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1. Gentle Writing Advice…
Academic Writing
Do’s

2. Note: This presentation is animated.
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3. Use
ACTIVE VOICE
 Do:

4. Do: Use Active Voice
subject verb
subject verb
Active voice = the subject does the action:
The cat shredded the toilet paper.
The students planned the ceremony.
Tonya cooked dinner.

5. Do: Use Active Voice
Passive voice = the subject receives action:
The toilet paper was shredded by the cat.
The ceremony was planned by the students .
Dinner was cooked by Tonya.

6. Appeal to the
audience
 Do:

7. Do: Appeal to the audience
Comedians make everyday topics appealing to an
audience.
Anticipate the reader’s reactions to each section of
your essay.

8. Proofread
your work
 Do:

9. Do: Proofread for errors
Errors hurt communication of
ideas.

10. Run spell-check to catch typographical errors.
Poor grammar will hurt your grade in
most classes.
Do: Proofread for errors

11.  Do:
Write
Concise Sentences

12. Do: Write concise sentences
Use fewer
prepositions
(to, of, in, from,
for)
to

13. Do: Write concise sentences
Use fewer
be-verbs
(is, are, was,
were)

14. Do: Write concise sentences
No The type of student in ENG 112 class is
one who writes essays that are formal and
academic.
Yes An ENG 112 student writes formal,
academic essays.

15.  Do:
Vary
Sentence Length

16.  Do: Vary your sentence length
Use short sentences to
emphasize important ideas.
• Long long long long long long long long long long long long
long; long, long long long long. Short short short short.
Long long long long long long long long long long long
long.
Give your audience occasional breaks
from long sentences.

17.  Do:
Follow Assignment
Guidelines

18. Do: Follow all assignment guidelines
Instructors expect students to
follow all assignment
guidelines.
I think I’ll just make
up my own
assignment!
Bad idea!!

19.  Do:
Use concrete, vivid
descriptions

20. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
The pigsty example…

21. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
Imagine someone saying,
“Wow, your place is a real
pigsty!”

22. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
Pigsty? What does that
mean?

23. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
People have different concepts of what a “pigsty” is.

24. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
When writing, merely saying, “The room
was a pigsty” is not enough to
convince your audience that you do indeed
have a true pigsty on your hands.

25. Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions
•Pigsty = the room had not
been vacuumed or
dusted in a week.
•Pigsty = 3 rumpled outfits
on the bed and a spilled
make-up bag on the
dresser
FACT: Not all pigsties are created equal.

26. Pigsty = Ten years of brittle,
yellowed papers were piled on
the floor.
Pizza boxes created makeshift
tables for stacks of moldy fried
chicken bones.
The furniture dancing with
insects, and each drawer had a
beard of dust.
Do: Use concrete, vivid descriptions

27. Academic Writing
Don’ts
Gentle Writing Advice…

28. Do not:
Use clichés

29. Do not: Use clichés
“Beating around the bush”

30. Do not: Use clichés
“Everything
happens
for a
reason”

31. Do not: Use clichés
“Dead as a doornail”

32. Do not: Use clichés
•Don’t judge a book by its cover
•Last but not least
•What goes around comes around
•Sick as a dog
•Sweet as honey
•Old as the hills
(Many clichés exist…
these are just examples)

33. Do not:
Make announcements
to the reader

34. Do not: Make announcements

35. Do not:
Address the reader as
“YOU”

36.  Do not: Use “you”
Q: What’s wrong with “YOU”?
A: It does not apply to everyone, and
therefore writers exclude many of
their readers.

37.  Do not: Use “you”
Who, ME?
When you
put on your fluffy wings,
you feel at peace.
The snowflakes hitting
your body
make you
feel pretty and sparkly.

38.  Do not: Use “you”
Who, ME?
Seeing a sign like this makes
you wonder why people would
dislike you just because you are
a shaven head child pick
pocket.
Perhaps you should wear a
disguise so you don’t look like
the picture on the sign.

39.  Do not: Use “you”
Who, ME?When you pose for a
family portrait in
Winnie the Pooh
costumes, you may
be surprised at the
reactions people
have to your
photo….

40. YOU
 Do not: Use “you”

41. Do not:
Use
“There are”/ “There is”

42. Do not: Use Weak Fillers
Weak Fillers=
 There are
 There were
There is
There was
This is
This was
It is
It was
Do not rely upon
these weak fillers to
begin your sentences.

43. •No There are many different classes offered at TCC.
•Yes TCC offers many different classes.
Do not: Use Weak Fillers

44. No It is necessary for employees to lock their desks.
Yes Employees must lock their desks.
Do not: Use Weak Fillers
It is

45. Do not:
Say “I think” or “I feel”
or “in my opinion”

46. Do Not: Say “I think” or “I feel” or “in my opinion”
If your name is on the
paper, your reader knows
that any opinions expressed
in it are yours.

47. Do Not: Say “I think” or “I feel” or “in my opinion”
No need to say I think
iguanas make great pets.
Just say Iguanas make great
pets.

48. Do not:
Use 5th grade words

49. Do not: Use 5th grade words
AVOID the word:
thing(s)
(use a noun/say what you mean)

50. Thing / Things
Many things in the room look dirty.
I studied the wrong thing for the
test.
We learned many things in class.
items
information for the
facts
new ideas

51. AVOID the words:
get /got
(received, arrived, became)
Do not: Use 5th grade words

52. Get / Got
John got many gifts for Christmas.
The ambulance got here quickly.
When I get back, we should talk.
Sophia got her shoes online.
received many
arrived
return,
bought

53. AVOID the word:
hard
(difficult, frustrating, confusing…)
Do not: Use 5th grade words

54. Hard
The final exam was hard.
Algebra is a hard subject for me
difficult.
challenging subject for me.
frustrating, perplexing, complicated

55. AVOID the words:
alot (a lot)
till (until)
Do not: Use 5th grade words

56. AVOID the words:
stuff (possessions, boxes etc…)
mad (angry, upset, enraged)
Do not: Use 5th grade words

57. Do not:
Use “very”

58. Do not: Use “very”
“Very” adds nothing to a description.
•In order to show intensity, use
stronger words or figures of speech.
Very, very,
very hot!

59. His skin was
very dry.
His skin was so dry
that he looked like a
shedding snake.
dry skin
very
very
Do not: Use “very”

60. If someone is confused, he/she is confused.
(Adding “very” does not change anything!)
very
Do not: Use “very”

61. Use a stronger word and avoid “very”
Very tired
Exhausted
Do not: Use “very”

62. And finally, avoid the
worst opening line
ever written…
(unless your goal is to present yourself as a
dull, unsophisticated writer…)

63. This one line will destroy any
hope for impressing a college
professor with your essay…
It’s DOOM for any essay…

64. Ready…?
(I had to force my fingers to
type these words...cringe…)

65. In today’s society, …

66. Or worse…
“In today’s society, there
are many reasons
why…”

67. Remember to apply these
Do’s & Don’ts
to your writing…
Start today!
End of presentation