WRITING TIPS FOR ESSAYS & REPORTS

The Main Point:

        State your main point clearly– be brief. It is not necessary to use long, wordy passages to prove your point or your intelligence.

Introductions:

        Introductions are important because they tell the reader what your writing is about. Avoid long introductions that don't get to the main point quickly or you will loose the interest of your readers and confuse them. It is often a good idea to write the introduction last, after you have written everything else. The best place to start writing is in the middle. Jump right into the main point you are trying to make to get "warmed up" and once you have written that and have a better handle on what exactly you are trying to say, you can write a better, more meaningful introduction.

Conclusions:

        This is also an important part of your essay and should sum up the main issue and the points you are trying to make about it briefly and clearly.

Avoid Clichés:

        Clichés are obvious or silly little phrases that really don't add anything to what you are trying to say. Examples:

            "Hammurabi's Code opened new doors on to how to keep civilizations civil and just."

            "Family values were very important to the Babylonians."

            "Cruelty and injustice are marching on."

            "There's no if's, and's, or but's about it."

Avoid Padding:

Don't pad your writing with useless or irrelevant information that's not directly related to your main theme. If you are asked to write about the significance of the Code of Hammurabi or the Epic of Gilgamesh, its not important for you to tell me how many tablets the Epic was written on, how big the stone with he Code, when they were discovered or what museums they ended up in.

Be Specific:

Even if it seems obvious to you, give specific examples to support your general statements. Avoid broad, general statements without specific examples to back them up Example:

    not:

            "Hammurabi's law code had strict penalties for violations of the law."

    but:

"Hammurabi's law code had strict penalties for violations of the law. Theft by a man or adultery by a woman was punishable by death. If you injured someone, the same injury was inflicted on you according to the principle of ‘an eye for an eye.'"

Proofread and correct what you have written:

Don't just hand in your fist draft. Reading it aloud to yourself can help you spot errors and everyone– even expert writers– have to proofread because we all make some mistakes in our first drafts when we are focused on getting our ideas on paper. Wordprocessors have grammar and spell checkers, so use them. It is often a good idea to leave something you have just written alone for a while and come back to it later with a fresh mind.

BULL S%#@

Avoid B.S. It stinks and is easy to recognize. It is also a waste of your time and mine and usually annoys your readers which is a bad idea if the reader is also giving you a grade.

Use Plain Language:

Use plain language to make your ideas clear and easy to follow. This does not mean you should use slang or colloquial speech (see below). It does mean that you should avoid flower and pretentious language to make yourself sound "intellectual" or to impress the reader. Clear, easy to follow writing is impressive enough and your readers will thank you for it. Example:

Use adjectives to qualify broad terms:

          This makes your statements more specific and easier to follow. Examples:

               Not:                    "Society was unequal."                                                     

               But:                     "Babylonian society was unequal."

Fluff:

        Skip the meaningless fluff as "packing material" to pad your work. Fluff often contains clichés and B.S. as well. Example

"The Epic of Gilgamesh is one that has been passed down for many generations and hopefully will be passed down for many more generations to come."

"As it mentions in the beginning of the "Code of Hammurabi," or the introduction if you will, one might find it quite amazing and captivating simply by the fact that this eight foot tall stele was just discovered at the beginning of the 20th Century...."

Other Writing don'ts:

        Double Negatives:  "Don't never use no double negatives."

        Slang: "Like, never use slang in your writing dude, its totally uncool."

        Avoid colloquial (=everyday) speech. Example:

                Not:            "Hamurrabi's law code said you shouldn't cheat on your husband or wife."

                But:             "Hamurrabi's law code said you shouldn't commit adultery."

        Avoid run-on sentences: A proper sentence is one complete idea, not several of them.

        Avoid incomplete sentences: Does your sentence have a subject and a verb?