Writing Essays For Dummies, UK Edition

Mary Page teaches English for Academic Purposes and essay-writing skills at the University of Southampton.Dr Carrie Winstanley is a Principal lecturer in Education at Roehampton University. Carrie was recently named one of the Top 50 university teachers in the UK by the Higher Education Academy.

• Introduction 1About This book 2Conventions Used in This Book 2How This Book is Organised 3Part I: Navigating a World of Information 3Part II: Researching, Recording and Reformulating 3Part III: Mastering Language and Style 3Part IV: Tightening Your Structure and Organisation 4Part V: Finishing with a Flourish: The Final Touches 4Part VI: The Part of Tens 4Icons Used in This Book 5Where to Go from Here 5Part I: Navigating a World of Information 7Chapter 1: Mapping Your Way: Starting to Write Essays 9Transitioning to University-level Writing 9Writing at school 10Writing at undergraduate level 10Writing at postgraduate level 11Getting the Genre Right 12Writing an essay, not creative prose 12Writing an essay, not a newspaper article 13Writing an essay, not a report 15Crafting Your Essay: Stages in the Writing Process 17Stage 1: Analysing the title 17Stage 2: Making a timetable 18Stage 3: Gathering data 19Stage 4: Brainstorming and planning 20Stage 5: Writing the first draft 21Stage 6: Revising your draft 22Stage 7: Checking and polishing 22The final hurdle: Handing in 23Becoming a Successful Essay Writer 23Just write, write, write 24Giving yourself enough time 25Changing your mindset 25Chapter 2: Getting Going and Keeping Going 27Getting Ready to Write 27Finding out what helps you to work 27Organising yourself 30Overcoming Writer’s Block 32Challenging your fears 32Writing something – anything – and rewording it 32Talking before you write 33Visualising the final product 34Forgetting about the essay for a while 34Sleeping on it 35Reading something different 35Getting your blood flowing 36Doing something that makes you feel good 36Keeping Yourself on Track 37Planning large scale 37Planning small scale 39Thinking half hours not whole hours 41Dividing work into manageable chunks 42Rewarding yourself 42Getting Help: Using Other Students as a Sounding Board 42Recognising What Helps You to Write 44Chapter 3: Working Out the Essay Type 45Finding Out What to Write About 46Unpicking keywords 46Looking for function words 47Identifying Different Frameworks 51Knowing what you do for all frameworks 52Examining types of essay 53Making your story flow 61Planning Around Your Framework 61Part II: Researching, Recording and Reformulating 63Chapter 4: Eyes Down: Academic Reading 65Reading Academically: How It Differs 66Using Your Reading List 67Knowing which books to read 67Finding the books on your list 68Moving Beyond the Reading List: Searching for Literature 70Using the library catalogue 70Calling on the experts 71Using Articles from Journals 72Brushing Up Your Reading Techniques 75Reading smartly 75Reading online 78Reading faster 79Putting it all together: The SQ3R technique 82Reading critically 83Chapter 5: Researching Online 85Exercising Caution as You Surf 85Getting Started: Using Popular Websites 86Checking out key websites 86Broadening the Net 87Working with Wikipedia or not? 87Finding Academically Acceptable Websites 89Recognising scholarly sites 90Determining sources and authors 90Scoping the scope 93Being wary of bias 94Assuring accuracy 94Checking currency 94Completing your checklist 95Searching with keywords and other terms 96Chapter 6: Note Taking and Organising Your Material 97Preparing to Take Notes 98Stocking up on supplies 98Creating a filing system 98Working with index cards 99Annotating: Marking Up Texts in a Useful Manner 100Writing in your books 100Working with PowerPoint handouts 101Finding your own mark-up system 102Colour coding 102Making a Page of Notes 103Selecting what’s important for you 104Laying out your notes 105Drawing and making diagrams 105Creating your own shorthand 108Stopping the Notes and Starting to Write 110Knowing when to move on 111Turning your notes into a plan 111Chapter 7: Avoiding Plagiarism 115Understanding Plagiarism 115Falling into the copycat trap 116Seeing how tutors catch you out 117Considering the consequences 118Keeping on the Straight and Narrow 118Writing in Your Own Words 121Paraphrasing 121Summarising 124Part III: Mastering Language and Style 129Chapter 8: Writing with Confidence: Brushing Up Your Grammar 131Punctuating Properly 132Capitalising Correctly 137Using Different Parts of Speech 138Verbs 138Nouns 139Pronouns 140Adjectives 142Adverbs 143Prepositions and conjunctions 143Interjections 145Chapter 9: Penning the Perfect Paragraph 147Understanding Paragraphs 147Thinking about types of paragraph 147Looking at the dos and don’ts 148Structuring a Paragraph 150Following the process 150Penning a topic sentence 152Writing supporting sentences 153Considering sentence length 154Ensuring Coherence and Logical Flow 157Ordering sentences within the paragraph for coherence 157Making the language flow 159Signposting your sentences and paragraphs 159Checking for coherence and flow 160Chapter 10: Writing in the Academic Style 163Adopting the Right Tone of Voice 163Remembering your audience 164Being modest 164Being cautious 164Be careful with your attitude 165Writing in a Formal Style 166Using ‘I’ in your essay 166Active or passive? 167Avoiding overstatements 169Expanding contractions 169Keeping your eyes peeled for clichés 170Steering clear of slang 172Using a wide range of language 173Using the right specialist words 174Minimising your use of long words 175Substituting phrasal verbs 176Never using formatting or punctuation for effect 177Remaining Objective 178Avoiding Biased Language 178Being Clear, Concise and Precise 179Being specific 180Cutting out unnecessary fluff 180Steering clear of complicated sentences 185Writing statements not questions 185Finding Your Own Voice 186Seeing your writing as part of a process 187Working with feedback 187Taking it at your own pace 188Part IV: Tightening Your Structure and Organisation 189Chapter 11: Preparing the Aperitif: The Introduction 191Understanding the Aims of Your Introduction 191Knowing What to Include 192Covering the conventions of intros 192Defining keywords and terms 194Writing a thesis statement 195Exploring alternative openings 197Coming Back to the Introduction at the End 198Avoiding Common Mistakes 199Chapter 12: Serving the Main Course: The Essay’s Body 201Developing a Position 201Using Different Types of Writing 203Descriptive writing 203Analytical writing 204Reflective writing 206Keeping a Balanced View 208Knowing what counts as evidence 209Reading with critical eyes 209Stating your opinion 210Incorporating Quotations 210Using Visuals 211Presenting visual information 212Interpreting visual information 212Summarising information in charts 213Chapter 13: Dishing Up Dessert: The Conclusion 215Knowing How to Conclude 215Understanding what a conclusion does 215Getting the content right 217Writing the Conclusion 218Drawing all the threads together 218Pointing forward 220Striking the right tone 220Getting the length right 222Realising that writing your conclusion can change your essay 223Evaluating Your Conclusion 223Checking your work. 224Asking yourself ‘So what?’ 225Making the final check 225Chapter 14: Acknowledging Sources of Information 227Understanding the Importance of Referencing 227Bearing in Mind Some Basics 228Getting to Grips with the Jargon 229Pinning Down Your Referencing Style 231Using Harvard (a.k.a. author/date) 232Working with footnotes 232Quoting within Your Essay 233Citing the author in the text 233Quoting directly 235Quoting indirectly 236Slotting a short quotation into your sentence 236Dealing with longer quotations 237Listing References at the End of Your Work 238Part V: Finishing with a Flourish: The Final Touches 243Chapter 15: Editing and Proofreading: It’s All in the Detail 245Knowing the Difference between Editing and Proofreading 245Editing: Casting a Critical Eye over WhatYou’re Saying 246Considering content 246Examining structure 247Addressing style 248Ensuring that your essay’s the correct length 249Proofreading: Dotting the is and crossing the Ts 252Knowing what to look for 252Using different proofreading techniques 256Chapter 16: Perfecting Your Presentation 259Looking Good: First Impressions 260Picking paper 260Perfecting pages 261Binding 261Creating a cover sheet 262Looking Good: On Closer Inspection 262Choosing the right font and font size 262Styling headings and subheadings 263Using italics 263Spacing adequately 264Incorporating data into your essay 265Finishing Off 267Running through your checklist 267Kissing the essay goodbye 268Chapter 17: Moving On: Results and Feedback 269Congratulating Yourself on What You Achieve 270Noting what you’ve done well 270Focusing on positive feedback 272Understanding What the Marks Mean 272Coping with Getting a Lower Mark than You Hoped For 273Dealing with disappointment 274Talking to your tutor 275Taking action to improve 275Taking advantage of other support 276Moving On to the Next Essay 277Part VI: The Part of Tens 279Chapter 18: Ten Troubleshooting Tips 281Oops! I’ve Written Too Many Words 281Uh-oh . My Essay is Too Short 282Eeek! I’ll Never Finish On Time! 282I’m Having Technological Torments 283My Writing is Just Appalling 284I’m Not Sure I’ve Answered the Question 285I Think My References are All Wrong 285I Don’t Really Understand the Reading 286I Hate My Course and Can’t Be Bothered 286I Can’t Find Any Mistakes – is That Really Okay? 287Chapter 19: Ten Tips for Writing Essays in Exams .289Planning for Exams from the Start 289Managing Your Time 290Trying Different Revision Techniques 291Using What’s Gone Before 292Being Good to Yourself 294Gearing Up 294Writing by Hand 295Dealing with Exam Nerves 296Answering the Question 297Presenting the Examiner with a Polished Product 300Index 301