(Photo credit: Ken Whytock)

For some the writing process is cathartic, while for others it’s more like torture. As a college student, having good writing skills is more critical for certain majors than others. However, once college is over, to compete in today’s job market, good writing skills aren’t an elective — they are a MUST. We could all use a lesson or two on how to brush up on our writing. Here are some useful tips on how to become a better writer.

Listen with attention

How many people do you know who are good listeners? I’d bet not all that many. Listening is a highly undervalued skill, but it can do wonders in helping your writing to get better. Like novelist Chuck Wendig says in his terribleminds.com blog post, “25 ways to become a better writer,” a good listener can tell how words sound on the page (be advised this post has some naughty language).

“We read with our ears as much as with your eyes and so it’s critical you know what sounds good as well as what reads well,” Wendig writes. “Sit down at a bar, listen to a conversation. Turn on an audio book or a radio show. Listen to a stand-up comedian deliver jokes and stories. Write it down if you must — see how it lays on the page.”

Read aloud

Hearing yourself reading your own work out loud may seem strange at first, but once you get used to it, you’ll notice right away those areas of your writing that just don’t jive. If it doesn’t read well while you’re reading it aloud, it probably needs some tweaking.

Dave Kerpen, CEO of Likeable Local and NY Times best-selling author, posted to LinkedIn February 21, 2013, in “Want to be taken seriously? Become a better writer,” how reading out loud has saved him.

“It’s great to hear my writing the way others will ‘hear’ it as they read,” Kerpen said. “Especially since tone in emails is difficult to convey, it’s valuable to say what you’re writing aloud, and then consider a quick edit, before you put it out there.”

Honor your inner weirdo

Stretching that proverbial writing muscle takes some creativity. Whether you’re writing a term paper, thesis or presentation, we can all benefit from some off-the-wall hilariousness. Have an idea for a sci-fi romantic comedy? Jot down a short story or let the ideas flow. The point is to just let the words flow and it’ll be much easier to get back to that boring assignment you’ve been circling for days.

Let the criticism fly

So you know that I know that we are our own worst critics. Sometimes those criticisms are true, but usually they are inflated insecurities floating around in our heads. To get some perspective, it’s always a good idea to tap a friend for some good advice on said work in question. Encourage honesty and keep your trap shut, and you might just get the real answers you’re looking for.

Proofread like your life depends on it

Think no one will notice a couple of typos in that email you sent with your resume? Well, maybe if if the reader is your mom. Otherwise, good luck with denial. The worst case scenario is your potential new boss will zoom in on the error and not hire you. Nothing feels worse than telling yourself, “If I’d only…” We’ve all been there. One of the best ways to avoid this scenario is to get in the habit of proofreading your work, all the time. It’s amazing how even one pass over can save you from disaster.

In a March 9, 2013, post to the Tribune-Review/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, “Be careful what, how you write,” Anita Bruzzese Gannett interviewed Helen Cunningham, author of The Business Style Handbook, to get the skinny on the benefits of proofreading.

“Take time to proof your writing,” Cunningham said. “Read over your emails before sending to make sure they’re well written, and ask a colleague to review important messages or reports. Never put anything in writing that you would not want to see on the front page of a newspaper.”

For more information on writing, visit Questia’s topic page on Communication.

 What tips/exercises have helped you to improve your writing?

Research can be rewarding

When you first learned about a research paper requirement for a class, you probably felt anxious. Maybe you haven’t had a lot of experience planning a research paper. But don’t let yourself be derailed by inexperience and anxiety. According to the post on February 21, 2013 by Jack Raymond Baker and Allen Brizee titled “Writing a Research Paper” for Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab (OWL), “the process of writing a research paper can be one of the more rewarding experiences one may encounter in academics.”

But like anything new, planning and writing a research paper takes practice. As the OWL post says, “There are few individuals for whom this process comes naturally.” They suggest starting the process by thinking about:

• Genre: Learning the difference between the two types of research papers—analytical and argumentative.
• Choosing a Topic: A guide on how to pick the best topic.

Planning makes a difference

Questia’s tutorial on Planning a Paper offers five steps to get you on the right track to creating a research paper that will not only impress your professor but earn you the best grade. The tutorial takes you through each step with help from quizzes and videos.

Step 1—Selecting a topic

You want to pick something you will enjoy writing about, which will help you put the necessary time into the work.
Step 2—Considering what your readers know about the topic

After you’ve picked your topic, it’s time to think about who your reader is going to be. Who your reader is and what they expect will influence what sources and evidence you need to use to persuade them of your argument or give them clear information on the topic.

Step 3—Developing an objective stance

Part of the purpose of a research paper is thinking critically. When planning a research paper, be sure to be aware of how you use your sources so that they strengthen your paper’s purpose.

Step 4—Composing a thesis

Now you’re ready to write your thesis statement—the representation and summation of your paper’s purpose. What do you think your research will show in the end? Your thesis statement should focus on that idea.

Step 5—Organizing your ideas

During this final stage of the planning process, determine how you want to structure your research to prove your thesis statement. This outline will provide the framework for your research paper.

Start now and stay focused

While you might be tempted to procrastinate, it’s easy to see why getting started on a research paper as soon as possible can be a big help in the end. The Writing Center at the American University advises students that beginning in advance can reduce stress, in their blog post from January 31, 2013, “Research Papers: the When and How” by Meridian Ganz-Ratzat.

The structure Ganz-Ratzat suggests starts several months out:

• 2-3 months away—Think about what your topic is going to be
• 1 month away—Start researching your chosen topic
• 3 weeks away—Begin organizing your essay
• 2 weeks away—Write a first draft
• 1 week away—Edit for big problems with your thesis or organization
• 2 days away—Read through for a final proofreading and polish

Even if you develop your own schedule for planning a research paper, the best thing you can do is plan ahead. Writing a research paper is a new thing for many college students, putting it off won’t make it any easier. In fact, procrastinating is likely to make the challenge of a paper that much more difficult.

Interested in some of Questia’s other helpful tutorial topics such as “Avoiding Plagiarism” and “Working with Documentation Styles”? Try a free trial of Questia to check them out!

What other suggestions do you have for staying on track and planning a research paper? Your tip could help motivate someone else. Tell us in the comments below!

Find a topic, form a plan

Before you do anything else you need to decide what you will write about in your term paper assignment. Your teacher may have given you a list of requirements; be sure to read these and get all your questions answered before you start working.

You also need to know what kind of term paper your teacher wants. Examples of common types of papers can be found at the A+ Research and Writing site maintained by the Internet Public Library (IPL).

Term papers typically fall into categories such as:

• Research paper
• Essay
• Argumentative or persuasive essay
• Compare and contrast
• Narrative essays

Next, examine the possible topics that you can write about. A great site for researching topics is Questia, the premier online research and paper-writing tool for students. One helpful text is Shortcuts for the Student Writer by Jay Silverman, Elaine Hughes, and Diana Roberts Wienbroer.

The authors suggest that, once you’ve found your topic, you make a list of main points that might be in your paper along with any details that come to mind. Then start grouping the ideas into categories. You can do this easily with a computer or by hand with index cards.

“Then make a new list with the related points grouped together. Decide which idea is most important and cross out ideas or details that do not relate to it. Arrange your points so that each will lead up to the next. Be sure each section of your essay has examples or facts to strengthen your ideas.”

Freewriting

Teachers don’t just want you to repeat what others have said; they want to know what you have to say. A helpful technique to get you started is called freewriting. Here’s how it works. You set yourself a goal of writing non-stop for 10 minutes jotting down:

• What you know about the topic
• What interests you about the topic
• What questions you have about the topic

The questions you have will help form the backbone of your term paper and will give you a focus for your research.

Allen Brizee described a freewriting process that he called “prewriting” in his June 8, 2011 post for the Purdue Online Writing Lab titled, “Introduction to Prewriting (Invention).” To help get your ideas flowing Brizee suggested, “Brainstorm. Gather as many good and bad ideas, suggestions, examples, sentences, false starts, etc. as you can. Perhaps some friends can join in. Jot down everything that comes to mind, including material you are sure you will throw out. Be ready to keep adding to the list at odd moments as ideas continue to come to mind.”

Writing the introduction

It’s easy to get writer’s block, especially if you try to write your paper from beginning to end. Oddly enough, it’s easier to write the introduction to your term paper at the end of the process at the same time you write your conclusion. The purpose of your introduction is to, well, introduce what you’re going to say in your paper. You can do that best after you have already written the body of the paper.

Writing the introduction and conclusion at the same time allows you to:

• Introduce your topic and tell your reader what they will learn by reading your paper
• Summarize and bring together all of your main points in your conclusion where you will echo the promises that you made in your introduction.

The Cambridge Rindge & Latin School (CRLS) Research Guide has several Tip Sheets with advice for writing papers. Regarding the introduction, the writers said, “Start with a couple of sentences that introduce your topic to your reader. You do not have to give too much detailed information; save that for the body of your paper. Make these sentences as interesting as you can. Through them, you can hook a reader and get them very interested in the line of thinking you are going to develop in your project.”

At this point you have your intro and conclusion along with a list of main points to expand on. Now that your juices are flowing, you can complete the body of your paper with style and confidence.

Global perspective

Your instructor will probably give you some ideas on how to approach your research project. The assignment may dictate a certain number of pages and topics that you are to cover in your paper. Even with a description, however, you still may need some help in narrowing the scope of the project. The subject is so vast that if you don’t find a focus before you get too involved, you could easily find yourself overwhelmed.

A good strategy for finding your focus and locating the resources you’ll need is at Questia, the world’s largest online library with thousands of full-text books, magazines, journals, and newspapers from around the world. Let me give you an idea of what it’s like to do research on Questia.

At Questia you will find that the topic of religion includes:

• Ancient religions
• Religion and the arts
• Cults
• Asian religions

Within the topic of religion and the arts is the subtopic of religious symbolism. If you follow that link, you will be led to several texts on the subject including Symbol and Image in Celtic Religious Art by Miranda Green. Her book examines the influence of the Romans on Celtic society in France and the Netherlands.

“The dominance of the mother-cult, and the ubiquity of her images, argues for a society in which the female principle was important. I have suggested elsewhere that women played a fundamental role within Celtic society: we have Graeco-Roman literary evidence for this, and it is interesting that polyandry was practised in Britain,” Green said.

Religious studies project

The Religious Studies Project site has articles, resources and podcasts. It posts a weekly interview with leading scholars of religious studies and related fields. The site focuses on contemporary issues and aims to present material that is relevant and approachable for students without pushing an agenda.

Students will no doubt find it interesting to read the posts of fellow scholars such as this February 24, 2012 post by Katie Aston titled, “Insider and Outsider – An Anthropological Perspective.” Aston is a graduate student working on an ethnographic study of non-religious value construction and material cultures at University of London.

Here, Aston explores the concerns of an anthropologist who holds the same beliefs as the subjects being studied. “As discussed by Blanes, ambiguities arise over the insider and the outsider, over the faith or world view of the researcher and the researched within the project. But whatever steps are taken to breach the knowledge gap, Blanes also makes the point that it often remerges in the secular project of analysis and critique,” Aston said.

Library of Congress

The Library of Congress contains several collections related to religion and philosophy. All of the collections are rich with images and documents from the times. For example, the exhibit on Religion and the Founding of the American Republic explores the religious convictions of those who settled America in the 17th century. Many who came here from Europe were on a quest to escape religious persecution and establish a home where they could worship freely.

You’ll be able to read about those who influenced the development of religious movements in America. What you find may surprise you. Did you know that colonial Presbyterians followed the practice of examining members for spiritual soundness prior to taking communion? Tokens were issued to those who passed inspection and you can see pictures of those tokens on the site.

Other resources for religious studies

There are several other resources where you’ll be able to find a wealth of information. Try starting at one of these for more ideas:

• The Wabash Center for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion: an annotated guide to a myriad of electronic resources on the web.
• Voice of the Shuttle: a jumping-off point to journals, news, and other resources on dozens of religious topics
• The DMOZ Open Directory of Religion and Spirituality: follow the links and you’ll find such treasures as the text of the Testament of Solomon and ancient books of magic.
• Religious Worlds: links and information on religious traditions, religion in modern times, and academic resources.
• Academicearth.org: you will find video lectures by Yale faculty members on religious topics.

A book review is “not a retelling,” emphasizes Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC), nor is it “a book report or a summary.” Instead, they explain in How to Write a Book Review, it is “a description, critical analysis, and an evaluation on the quality, meaning, and significance of a book, not a retelling. It should focus on the book’s purpose, content, and authority.

“It is a reaction paper,” adds LAVC, “in which strengths and weaknesses of the material are analyzed. It should include a statement of what the author has tried to do, evaluate how well (in the opinion of the reviewer) the author has succeeded, and present evidence to support this evaluation.”

Noting that “There is no right way to write a book review.” and that “Book reviews are highly personal and reflect the opinions of the reviewer,” the school presents these suggested standard procedures for writing a book review:

1. Write a statement giving essential information about the book: title, author, first copyright date, type of book, general subject matter, special features (maps, color plates, etc.), price and ISBN.
2. State the author’s purpose in writing the book. Sometimes authors state their purpose in the preface or the first chapter. When they do not, you may arrive at an understanding of the book’s purpose by asking yourself these questions:

• Why did the author write on this subject rather than on some other subject?
  
• From what point of view is the work written?
  
• Was the author trying to give information, to explain something technical, to convince the reader of a belief’s validity by dramatizing it in action?
  
• What is the general field or genre, and how does the book fit into it? (Use outside sources to familiarize yourself with the field, if necessary.) Knowledge of the genre means understanding the art form. and how it functions.
  
• Who is the intended audience?
  
• What is the author’s style? Is it formal or informal? Evaluate the quality of the writing style by using some of the following standards: coherence, clarity, originality, forcefulness, correct use of technical words, conciseness, fullness of development, fluidity. Does it suit the intended audience?
  
• Scan the Table of Contents, it can help understand how the book is organized and will aid in determining the author’s main ideas and how they are developed – chronologically, topically, etc.
  
• How did the book affect you? Were any previous ideas you had on the subject changed, abandoned, or reinforced due to this book? How is the book related to your own course or personal agenda? What personal experiences you’ve had relate to the subject?
  
• How well has the book achieved its goal?
  
• Would you recommend this book or article to others? Why?
  

To learn the next seven steps in the procedure as well as special considerations for reviewing a work of fiction, biography, history, or poetry, visit How to Write a Book Review.

Williams goes on to explain what makes for good sentences and paragraphs:

Sentences should be varied. Writing the entire paper in short, choppy sentences will make you sound like Mr. Rogers reading Dick and Jane. But long, elaborate sentences full of subordinate clauses and other complexities one after another will wear down your reader and produce an impenetrable thicket of words instead of clear, concise prose. There is no happy middle ground here. Mediocre is boring; even God spits the lukewarm out of his mouth. Go back and forth between both styles.

The paragraph is the next unit of organization. It needs to be disciplined and unified as if it were a mini-essay all by itself. That is, each paragraph needs to be organized around its own topic and must begin with its own topic sentence, a sentence that in one way or another introduces the particular topic that distinguishes that paragraph. The remainder of each paragraph, the logic and evidence that back up the topic, must flow naturally from the topic sentence that heads it. One insight per paragraph is the rule. By “insight,” I mean something you must take a risk to say, something a reasonable person would want explained, explored, or defended. You will know you are doing it right when you feel exposed and doing it wrong when you feel safe and dull.

For more helpful writing tips from Williams – including what to do if you find different ideas competing in one paragraph – click here.

One or more of their techniques can help you overcome writer’s block:

• Ask yourself why you are writing this report, letter, or chapter. What do you want the reader to do or think about as a result of reading your work? As soon as you have the answer to this question, take a crack at an opening.
• Skim paragraphs in a magazine, newspaper, or book for an inspiring literary device.
• Set aside a half hour each day for writing as a means of reducing the overall intimidation factor.
• Write first drafts freely and quickly with little concern for punctuation, spelling, neatness, or grammar.
• Construct a storyboard. As ideas about your project come to you, jot them down on 3 × 5 cards and tack them on a wall. As you begin to see relationships among the cards, change their positions. As soon as the shape of your approach becomes clear, start writing.
• Talk about your project with a friend or into a tape recorder. The more you talk, the more the ideas in your head will arrange themselves into a pattern in your mind’s eye.
• Place “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” “why,” and “how” down the left margin of a page, spaced about an inch apart. Write in the answers; then rearrange them into an outline you can work from.
• Don’t try to compose the introduction until the rest of the piece is written.
• Write the conclusion first; then work on getting there.

Prewriting:

Think hard, write an outline.

Writing:

Follow your outline, write quickly without worrying about revisions.

Rewriting:

Make sure you followed your outline, fix any errors.

This process, he notes, in his book Plain English at Work: A Guide to Writing and Speaking (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996), 117, includes “some half-truths.”

For example, if you’re writing “something under a page or so, don’t worry about an outline at all. It probably isn’t necessary. For something longer—even just slightly longer—an outline may be helpful.” In this case, Bailey recommends jotting down main headings without worrying “about those Roman numerals.” Or If you’re a little unsure of your content, try jotting down several ideas in the order you think you should cover them. Then start writing.”

What process does he use for “a typical writing project–something two or three pages long? Or even book length?” Bailey says that it looks something like this:

1. I fool myself into believing I’m actually ready to write, so I start in.
2. I get stuck.
3. I then jot down a quick list of the main points I want to cover. If I can think of any subpoints, I put them in, too.
4. I arrange those points in the best order.
5. I start writing again.
6. If I find that I’m not following my original outline, I don’t worry: my ideas while I’m actually writing are probably much better than my ideas beforehand.
7. I rarely get stuck again, but if I do, I re-outline (briefly).
8. I write quickly, with no thought for typos or other errors.
9. But I stop immediately if the content or organization isn’t working. After all, what comes before is crucial to what comes after, so I must get the content and organization right. Otherwise, I’m wasting my time because I know I’ll have to rewrite significantly.
10. When I finish writing, I read and revise immediately.
11. I then set the writing aside for awhile—even a few minutes helps disconnect my mind from the particular words on the paper.
12. Then I reread and revise, looking not just for errors but for the important matters this book covers (style, organization, and layout). Throughout, I ask these questions: “Will my reader understand?” and “Have I made my points the best way possible?”
13. Then I show the writing to someone else for feedback. I try to “lean toward” their suggestions rather than away from them. But I realize that I am the one most responsible for the content and the most engaged with it, so I take “my” advice before theirs.

Bailey adds, “Normally I write about 5 pages or so at a sitting. Later I’ll read and revise those pages before starting a new section. That way I’m familiar with what I’ve just written before starting the writing again; also, I’ll have fairly polished pages as I move along.”