10+ tips for improving your academicwriting "writing is nature's way of letting you know...

10+ Tips for Improving Your AcademicWriting

"Writing is nature's way of letting you know how sloppy your thinking is."

~from a Guindon cartoon.

The Write Place © 2013

Created by C. Mohrbacher

Purpose of Writing

To convey information or meaning efficiently and effectively with as little inconvenience to the reader as possible.



1. Use The Appropriate Tone

Academic tone is formal, but approachable. Avoid the following:

Clichés (e.g., white as snow, crystal clear, selling like hotcakes)

Slang (e.g., awesome, that’s how I roll, omg)

Colloquialisms or regional language (e.g., at all, hot dish, ya sure you betcha)

“you” and “I,” except when and where specifically instructed to do so

Contractions Useless intensifiers like really, very, so, amazingly, extremely

Avoid “basically” and “states.” They are overused.



2. Avoid Using All Forms of the Verb, “to be”

Includes: be, is, am, are, was, were, being, and been

To be verbs: Support passive construction

JFK was killed by Lee Harvey Oswald (passive).

Lee Harvey Oswald killed JFK (better).

Make writing “flabby” and wordy There are many students who are struggling to pay for

overpriced textbooks. (flabby and wordy)

Many students struggle to pay for overpriced textbooks.

Weaken the force and liveliness of your writing. It was last week when Lauren was running in the park and

was attacked by a skunk that was rabid. (weak)

Last week, a rabid skunk attacked Lauren as she ran in the park.



3. Reduce the Number of Prepositional Phrases Prepositions indicate a relationship or direction (e.g.,

toward, of, for, in, out, of, at, by, around, from, to)

Don’t eliminate altogether, only when a shorter phrase, adverb, or adjective is an equal substitute.

Too many prepositional phrases interfere with meaning and make writing dull and lifeless.

Example: “There will be an evaluation of the program by us in order

to achieve greater efficiency in the servicing of clients.”

“We will evaluate the program so that we can serve clients better.”



4. Avoid Using the Wrong Word Affect/effect

Affect (verb): The death of my dog deeply affected me. Effect (noun): The death of my dog had a deep effect on me.

Imply/infer He implied I didn’t care about politics. I infer from his speech that he is a conservative.

Media (plural)/medium (singular) Most media—tv, radio, and the Internet—are own by large conglomerates. Television is a medium that is quickly changing due to technological

improvements.

Data (plural)/datum (singular) All of the data support the idea that the earth is round. One of the study’s datum opposes another of the study’s datum.

Criteria (plural)/criterion (singular) The criteria for being a good writing consultant are sensitivity to the student,

knowledge of the writing process, and the ability to ask for help when it is needed.

A criterion for being a good writing consultant is sensitivity to the student.The Write Place © 2013


5. Quotations Commas and periods go inside quotation marks:

He said, “I don’t like Fords.” or “I don’t like Fords,” he said.

When citing in-text, the end quotation marks go before the parenthesis:

Jones said, “The statistics prove that driving drunk is dangerous” (234).

Single quotation marks only go inside double quotation marks in most fields:

She said, “I read the chapter, ‘APA Documentation,’ in our English 191 handbook.”

Don’t include a quotation without indicating who said those words. In his article, “Four Steps to Buying a Good Mountain Bike,” Morgan says,

“Choosing a new mountain bike is like buying a new house. One must go slowly and research, research, research.”

You must surround all of an author’s words with quotation marks, even if you use only a few words and also cite the source:

Most students feel “challenged, stressed, and depressed” during final exams (Jones 23).



6. Avoid Vague Pronoun Reference Jones is sometimes compared with Smith, but

he is quite different Jones is sometimes compared to Smith, but Smith is

quite different.

Jody found the hammer in the car that her uncle had used. In the car, Jody found the hammer that her uncle

had used.

In the average television drama they present a false picture of life. The average television drama presents a false

picture of life.



7. Missing Comma After Introductory Element

Frankly, we should all tell the truth.

As a matter of fact, he turned in his assignment yesterday.

In 1968, hundreds of students disappeared or were killed during a demonstration in Mexico City.

Fourteen years ago, my grandfather retired from teaching.

Without a loan, we cannot fund the concert.



8. Avoid Comma Splices

Occurs when 2 sentences (or independent clauses) are separated by a comma.

The Spanish culture attracts me, the architecture is beautiful.

The Spanish culture attracts me because the architecture is beautiful.

The Spanish culture attracts me. The architecture is beautiful.

The Spanish culture attracts me; the architecture is beautiful.



9. Don’t Forget the Possessive Apostrophe Need apostrophe for possessive case; no apostrophe

when indicating plural That is David’s shoe. Building materials must be listed on the invoice.

When a possessive noun ends in s the boys’ bikes the babies’ cribs the Joneses’ Mazdas Charles’ coat or Charles’s coat

When a plural noun does not end in s men’s room women’s education children’s development



10. Paragraphs

Topic sentences help you organize your paragraphs.

When you move to a new idea or time or step or location, begin a new paragraph.

Paragraphs should neither be too long nor too short.

Include transitions from paragraph to paragraph or within the paragraph when you move from one point to another (first, primarily, finally, next, following, after, then)



11. The Big Five Homonyms To, too, two

To = a preposition meaning toward

Too = means “also” (After she spoke, I spoke too); also means “excessive amount” (I ate too much)

Two = the number 2

Their, there, they’re Their: They took off their coats.

There: She put the book over there.

They’re: contraction for “they are”

Then, than Then refers to time (I did it then) or transition (Then I went to the store).

Than refers to comparison. I received a worse grade than Henry on the biology midterm.

Your, you’re Your: It is your coat, not mine.

You’re: You’re the best friend I have ever had.

Its, it’s This shirt looks weird. Its collar is too tight.

Where is the book? It’s on the bookcase.



Other Faculty Pet Peeves

Never use only an author’s first name.

Don’t use no double negative—never.

“Alot” is not a word. Use “a lot.” Better yet, use “much”

or other more academic word.

“Should of” is wrong. Write “should have” (or would have, or could have)

Avoid using too many rhetorical questions: Should we care about the homeless? Is Congress avoiding the issue? Can we ignore the increasing number of people on the streets? Are we afraid our taxes will increase if we build more homeless shelters?



10+ tips for improving your academicwriting "writing is nature's way of letting you know...

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