Category Archives: Writing Help

Here is an opening paragraph that displays some common early draft traits that a good revision will eliminate. Too many sentences begin with, or contain “There is” or “there are” or “it is” components. Those phrases almost always result in … Continue reading →

Choose the Only Good Opening Sentence: An argument cannot be won in the first sentence, but it can be lost. First sentences are very important. Most authors of articles of all kinds have trouble writing first sentences. There are several … Continue reading →

Lecture Text Readers can bail on us after any word: this one, or the next. Their time is precious; the world is lively with distractions, and increasingly the page where we meet them is studded with seductive links. Re-read the … Continue reading →

Why this is important I found Username a source using Google Scholar and the Rowan library. “I can’t find any sources!” Username and I were talking yesterday about his topic, the hateful anti-gay rhetoric spewed by the Westboro Baptist Church, … Continue reading →

A Recent Semester’s Static Visual A couple of semesters back, my Comp II students examined and analyzed a static graphic before they “graduated” to critiquing their Moving Visuals. Their reactions were various, eventually. For a while, they stumbled and couldn’t … Continue reading →

Exercise: Remove 2nd person language Money seems to have a big role in our society; you can’t do much or get far if you don’t have any. Money is valuable in different ways, even when you don’t see it physically. … Continue reading →

For your Definition (Category) Argument, your other Shorter Arguments, and of course your Research Paper will have to include a Works Cited. Please understand this is different from a Bibliography, which identifies every source you consulted in your research. The … Continue reading →