Avoid the verb
"to be" for
clear, dynamic, and
effective presentation
(Avoid the verb "to
be" and your
presentation will
be effective,
clear, and dynamic)
- Avoiding
"to be" will
also avoid the passive
voice
- Use
quotations to support your
interpretations
- Properly
introduce, explain, and
cite each quote
- Block
(indented) quotes should
be used sparingly; they
can break up the flow of
your argument
- Continually
prove your point of view
throughout the essay
- Don't drift or
leave its primary focus
of the essay
- Don't lapse
into summary in the
development--wait until
its time, at the
conclusion
Conclusion
- Read your
first paragraph and the
development
- Summarize,
then conclude, your argument
- Refer back
once again to the first
paragraph(s) as well as the
development
- do the last
paragraphs briefly
restate the main ideas?
- reflect the
succession and
importance of the
arguments
- logically
conclude their
development?
- Edit/rewrite
the first paragraph
to better set your
development and conclusion.
Take a day or two off!
Re-read your
paper with a fresh mind
and a sharp pencil.
Edit, correct,
and re-write as necessary
Turn in the
paper
Celebrate a job
well done, with the
confidence that you have done
your best.
This last
is very important.
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