Be the Best Writer that You Can Be

August 11, 2011 by Leave a Comment

A common trademark among good writers is doing efficient research. Some writers do a lot of research which takes up a lot of time and they may end up using a small fraction of what’s collected. Likewise, another writer may do almost no research and her writing lacks the depth of a well researched article and isn’t an enjoyable read. Research the questions you need to answer but do so efficiently to become a better and more diverse writer.

A good editing job will also help you to become a better writer, such as online paper editing sites. An impartial set of eyes is nice to have and these proofreading and editing duties are well handled by the professionals while you concentrate on other aspects of your paper. This should include double-checking all the facts in your article and omitting anything you can’t verify as fact from at least two sources. The integrity of your written pieces demands that facts are checked for accuracy.

Also, do not limit yourself to a certain time for writing. Instead, e-mail yourself ideas or write them on paper and shove it in your pocket until a time you can work the piece out. Often times, writers will have some great ideas throughout the day and expect to remember them later. Unfortunately, we get busy during the day and can’t always remember these ideas later when we want them. Write yourself little prompts so that you never forget an idea.

Accepting criticism is perhaps the most important aspect to becoming a great writer. There are some fabulous editors out there who can help you to get the most from your ideas. Instead of getting frustrated at editor suggestions, embrace them and see if they bring out the best in your written work.

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Writing Tips: How to Create a Soft News Piece

March 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Newspapers and local websites love to feature stories that appeal to the emotions of the viewers and readers. These articles are generally known as soft news articles. Soft news articles are less strict with the structure of the article and allow the writer to show a little bit of creativity with the writing style. If you are starting out in the news writing industry there are a few guidelines that you should follow when writing and creating a soft news article. Here is a look at those guidelines.

Plan An Approach. Due to the fact that there are multiple ways that you can present a soft news topic it is important that you know exactly how you are going to approach the topic. You should know how you want to showcase your topic and what information you want readers to get from your article. This will help you when you are researching and writing the article.

Importance of Research. Just because the soft news articles appeal to the human emotions it does not mean that they can be factually incorrect. If you are writing a soft news piece you need to make sure that you conduct all the research that you would with a hard news piece. Make sure that all your facts are correct and that you gather as much information as possible on your topic.

Create a Voice for the Article. One of the ways that soft news articles stand out is the voice that the article has. Try to create some human emotion behind the article without appearing to be biased. This can come across in the setting, voice or characters that you use in your article.

Answer All Questions. A soft news piece still needs to answer all the journalistic questions. It needs to answer the who, what, where, why, when and how. Make sure that your article answers all these questions when writing it out.

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Online Caution: Writing

November 13, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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It’s a quick convenience, a rush of truth and opinions offered with the press of a button – the online world sprawls before you, vast and eager to please. All questions can be answered; all reasons can be found. The once great terror of research is transformed into a simplicity. You are no longer confined to books, searching through endless pages and their dusty inks. You can instead scroll through the ease of the Internet, finding precisely what you need (precisely when you need it).

But there is a danger in this – one too often overlooked by students already frustrated with the demands of their lives, their scholastic pursuits: relying on virtuality for all forms of information can lead to that information being false.

You think this must be an impossibility. You have, after all, favored sites and their swift texts for years. There has never been an occasion to make you hesitate in doing so. There has never been a doubt that the facts presented were valid – and perhaps they were. But the Internet lacks the regulations that literature has. There is no requirement of verification, no rigorous proof of sources. Ideas can instead be directly uploaded into the web (and can be deemed true then by any who choose to name it so).

The precious censorship of historical journals is not to be applied to online venues. They are protected only the the intentions of their creators – and are often left to be filled by visitors themselves. This can lead to vague or incorrect descriptions; each more false than the last.

It is imperative therefore that all students apply caution to the Internet. Take advantage of its initial convenience but then verify all major elements of information. Be certain that what you are citing is indeed correct – and not simply the ramblings of those who have no papers to create or grades to earn.

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Writing and Research: The Importance of Scheduling

October 26, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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It seemed to be an easy assignment: you were offered weeks to compose a paper, given precious permission to create what you wished. There were no limitations beyond the needed page count, the general restrictions. You had time. You had freedom. You could do as you pleased – and, unfortunately, you squandered this by hesitating with your research, avoiding the library halls. There was an assumption of days, the belief that tomorrow would always be available. But even it eventually failed you and there was suddenly the terrible loom of a deadline.

Those last hours were among the most frantic of your life; and what they yielded was a paper unworthy of your abilities.

There’s an understandable temptation to avoid the process of researching. It’s an often tedious search through online sources and academic journals. And, when assignments offer flexible deadlines, it’s often assumed that days can be given instead to simple pleasure.

This is a mistake.

All research must instead be carefully scheduled, allowing you to craft your paper properly. Writing isn’t to be a swift endeavor. It is instead to be deliberate:

One: Create an outline. When an assignment is given, devote yourself first to charting out what you wish to prove and what you will need to prove it. Brainstorm all theories, connecting them as needed. This will help you to choose your materials and spare you a hectic search later on.

Two: Seek books. While online libraries are forever available, public ones are forced to different schedules, with their materials subject to the whims of others. Find the physical pages you need first to ensure you can have them.

Three: Understand your inner-clock. If you tend to favor specific times for working, then create blocks that will allow you to do this. Separate yourself from distractions and allow yourself to write when you’re most focused. This is vital in achieving goals.

Prioritize all ideas. Use the weeks wisely. Never waste research.

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APA, MLA, and AP Oh My!

October 2, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Students are accustomed to writing news and academic research, but no matter the assignment, they seem to hate creating the bibliography page. For many, finding and documenting sources takes more time than it does to write the paper itself. Depending on your discipline and institution, you may be using the American Psychological Association (APA), Modern Language Association (MLA), or Associated Press (AP).

APA Style

The APA style is most commonly used in the social sciences, and determines how you cite sources, format your paper, and organize content. The APA style values organization, making your paper easier for editors and professors to evaluate while simplifying the reader’s experience. Since the APA style is straightforward, it leaves nothing for guesswork. You always know how to format documents, and the official guide provides guidelines for every scenario known. The format is very formal, abides by academic standards, and establishes your reputation and credibility in the social sciences.

MLA Style

The Modern Language Association format is most commonly used in the Arts and Humanities fields, such as English and communications. The MLA style defines how you format your paper, cite sources, and add stylistic elements, such as block quotations. Compared to the other citation styles, MLA is the most universal – used by institutions throughout the world, and is often accepted in other disciplines, such as psychology (where you would normally use APA). It is the universal format taught in schools throughout America and abroad.

Associated Press

The Associated Press style of writing is reserved for communications and journalism programs. It is the industry standard style guide used in newsrooms across the country. AP Style defines how you document sources, format text, and write your paper. It’s main focus is on the text itself, as it defines how you write the paper or article, such as having universal principles for writing the date, spelling city names, and other textual elements.

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Automate Your Bibliography

September 19, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Academic writing and research often entails creating works cited pages, bibliographies, and reference sheets. After writing a 20-page paper, the last thing most scholars want to do is create a bibliography. The days of having to manually sort your information are quickly ending. While Microsoft Excel and Access streamlined the process, new web services allow students to create bibliographies instantly. Rather than sorting through various periodicals looking for the Publisher, Publishing City, and other data, bibliography services just need the name of your materials.

The Internet popularized information, enabling almost anyone to look up the ISBN number of a book, publisher of a magazine, and other pertinent information. Enter EasyBib, whose sole task is to automate your bibliography creation. It’s major selling point is the “AutoCite” function, which lets you enter a book name, journal title, article headline, website address, and database entry. Once you submit the information, EasyBib attempts to locate the required information about your periodical. If it cannot locate the data, you simply fill in the form fields and EasyBib does the rest.

MLA, APA, and Chicago Formatting Made Simple

Once you have added all of your sources in EasyBib, the program allows you to export the entries to a variety of citation formats, including MLA 7, APA, and Chicago (Turbian) formats. For additional laziness, EasyBib includes the appropriate in text citations for each format, leaving nothing to chance. Simply copy and paste the in text citations where appropriate, and include the formal references page at the end of your document.

One of the great features of EasyBib is that it supports footnotes and end notes – often the cause of headaches for writers and students across the world! It is as simple as copying and pasting the text into the word processor. You can also export the result to a variety of formats, including MS Word (.DOC) and Rich Text Format (.RTF). EasyBib is a legitimate method of managing your references to ensure the highest level of writing and academic research.

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Pre-Planning for Academic Research Papers

September 19, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Often times writers forget the importance of the writing process when creating academic prose and research materials. While someone can write an effective article or brief without having to go through the process, longer research papers require additional care and finesse. The writing process for academic prose includes drafting a thesis, taking notes, and outlining your ideas. To ensure the utmost professionalism, allocate enough time to complete all of the steps, as you will save time when writing the paper.

Develop a Thesis

When someone sets out to write a research paper, they more or less have an idea or topic in mind. The first step is to analyze and narrow down the idea into a manageable paper. Great research papers are focused and cater to specific audiences. Generalized theses result in a fragmented and chaotic paper, with tons of data and commentary that is not substantiated.

Source Material

Once you have a clear topic and direction for your paper, start reading up on your topic and finding primary sources to backup any claims or assertions you are planning to make in the paper. All of your commentary needs to have evidentiary support, preferably first-hand studies, journal articles, first hand interviews, and other legitimate sources. Once you have enough source material, begin taking notes on everything. Taking notes ensures you will not accidentally plagiarize the content, and helps you develop a solid understanding of the topics.

Create the Outline

Perhaps considered the quintessential element of the research process, outlines create order in an otherwise chaotic environment. Review your notes and begin breaking the paper up into multiple sections and subsections. A good outline tells you what belongs in each chapter, paragraph, and sentence. Note major chapters by using roman numerals (I, II, III), sections (A, B, C), paragraphs (i, ii, iii) and sentences with (1, 2, 3) to maximum clarity.

While outlining seams tedious, you know what belongs in your research paper, and where. Pre-planning simplifies the writing process and increases efficiency in your work flow.

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Narrow Your Research For Best Results

September 19, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Research papers do not have to cover every major point in your field of expertise. Most undergraduate and graduate papers suffer from a condition known as generalization. Most research papers focus on a key question, topic, or thesis, but fail to narrow down the topic into a manageable chunk. While the length of research papers very, most writers find themselves covering too much information, which hinders their ability to provide insight, evidential support, or other primary facts.

Once you have a reasonable thesis in mind, draft the sentence on a piece of paper and create a mock outline of all the topics that support the thesis. Next, create three points for each topic, which will be the basis of your paragraphs. Considering each topic requires a minimum of five pages (to make your claim and provide supporting evidence), prioritize the topics you want to cover based on the desired page count. Ensure your topics are focused and aligned with the overall mission of the paper.

Don’t Forget the Fine Details

The basic mind map or brainstorming document created previously helps you create a full-fledged outline later on, but for now focus on narrowing your topic. Creating a prioritized list helps you identify additional topics to write about, but good research papers provide a dynamic and thorough explanation of each point. If you find yourself making more than five or six key claims, consider going back and flushing out those assertions before proceeding.

For each claim or assertion, explain how it supports or rejects the thesis, why it is substantial to your overall theory, and how it relates to your primary evidence. Remember, nothing in your paper besides your commentary should come from an undocumented source. A paper full of great points without evidence does not hold weight in the realm of academic writing and research. Your claims as a researcher must first and foremost be compared to previous studies.

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Structured Essays Fair Better Than the Rest

September 14, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Writing an essay is one of the traditions of being a student, but the truth is not, everyone knows how to structure a traditional essay. According to a group of teachers, students who structure their essays according to the traditional format receive higher marks than essays without an organized structure. The process is quite simple, as an essay must contain an introduction, supporting paragraphs, and a conclusion. The substantive content, the text in between the introduction and conclusion, varies based on the prompt or assignment.

The Introduction

The introduction is where you should introduce the reader to your topic. Never assume he or she knows or understands what you are going to write. Introduce each of your topics (supporting paragraphs), dedicating a sentence per topic. The final part of your introduction should summarize your claims or assertions, which you will document throughout your paper. Consider the introduction the quintessential component of your paper. For maximum results, revise your introduction after you write the rest of the essay.

Supporting Paragraphs

The “meat” or “body” of your paper lies in the next three to five paragraphs, perhaps more for longer papers. Each paragraph should cover one of the topics you mentioned in the introduction. As a rule, each supporting paragraph should make the necessary claims or assertions, then provide adequate evidential support to support and/or reject your claim. In your commentary, you may inject personal bias, opinions, and other subjective material.

When providing evidence, use a mixture of direct quotations, paraphrasing, and summarizing to help your reader understand the topic. The evidence section should be as objective as possible, referencing the source as needed throughout. Avoid simply rephrasing what the author said, because if the reader wants to read the source, they refer to your bibliography.

Conclusion

Summarize the main points of your paper and make any departing claims based on your findings. Does the evidence support or reject the claims made in the introduction? Discuss the research in relation to your original accusations. The conclusion should not be the same as your introduction, so avoid repetition whenever possible.

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Dissection of a Well-Written Paragraph

September 14, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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Writing a well thought out paragraph is harder than you may think. A paragraph in itself is a miniature essay, and needs several components to flow cohesively. Regardless of the type of paper, each paragraph should contain an introductory sentence, commentary (two or three sentences), evidence (three or four sentences), and a transitory statement. Using this basic template, you can save considerable time on your next paper while ensuring each paragraph is complete.

According to recent writing news, teachers and professors note that even the brightest students often forget to provide cohesive papers. Unorganized documents, whether persuasive essays or graduate theses, stand out from the crowd. Organization shows that you are dedicated to the work, took the time to complete it thoroughly, and practice elements of good writing.

In the introduction sentence, provide a somewhat thorough overview of the commentary and evidence you are going to present. Avoid inserting your opinion here – simply summarize the points you are going to make and provide appropriate background information. The sentence should not be too long, but jogs the reader’s memory.

The commentary clauses are where you should inject your opinion (if appropriate), make any claims or judgments, and provide your readers a bit of perspective on the issue. Allocate one sentence for each piece of commentary. Avoid using the first person tense and try to keep the paper as objective as possible. For example, rather than saying “I think …” try rephrasing the text to sound authoritative, such as “Based on research thus far, one may conclude …” when appropriate.

In the evidence portion of the paragraph, introduce your findings to the reader. Document your research and literature by referring to the author of the publication. For websites or other non-traditional forms of writing, use the name of the source. Keep your evidence succinct and to the point. Avoid direct quotations and opt for paraphrasing or summaries whenever possible. The evidence you provide is essential for a reader to validate your claims. Following the evidence, include a leading sentence that prepares the reader for the next paragraph.

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