English Programme Essay Writing Guide

• What is an essay?
  • What is an essay?
  • What does an essay do?
• The writing process
  • Intro
  • Question analysis: key terms
  • Research: generating ideas
  • Planning your essay
  • Drafting and revising
  • Rules of thumb
  • Final draft: proofreading
• Structuring your argument
  • Organization overview
  • Introduction
  • Body
  • Paragraphing
  • Conclusion
  • Argument
  • Thesis statement
  • Transitions
• Supporting your argument
  • How to use quotations
  • Paraphrase
  • Summary
  • Direct quotation
  • Integrating quotations
  • Example 1: direct quotation
  • Example 2: direct quotation
  • Example 3: paraphrase
  • Example 4: summary
• Style
  • Intro
  • Person
  • Punctuation
  • Passive voice and active voice
  • Overuse of Passive
  • Avoiding contractions, colloquialisms, and slang
  • Specialist terminology
  • Sources at UC
• Punctuation and grammar
  • Small-scale problems – word and phrase level
  • More small-scale problems
  • Larger-scale problems – sentence and paragraph level
  • More larger-scale problems
  • Run-on sentences and comma splices
  • Some sentences in need of revision
  • More sentences in need of revision
• Plagiarism
  • Intro
  • Departmental plagiarism policies
  • Intentional and unintentional plagiarism
  • Some ways to avoid plagiarism
• Electronic material in academic work
  • Intro
  • What kinds of online or electronic resources should I not rely on as authoritative?
  • What kinds of online or electronic resources are authoritative?
• Citation and referencing
  • Intro
  • MLA style
  • APA style
  • Online resources
• Diagnostic checklist
• Presentation
  • Intro
  • More detailed presentation guidelines
• If you have significant problems with writing