cua’s writing center 111 o’boyle hall x5018 what they can do: help with “writer’s block”...
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CUA’s Writing Center111 O’Boyle Hall
x5018
What they CAN do:• Help with “writer’s block”
• Listen and give feedback
• Help with understanding the assignment
• Help identify what needs improving
• Supervise as you revise
• Coach proofreading and editing skills
What they CAN’T do:
• Write any portion of the paper
• Make every correction
• Tutor in the subject matter
• Evaluate the assignment
• Comment on what grade it should receive
WRITING PAPERS ISN’T A JOB FOR JUST
ANYONE.
BUT THERE’S
A WHOLE LOT
OF HEAVY
SHOVELING
IN
OUT
HOLD
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BEFORE:Getting READY to write
There are lots of "correct" things to write about
for any subject, but you must narrow down your choices.
Brainstorm to fight writer’s
block
Gather as many good and bad
ideas, examples, sentences,
false starts, etc. as you can.
Jot down everything that comes to mind,
including material you are sure
you will throw out. “Free write.”
Consider stringing together likely
quotes you’re going to use
just like a necklace
Speak it:Put your thoughts
into words
You might try to teach the topic to a
group or class.
Or pretend that you are being interviewed
by someone: What questions would the other
person ask?
“Nutshell” your
whole idea:Tell it to someone
in three or four sentences.
See if you can find a fresh
analogy / metaphor that opens up a new
set of ideas.
Metaphors can get you thinking
“outside the box” for a fresh or unusual
perspective on the topic.
Your topic’s like a “car” that won’t start in winter -
what would you do?
Your topic’s just something wrong with “digestion”:
“someone ate the wrong thing,”
“constipation,” “vomiting.”
Your topic’s a problem of “addiction” -
who’s addicted to what?
Your topic’s a matter of “physical sickness”-
it needs a “special drug,” “a long recuperation,” “help dealing with the impossibility of cure.”
Your topic’s a “mental illness”-it needs “shock treatment,
“talking therapy,”“group therapy,”
“recognition that society is crazy and
the patient is sane.”
Take a rest and let it all simmer
Your thesis can help you focus and can
map out your paper for you
Thesis: “Much of Martin Luther King's success resulted from the passive resistance techniques proposed by Gandhi.”
Much of Martin Luther King's success resulted from the passive resistance techniques proposed by Gandhi.
Outline: I. Introduction and thesis II. Passive resistanceIII. King’s successIV. Influence of Ghandi V. Conclusion
The do’s and don’ts of creating
a thesis:
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Your thesis shouldn’t
be a fragment:
How Plato’s cave is relevant.
BE COMPLETE
Socrates’ metaphor of the dark cave shows the importance of
education.
Your thesis shouldn’t be in the form of a question:
Why shouldn’t women be educated?
BE DECLARATIVE:
Despite Plato’s bias, women, as well as men,
can benefit from education.
Your thesis shouldn’t have phrases such as
“I think”:
I think women are better thinkers than men.
BE DEFINITIVE :
Women have proved themselves better at
multi-task thinking than men.
Your thesis shouldn’t be garbled:
Females can think about several things at the same
time while men get stuck on one issue and don’t see all
the conclusions.
BE LOGICAL:
Because females use both sides of their brains
easily, they are better complex thinkers.
Your thesis shouldn’t use vague language:
It’s bad to keep the best education reserved for some of
the people.
BE SPECIFIC:
Both sexes can benefit, although in different styles, from higher
education.
Your thesis shouldn’t be hard to follow:
Women might think differently from men sometimes but they still have a lot to add to what a country or maybe just people
in general need to do.
BE CLEAR:
Women are a crucial part of the intellectual pool.
Your thesis shouldn’t use figurative language:
Educating women is like opening Pandora’s box.
BE LITERAL, SAVE METAPHORS FOR YOUR
TEXT OR TITLE:
Adding females to the educational system
introduces some complications and
adjustments
Diagram/ outline
your major points
Plan ahead or you’ll write yourself into a
corner
The classic formula is I. State your
thesis. II. Write an outline. III. Write the first draft. IV. Revise and
polish.
TOPIC
idea
Less traditional:Mapping
DURINGWriting a FIRST draft
Write a first draft
Then put it away to “ripen”.
(But don’t leave it so long it “rots”…)
Later, read it aloud
AFTER
REVISING and PROOFING
Revising your draft:
1. Cut 2. Paste3. Fix4. Prepare5. Proof
1. Cut:Chisel off the excess – much of your paper will be discarded
2. PasteRearrange what’s left of your paper
Transition words make the
writing flow
In comparison
LikeBoth
LikewiseIn the same way
Next in importance Handoutonline
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In contrast
ButYet
HoweverAlthoughInstead
On the other handFrom another point of view
AndTooAlso
BesidesMoreover
In additionFurthermore
BecauseThusSince
ThereforeConsequently
For this reason
Order and TimeFirst, second….
Last, finallyPreviously
Then/ Now/ LaterNext, Subsequently
Meanwhile
3. FixCheck individual words and phrases
There are more
than 250 versions of
“said.“Besides “The author
said”:
Accused AcknowledgedAcquiesced AskedAddressed AdmittedAdmonished AdvisedAdvocated AffirmedAgreed AllegedAnnounced AnsweredApologized ApprovedArgued AskedAssented AssertedAssumed AssuredAttested Authorized…
CONSULT:a thesaurus
a dictionary grammar
check spell check
Prepositions (to, from, about, over, between…)
are not words to end sentences with.
SPELL CHECK ISN'T FOOLPROOF: I have a spelling checker, It came with my PC; It plainly marks four my revue, Mistakes I might not sea. I've run this poem threw it, I'm sure your pleased too no; Its letter perfect, in its weigh. My checker tolled me sew.
Punctuation matters:
Roger said I passed the test.
Roger said, “I passed the test.”
Woman without her man is nothing.
Woman: without her, man is nothing.
PRIVATENO
SWIMMING ALLOWED
PRIVATE?NO!
SWIMMING ALLOWED.
Word placement can make a difference
7 scenarios for Romeo and Juliet moving around
the single word “only”:
Only Juliet told Romeo that she loved him.
(No one but Juliet loves Romeo.)
Juliet only told Romeo that she loved him.
(Juliet doesn't really mean it; she just said what he wanted to
hear.)
Juliet told only Romeo that she loved him.
(Romeo has no competition, at least so far.)
Juliet told Romeo only that she loved him.
(Yes, but that’s all)
Juliet told Romeo that only she loved him.
(Juliet tells Romeo that no one else
loves him.)
Juliet told Romeo that she only loved him.
(And love may not be not enough…)
Juliet told Romeo that she loved
only him.
(He's got the girl!)
4. PrepareMake it look good - follow formatting rules:APA or MLA(Rocque 25) (Rocque, 25)
My typewriter broke, so I had to do my term paper on the Etch A Sketch®
Term papers are due today!
Documentation or attribution, in the form of a footnote or
parenthetical citation, is required for:
•Direct quotes•Paraphrases (indirect quotes)•Summaries wholly concerning
original material
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Plagiarism, from the Latin for “kidnapper,” is the “false assumption
of authorship: the wrongful act of [kidnapping] the product of another person’s mind” and presenting it as
yours.”
brackets when you change the quote
Paraphrase plus quote:Because it provides both
organization and a summary, “ [a] well-constructed thesis
can write your paper for you,” asserts Rocque, a self-
proclaimed expert.
Direct quote:“A well-constructed thesis can write your paper for you,” Rocque insisted.
Direct quote:“A well-constructed thesis,” Rocque believes, “can write
your paper for you.”
Paraphrase plus quote: Some writers feel that a “ well-constructed thesis” will give a student a good start and help
outline the paper (Rocque, 2005).
5. Proof Read it aloud
(or ask someone to)
Read for trouble Read backwards
Watch especially for the need to clarify or add more information.