SELECTED WRITING GUIDELINES

 BEFORE YOU BEGIN WRITING:

• Read the assignment; answer the question!
• Make an argument. What are you trying to prove? All essays must make an argument and attempt to convince the reader of that argument. Your thesis does not have to be elaborate -- it can come from the question itself. However, simply describing events does not make a successful essay.
• Make an outline to help you organize your thoughts. While you are likely to deviate from your outline, it provides a useful place to start.
• Give examples and be specific. You may have an excellent, sophisticated and innovative argument. But, you have to support it with details, examples and extreme clarity.
• Keep it simple. Variety in sentence structure and vocabulary is useful, but not at the expense of clarity or grammar.
• Proofread. Spell-checking is not sufficient.
• Do not be too ambitious. The scope of your paper and its level of detail should match the size of the task. Do not try to write a book in 5 pages – or to fill 5 pages with 1 page worth of substantive content.

STRUCTURE OF PAPER:

Introduction

• State your topic and thesis.
• Describe sources and methods.
• Anticipate conclusion.

Body:

• Develop the topic and support the thesis presented in the introduction.
• Discuss the material (i.e.; your data) and methodology that you use to support your thesis. Include in this discussion: why this is a good source of information for your work, and the limitations of the data and/or methodology.
• Write up your findings, supported by graphs and tables where appropriate. Each topic should be a separate paragraph.
• Your presentation should develop your findings one at a time, in a logical sequence.

Conclusion:

• Restate (but do not re-copy) your thesis, and tell the reader how you have supported your argument.

Use Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers..., as a guide for writing structure, style and form. Your footnotes and bibliography should follow the formats provided by Turabian. Whatever format you use, use it consistently. All sources for data and ideas, and all quotations, are to be clearly cited. The line between sloppy writing and plagiarism is very thin. (However, the results are different. Sloppy writing earns a bad grade. Plagiarism can be a reason for dismissal from the university.)

SOME POINTERS

• Devote space and attention to your points in relative proportion to their importance to your argument. Do not spend too much space on trivial points; and do not gloss over important issues. If an issue seems important, and you have trouble supporting it, then you might re-think your argument – it may be wrong or inconsistent.
• Pay very close attention to logical consistency in your writing. Some examples of inconsistencies:
• "Restrictions and regulations oppressed slaves, even after the abolition of slavery."
• After the abolition of slavery, nobody was a "slave." Restrictions may have oppressed former slaves and their descendants, but they no longer oppressed slaves.
• "Cities on the coast became major port cities."
• Cities not on a coast would have difficulties becoming port cities, major or otherwise.
• Grammar needs to be correct. Some common problems are:
• Maintain agreement of voice, tense, number and gender.
• Voice: do not switch between "person" of pronouns; such as sometimes using "he" and sometimes "you." (I generally find it better to avoid writing in the second person, unless you are addressing the reader directly.)
• Tense: Unless you have a very specific and precise reason, do not switch between the past, present and future tenses. (The future tense is seldom appropriate in writing a history paper.)
• Number: If the subject of your sentence is plural, so should the verb be plural. A singular subject requires a verb in the singular. Modifiers should be of the same number as what they modify.
• Gender: Use the appropriate gender of pronoun for gendered subjects. Ungendered subjects receive ungendered pronouns. (Specifically, countries are not female.)
• Do not have run-on or incomplete sentences. One sentence should convey one complete thought. Sentences should follow in logical sequence.
• Be careful and parsimonious in your use of pronouns. When you use pronouns, the reader should have no confusion about its reference. Impersonal pronouns ("it," "this," "those," etc. – used as pronouns, rather than adjectives – should seldom be subjects of sentences or clauses.
• Minimize your use of the passive voice in verb structure (also of unnecessary compound tenses). Some examples:
• Passive: The pen was put on the table by John.
• Active: John put the pen on the table.
• Passive: The agreement had been implemented by the time of the coup.
• Active: All parties implemented the agreement before the coup

Remember that beginning sentences with "There is/was [any form of the verb ‘to be’]" or "It [form of ‘to be’]" is an especially sloppy form of the passive voice.

• Avoid redundancy.
• Avoid colloquialisms (slang).
• PROOF-READ your paper. Spelling and grammar will affect your grade. Remember, the items above are not exhaustive. If you have questions, consult a text in writing or grammar, or see me before you turn in your paper.