A Writing Checklist

Below is a checklist listing a few common pratfalls that popped out when reading Take Home #1. Ensure that you understand what each point means and check back through it for each future composition.  It's okay that we fell into these in the first assignment, but now we're going to "cure" ourselves of each of these.  Some will be more easily applied to some of our assignments than others.

And now, only to get your attention:
Not following this ever-growing list of rules can be grounds to deduct points from your future assignments!


Grammar

1. Comma splices and semi-colon use
1. To separate a dependent clause (like this one), use a comma.
2. If you've got two things to say, use a semi-colon; the two things you say should be closely related.
   
2. Apostrophes for plurals
• Cats like to run.
• Cat's like to run.
• The cat's food is good.
• The cats food is good.
  
3. Pronoun use
• Careful with pronoun use; it can cause your writing to be imprecise
• If it's difficult to know to what you're referring with a pronoun, you have a "ranging antecendent."  Bring them in off of the range.
4. Writing source names
• Italicize book names, like The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  Now that we don't use typewriters to write papers, we've stopped underlining them.
• Put quotes around articles, chapters, poems, and other short works, like, "The Gettysburg Address."

Stylistic

1. Try to use parallelism where appropriate.
• If you're saying that "Topic A is important because I think so, you think so, and he thinks so," make sure you don't write something like, "Topic A is important because I was thinking it was important, you did, and he wrote seventeen different treatises on the importance of Topic A."
  
2. Editorializing versus sumarizing
• WHEN SUMMARIZING, write what the author(s) said, not what you think about what the authors wrote.
• You might point out that something that seemed obvious enough for a piece to cover is missing, but you're probably not going to critique what's there.  You'll only summarize that.
• WHEN EDITORIALIZING, including arguing a point, you should say exactly what you think.  If you do mention what someone else has written, make sure you cite and show how it relates directly to your own points.
3. Be careful with your structure.
• Clear signposts
• introduction
• transitions between points
  
• conclusions
• Unity of purpose -- what you write should all be moving in a clear direction, advancing a point.  Like, "Hire me!" or "Believe me!"
  
4. Avoid the drive-by syndrome
• Be careful that you don't get so wrapped in an assignment prompt or source that you copy its structure exactly.
5. Avoid Circular logic and "asked and answered" syndrome
• Be sure that each sentence advances your argument.
• If you repeat a point, I'll often mark it "a&a", which means you've covered that information already.
  
• The only place you're usually repeat yourself exactly without advancing anything new is in your closing.

The Writing Process

1. Include your name, title, page numbers on word processing documents.
• Ensure you've got your name and date on each of your assignments.
• For a standard academic paper, up at the top right of your paper is fine.  SINGLE SPACE THIS SECTION.
• For your main assignments, we'll discuss where to put each.  For a cover letter, for example, you'll have all of your contact information up in the header of the letter so that it looks a little like a return address.
  
2. Proofreading
• Read your papers multiple times.  Make changes, and edit with each reading.
• Schedule time to proofread.
  
• Make sure that you've put your draft aside and come back to it, or have gotten a friend to read it who isn't writing about the same topic.  To a certain degree, not having familiarity with a writing task makes for better proofreading.
3. Read the assigned readings (or sources you cite) completely and fully.
• Read sources intensively and interactively.  TAKE NOTES, MARGINALIA, SOMETHING!!
• Be very careful when a writer is saying something and when they're quoting someone else.  Often quoted or paraphrased material is used as a point of departure or argument.
  
4. Ensure that your assignments can be read by those who haven't seen the prompts.
• For example, many in our summary didn't mention what you were summarizing.
• Insure your genre is obvious.
• Give a copy of your compositions to friends and ask if they can tell what you were writing.
  
• Be careful of slang, cliche, and colloquialisms
  
• If it sounds folksy, I'd reckon it doesn't belong in most've our assignments
• If you heard an athelete saying what you wrote during their postgame interview, you probably need to rephrase.
• "and all that"
• "many believe", "it's common", etc without a source
• "until the end of time"