Don’t Be a Victim of These Five Common Grammar Mistakes

Your essay is smart, interesting and on point. It’s all the things that should get you an “A.” But then your instructor sees one of these common errors. Uh-oh, record scratch. Your essay is a white suit with a splotch of spaghetti sauce, and that splotch brings down your credibility and tarnishes your great message. Don’t let that happen! Do one more read-through and check for these common mistakes.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda

While I know you wouldn’t type “woulda” and sound like Tony Soprano, make sure your sentences use “would have” or “would’ve” not “would of.” Yes, when spoken the two sound alike, but remember that your brilliant sentences need a verb in that instance, not a preposition. ”I could have danced all night” is a conditional perfect form, with the “have” functioning as an auxiliary or “helping” verb. You can say, “I have danced the rhumba,” but “I of danced the rhumba” makes zero sense. The conditional part means it is something that didn’t actually happen, but it could have. Or would have. Or should have. You get the idea.

Affect vs. Effect

These guys are tricky shape-shifters, but in general, affect is a verb and effect is a noun. To affect is to MAKE a difference. An effect IS the difference. In a sentence like “The use of fossil fuels has affected our climate,” it’s clear that “has affected” is the verb. Conversely, you could say “The use of fossil fuels has had a bad effect on our climate.” Here, ”has had” is the verb, and “effect” is preceded by an article, marking it as a thing–a noun. If only we could stop there, life would be easy. But in a few special instances, affect can be a noun, and effect can be a verb. One can use the phrase “effect change” meaning to cause change, and so here, effect is a verb. In a psychological context, one could also say “she has an flat affect,” where affect indicates an overall mood or state, making it a noun. But outside of those contexts, affect is the verb, effect is the noun.

Everyday vs. Every Day

This one really is easy. “Everyday” is an adjective that describes something: “I’m wearing an everyday shirt.” But the vast, vast majority of the time, you are talking about something that happens all the time: “every day.” Two words. “I go to the gym every day.” Here, every is the adjective, all by itself, and day is the noun it is describing. ‘Nuff said.

Its vs. It’s

Every time you writeit’s when you should writeits, a puppy dies. Okay, no, it doesn’t, but it does make your writing look like garbage and now everything you’ve said is somehow suspect because your audience is thinking, “how can I trust this person?” and that is not the impression you want your readers to have. When in doubt, avoid this heinous error by mentally substituting “It is” for “It’s.” If it makes sense, use the contraction with the apostrophe. If it doesn’t, you know you need the possessive pronoun, with no apostrophe. For example: Jasper paired every sock with its mate. Can you substitute “it is” here? Jasper paired every sock with it is mate? Nope. You know you need the apostrophe-less pronoun. On the other hand: Because it’s Saturday, I can turn off the alarm. Can you substitute “it is”? Yes, you can! Use that apostrophe, baby! Rock it!

Their, There, They’re

Here (not there) we have three words that sound the same (homonyms for you English geeks) but function very differently. “They’re” is a contraction of a pronoun and a verb, “their” is a pronoun, and “there” is an adverb.  “They’re” is the contraction for “they are,” a combo of subject and verb. Example: They’re ready to leave class. Again, if you can substitute “they are” and it makes sense, then you are using the proper form. (see above discussion). “Their” is a possessive plural pronoun, indicating that something belongs to someone, or in this case, several someones. Example: Their garage band, Funeral Goose, plays covers from the nineties. Finally, “there” is an adverb indicating location (but in a vague sort of way). Example: Are we there yet? Round-up example of all 3 homonyms: They’re piling up their notebooks over there.

To Conclude:

We have only scratched the surface of usage pitfalls here, but these are some of the most common (and frankly the most annoying) of writing errors. In a time of constant and casual texting, it’s easy to say these mistakes don’t really matter; surely the audience knows what you mean. Maybe they do, but sometimes they don’t. At worst, grammar errors can obscure the meaning of your writing, but even at best, the impact of your message and your credibility as a writer takes a big hit. You’ve spent a lot of precious time on your writing–invest a few more minutes to make sure it shines.

Chap GPT: Friend or Foe?

Chat GPT, Chatsonic, Google BARD—all are forms of AI, or artificial intelligence, generated by bots—very smart bots that can not only generate lucid prose, but can be trained to respond in a particular tone or within a certain context.

The 6 million dollar question: will it be a huge advantage and fantastic time saver for all mankind? Or is it evil incarnate that will soon take over the world?

Okay, maybe neither of those extremes are entirely accurate, but it is safe to say it will be a game-changer. The question will quickly become not whether to use it or not—it will be used, just as calculators and Google maps are used, as a part of daily life—but how to use AI both effectively and honestly in writing.

NOT Effective

At the current time, using an AI chat type program to do your research is not a good idea, because it may not be accurate. The bots scour an enormous number of sites, but of course, anything can be posted anywhere and a bot cannot distinguish between the real and the fake. Or even the sarcastic.
Chat GPT is much different from a human generated open source like Wikipedia. Remember why your teachers always told you that Wikipedia cannot be used as an actual source for your paper? Anybody could change it, at any time, for any reason. So no, it is not a completely reliable source, and therefore cannot be quoted for a research paper. However, it is a testament to the dedication of their human volunteers that, in general, Wikipedia is reasonably accurate. There are a lot of people who care very much about their area of expertise and who constantly monitor Wikipedia to keep inaccuracies from creeping in, either from lack of knowledge or from malicious intent.

Bots, though, are like honey badger. They don’t care. And in the case of AI chat programs like Chat GPT, they are not even searching the internet for facts in the way that Siri or Alexis does. When constructing a sentence, Chat GPT picks the next most likely word (actually it’s choosing “tokens” which may be a word or part of a word) based on its training. This can result in either a true or false statement. (Wu). It is guessing, based on billions (and possibly even trillions) of terms it has been exposed to. In a frequently cited example, Chap GPT stated that Hilary Clinton was president. The program doesn’t “know” any history. It knows what words and terms are frequently associated with Hilary’s name. While that error is pretty obvious, other errors may be much less so. You will need to fact-check and verify anything generated by Chat GPT or a similar AI program.

Photo by Bryan Smith on Pexels.com

Not Ethical

Other ethical concerns with the use of AI programs include bias, privacy issues, and copyright infringements. Again, the bots are looking for likely combinations and have been exposed to a veritable plethora of sites. Some of those sites will be biased as well as inaccurate. And although the companies developing AI programs are now promising to avoid sensitive personal information, the fact remains that many bots were trained indiscriminately and that data breeches occurred. In addition, these programs store anything that you or another user puts in for its own future training. While some programs offer an opt out option, not all do at this time. For this reason, you should avoid using AI to write anything containing your own personal information or that of another person.

By now, you can probably see how copyright infringement happens, with indiscriminate bots gathering from millions of sources, many of which are copyrighted. ChatGPT is unable to provide citations for material, which is problematic both from an ethical and legal standpoint (Ryan). As a user, you won’t even know if you are infringing on copyrighted material, let alone where the material originated. As well as violating academic standards for use of others’ intellectual property, you could also be legally liable for copyright infringement.

How to Use

How, then, can we use AI programs such as Chat GPT ethically? Most institutions are still in the process of formulating guidelines for AI usage, but be transparent with your instructor about how and when you have used an AI platform. Most instructors will not want you using AI as a research tool by itself (for all of the above reasons), but may allow you to use the platform for a source of inspiration—generating questions to guide your research and refine your topic, for instance (Ryan). In this sense, it can be used as a more sophisticated search engine.

Bottom line: instructors still want you to formulate your own thoughts into sentences generated by you, not AI. While your writing may be informed by other sources, if you’ve done your own research, you can vouch for their veracity and give proper credit. That is the basis of ethical writing, and at present, it is not possible to achieve those goals with AI.

Work Cited:

Ryan, E. Ethical Implications of Chat GPT. Scribbr. 15 August 2023. http://www.scribbr.com/ai-tools/chatgpt-ethics.

Wu, G. 8 Big Problems With Open AI’s Chat GPT. MUO. 6 May 2023. http://www.makeuseof.com/open-ai.

Internal Citations: When and How

by Kirsten Macdissi

You’ve researched your topic thoroughly, taken notes from all your sources and now you’re ready to dive into writing. Being a gentleperson and a scholar, OF COURSE you want to give proper credit to all your sources as you use them to back up your own fantastic, original thoughts. (Plagiarism: such an ugly, ugly thing.)

When to use an internal citation

To avoid plagiarism, you must use an internal–within the paper itself–citation in addition to the full and formal citation listed in the works cited or bibliography page. This internal citation should be used whenever you use information directly from that source, whether it is a direct quote, indirect quote, or paraphrase. Common knowledge that can be found from multiple sources does not need to be cited. For instance, a piece of information like Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, or Mark Twain’s birthplace, would not be unique to one author or source and therefore does not need to be cited. However, if you included an author’s opinion or insight into that fact, then you would need to cite that.

Example: Mark Twain was born in Florida, Missouri in 1835. No citation needed here; it is a statement of fact and common knowledge, even if you didn’t happen to know it. However, imagine that the source where you found this fact went on to say: “Missouri in 1835 stood at an uneasy crossroads. A ‘slave’ state, it was bordered on three sides by states and/or territories where slavery was illegal. It was an inherently unstable situation, a tinderbox of warring ideologies.” If you use any of that interpretation of fact in your paper, mentioning the idea of instability, uneasiness, or warring ideologies, then you must cite the source.

How to create an internal citation

There are a few ways to cite internally and correctly. For the purposes of this post, we will examine MLA style and APA style, the two most commonly used academic styles.

Direct quotes

If a source has phrased something in a really unique and pithy way, or if their idea is fairly complex, you will probably want to go with a direct quote. This can be either a partial or full quote, followed by a full parenthetical citation. Example for MLA style: “It was an inherently unstable situation, a tinderbox of warring ideologies” (Macdissi 5). The citation includes the author’s last name and the page number of the source where it can be found. For APA style, this citation would be (Macdissi, 2023): the author’s name is followed by the date of publication.

Often it makes sense to use the author’s name within the sentence, as in: Macdissi maintains that the Missouri Compromise led to “a tinderbox of warring ideologies” (5). Because you have used the author’s name within your own sentence (and thus given credit) you need only cite the page number (for MLA) or date (for APA) within the parentheses. This method still allows your reader to go to the works cited, or bibliography page, and easily find the source used for that passage.

If the source does not list an author’s name–as sometimes happens when the source is an organization or corporation–use the name of the organization in place of the author’s name. Ex. MLA: (American Historical Society 5) or APA: (American Historical Society, 2023).

Indirect quotes

Remember that even when paraphrasing or summarizing an author’s ideas you must give them credit; those ideas are still their intellectual property. Using a citation here is particularly important, in order to clearly separate your idea and words from someone else’s. Sloppy citations that blur the line between original and paraphrased have gotten even big name scholars like Stephen Ambrose in trouble, so take your time and do it right.

Phrases like, “according to Smith,” or “Jones shows that...” signal to your reader that you are using a source’s ideas even if it is not a direct quote.

Ex. (MLA): In her groundbreaking study on student lunch preferences, Jones concludes that student choice is even more important than the quality of food offerings (7). That ability to choose is an important factor in American culture; we have been conditioned to think that choices are, and always will be, infinite.

As readers, we are now assuming that the first sentence contains ideas from (Jennifer) Jones, and that the second sentence is all you. If that is not the case, you still need to give Jones additional credit, as for example: That ability to choose, Jones maintains, is an important factor in American culture; we have been conditioned to think that choices are, and always will be, infinite. (8). Notice the indication that that next idea was found on a different page of the same source.

Conclusion:

Internal citations for either MLA or APA styles are not really difficult once you’ve done a few, but they are vitally important to academic integrity, (and your grade!) so take them seriously.

Avoiding the Comma Splice, aka the Run-On Sentence

by Kirsten Macdissi

It seems so harmless; you’re writing away, and the thoughts are flowing thick and fast. Finally! You just keep going, with barely a pause between your flashes of brilliance. Okay, your brain says, I do need to indicate a pause between those two independent thoughts. Fine, a comma will work. Nooo! You’ve just committed a comma splice, sure to earn a red mark slashing through your otherwise fabulous prose. Don’t let this happen to you.

How to Recognize an Impending Comma Splice

First of all, recognize when you are writing an independent clause/sentence. If it is independent, it has a subject and a verb and can stand by itself as a complete sentence. “Mandy loves sprinkle doughnuts” is a complete thought, and could stand alone as its own sentence. But you also have another thought about Mandy and the doughnuts: “The pink ones are absolutely the best.” Again, although related, this is a complete thought all by itself. It has a subject: “ones,” and also a verb: “are.” The temptation is to write these related and fascinating ideas as: “Mandy loves sprinkle doughnuts, the pink ones are absolutely the best.” But this is to splice those two ideas together as though they were one, and a comma does not provide enough of a pause to separate the two independent thoughts. Constant run-ons give writing a rushed and breathless feeling, and ultimately make it difficult for the reader to focus on and appreciate your great ideas.

Pondering options: which punctuation would be best?

Three Ways to Avoid the Run-On:

A Comma and a Conjunction: If you help a comma out by pairing it with a conjunction such as and, or, nor, for or but, you provide a stronger pause, but also tell us something about the relationship of those two ideas. For example, “Mandy loves sprinkle doughnuts, and the pink ones are the best” connects the two ideas, whereas “Mandy loves sprinkle doughnuts, but the sprinkle ones are the best” tells us that she is rating those doughnuts just a little.

A Semi-Colon: If the two independent ideas are pretty closely related, you can separate the two with a semi-colon: “Mandy likes sprinkle doughnuts; the pink ones are the best.” A semi-colon is a longer visual pause than a comma, but a little less than a period. A semi-colon really doesn’t work well, though, if the two ideas aren’t close relatives. For example: “Doughnuts are delicious; I like bacon” leaves the reader puzzled and looking for a relationship. Here a comma followed by the conjunction “but” would work much better: Doughnuts are delicious, but I like bacon.” Now we know that there is a comparison going on.

A Period: Sometimes dividing those two independent thoughts with a full stop period is the best way to go. This is especially true if the independent ideas are already lengthy: “The history of the sprinkle doughnut is long one, dating back to 1895, when baker Adolphus Gertzmer was experimenting with sugar decorations. He concocted a colored sugar paste to use as a hard icing, also realizing he could use the icing crumbs as additional edible decor.” You could connect these two sentences with a comma and conjunction, but it makes a clumsy monster sentence and will leave your reader exhausted.

In Conclusion

There is more than one way to build a great sentence and connect your thoughts into a cohesive, interesting whole. Commas paired with conjunctions, semi-colons, and periods are all great tools for connecting thoughts, and sometimes for dividing them a little. Just remember that commas, while they are a workhorse we couldn’t write without, are not designed to bear the weight of tying two independent clauses together. You wouldn’t fasten two-by-fours together with a thumb-tack, and two independent clauses need more than a comma. Happy writing!

Show it off! Tips for Adding Description to your Narrative

Can you describe this image using all of your senses?

When writing a narrative essay, your reader needs to see, hear, smell, taste and touch along with the writer, so it’s the writer’s job to show these details as clearly as possible. It’s not enough to tell the readers that someone is beautiful, handsome, slim or happy; the readers must see it for themselves. Writers can do this by incorporating sensory details.

As humans, we learn about the world and our surroundings through our senses. A reader needs to feel engaged in the written world you are creating. When we write using sensory detail, we are showing someone or something as it is instead of telling. Incorporating the five senses – sight (visual), sound (auditory), smell (olfactory), taste (gustatory), and touch (tactile) – into a narrative forces readers to see, hear, smell, taste, and touch just as the writer or character does. Writing that incorporates sensory images engages the reader and makes the writing come alive. Writing that utilizes sensory images quicken the pulse, gives you goose bumps, makes you taste and smell and hear what the writer tastes, smells, and hears.

Take, for instance, the following example:

The mountains are beautiful.

What, exactly, does “beautiful” look like? The word “beautiful” doesn’t tell us what color the mountains are, how high they are, what they might sound like (echoing or rustling leaves?) or smell like (clean cedar or musty leaves?). Mountains in Colorado are quite different in every “sense” than mountains in southern Appalachia.

Take this example taken from a student essay, as the writer is describing her grandmother:

She was very pretty.

What does “pretty” look like?

Revision:

My grandmother’s silver hair sat at her crown in a tight knot. Her skin, creviced from decades of laughter, hung loosely over her still high cheekbones. As she kneaded the dough, her thin, delicate hands sprinkled flour atop the dough, the smell of freshly baked bread clinging to her like perfume.

In narrative essays, you want the reader to experience what you experienced. Telling an audience something looks beautiful or pretty is vague; you need to create a sensory image of what “beautiful” or “pretty” means to you. Look at the following short paragraph describing a boy helping an elderly woman up a flight of stairs:

Grandmother Workman reached over and grabbed her grandson’s arm. He was nervous because the staircase was so steep, but she leaned against him and they began to climb.

Now, look at the same scene, but here, the writer has incorporated sensory detail:

Grandmother Workman lurched over and grabbed the pale skin of Randal’s thin forearm with her leathery hand. The folds and creases beneath her skin coiled themselves out like electrical wiring, like the bloated, roughly-textured relief map of the world that his mother just posted above his bedside table. Randal looked ahead toward the winding spiral staircase, fidgeted with a small hole in his baseball jersey, and bit his lip. His mouth filled with the sweet, coppery taste of blood as she leaned in closely toward him, breathing her hot breath on the damp hair at the base of his neck. She smelled of wet cigarettes and bacon. As they slowly climbed the long, steep staircase, the only sound was his grandmothers’ labored breathing and the mournful creak of the wooden stairs.

(writing.colostate.edu)

How many senses are utilized in this scene?

One way to help you incorporate more sensory images into your writing is by drafting the narrative first, then go back through the draft to see where you have told when you could have shown, and incorporate sensory details. The chart below is one type of tool to use as you construct and revise your narrative:

Sight

I see…            __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sound

I hear…            __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Taste

I taste…            __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Smell

I smell…            __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Touch

I feel…            __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Remember that as you write your narrative, your reader didn’t experience what you experienced. To engage your reader, work on incorporating sensory detail into your narrative, and watch your writing come alive.

SOS! All About Sentence Structure Shifts

• 

Shifts in sentence construction refer to an improper change in structure somewhere in a sentence which results in inconsistency. Some shifts are deliberate, but unintentional shifts can cause confusion. It’s sometimes difficult to identify these shifts. The most common shifts relate to shifts in verb tense, shifts in person or number, and shifts in voice.

Shift in Verb Tense

Shifts in verb tense are created when a sentence moves between past, present or future tense. This is especially common in narrative essays, but can also occur in academic essays, which should use present tense. Sometimes, the verbs in a sentence may refer to action that is occurring at different times, which would require different tenses. Otherwise, maintain consistent tense, unless the intended meaning requires change.

Ex.
During the soccer game, Brett’s dad stood up and screams at the coach.

In this example, the first verb, “stood,” is past tense. The following verb, “screams,” is present tense. If he stood up (past tense) he must scream in the same tense, which would be “screamed.”

Ex.
The teacher explains that the papers were due Friday, but the students complained about the due date.

The teacher “explains” in present tense, so the students should complain in present tense.

Ex.
During the baseball game, the sky darkened, the wind blew up, and a rumbling boom announces the impending storm.

The time frame is introduced as past tense: “darkened” and “blew up” are both past, so “announces” should be the past as well.

ESL Hint: Don’t be fooled by the introductory words, “During the game.” Even though “during” means an action is continuous in general, it does not mean that the sentence action is necessarily continuous.

Shift in Person or Number

Is the subject of the sentence the person speaking (first person), the person spoken to (second person) or the person spoken about (third person)? Shifts in person mean mixing these “persons” within a sentence. Students often use second person “you” in academic writing when first or third person is preferred.

First Person = I, we
Second Person = You, your
Third Person = he, she, it, one, they

Ex.
If one lifts weights consistently, you’ll gain muscle mass and reduce body fat.

One may get chicken pox if you do not get vaccinated.

This is one of the most common tense shifts in academic papers. “One” is third person; “you” is second person.

Ex.
If someone must put dissect the frog, they should do it while closely supervised.

In the above example, “someone” is third person, singular; “They” is third person, plural. To repair, change either.

If someone must dissect the frog, he or she should do it while closely supervised.

Or

If the class must dissect the frog, they should do it while closely supervised.

Ex.
Clerks get paid less than assistants, though a clerk does the same type of work.

This is an error in number. “Clerks” is plural, and “a clerk” is singular. Choose one or the other.

A clerk gets paid less than an assistant, though a clerk does the same type of work.

Clerks get paid less than assistants, though they do the same type of work.

Shift in Voice

Shifts in voice refer to mixing active with passive voice. A sentence beginning in active voice should remain in active voice. If the subject acts on something, it’s active. If the subject is acted upon, it’s passive. However, sometimes a shift in voice is justified, though be careful it’s communicated clearly.

Ex.
The visiting team won the tournament, and a trophy was awarded to them.

In this example, “team won” is active voice; “trophy was awarded” is passive. To correct, turn the passive second part of the sentence to active:

The visiting team won the tournament, and they were awarded a trophy.

Ex.
The thieves approached the woman, and she was asked for her purse.

This example can be corrected in the same way as the previous:

The thieves approached the woman, and they asked her for her purse.

As you can see, it’s not always easy to locate shifts in tense, person, or voice. We often know something isn’t quite right, but you have a hard time figuring out what exactly it is.

CORRECTION: We often know something isn’t quite right, but WE have a hard time figuring it out!
I told you so!

Get to the Point

Improve Your Writing by Eliminating Wordiness

If you’ve ever read a style guide, you’ve probably read that the best writing is concise writing. Even academic writing, though it may include unfamiliar vocabulary, should always be clear and concise. It’s actually a myth that the best academic writing should be verbose. The word, “verbosity” comes from Latin, verbosus, meaning “wordy.” Wordy writing can be confusing writing.

Read the following example, and judge for yourself:

In spite of the fact that it is an extremely common occurrence, both in the secondary and post-secondary level, that applying verbose, extraneous, inflated language to our academic discourse, most specifically written compositions, in the quest to elevate our standing in the eyes of our peers and those who would evaluate our discourse for a grade, only serves not only to confuse and confound the very audience we hope to impress, but to also significantly frustrate the reader that our attempts often are met with disapproval, and often contempt, but more importantly, an unsatisfactory mark.

This is an example of wordy writing. Overly verbose and “puffy.” While reading a passage like the example above is obviously over-the-top, how can we edit our own writing to eliminate wordiness?

Language and Vocabulary

While it’s great to incorporate new terminology as our vocabulary grows, our writing will sound more natural and be clearer if we write in our own voice and incorporate language that we understand. Trying to write in a style that’s not fully our own can lead to awkward or confusing writing. However, in removing all the “fat” from our writing, we might also run the risk of sounding too terse. There has to be a balance. The message must be clear above all else.

“. . . Generally, the fewer the words that fully communicate or evoke the intended ideas and feelings, the more effective the communication.”                           —Mark Twain

Redundancy and Repetition

One way to write more concisely is to eliminate redundancies and when needed, to avoid repetition.

Redundancy is a word or phrase that simply repeats something previously stated, and it doesn’t add anything new. Redundancy is considered superfluous writing, as in the example below:

Wordy: Students should sit at a minimum of at least a distance of 6 feet apart.

Improved: Students should sit at a minimum of 6 feet apart.

Wordy: The stock market set a new record high.

Improved: The stock market set a record high.

Examples of some common redundant phrases are below. You can communicate in one word what is stated in two or more:

At the present time
Completely finished                      
Absolutely certain
Red in Color
End result
Same identical
Few in number

Repetition, on the other hand, isn’t necessarily a bad thing in writing. Repetition can aid in the understanding of complex ideas, and repetition is often used to reinforce points of argument. Reiterating important points can create a sense of ethos for the writer, communicating the author’s credibility and sincerity.

Repetition becomes problematic when a word or phrase is unnecessarily repeated, as in the example below:

Repetitive: The stock market set a record high in January, but the record high was not as high as the market would go the following month.

Improved: The stock market set a record high in January, but would go higher the following month.

Omit Bloated Phrases

Bloated phrases are another common ailment in our writing, causing sentences to be wordy.

Bloated: Due to the fact that snowy owls have lost much of their main food source in the Arctic, the rare owls are now wintering across Nebraska.

Due to the fact that is an empty, meaningless phrase often used in academic writing, but “because” is the better choice. Any time you can omit five words for one, do it. 

Improved: Because snowy owls have lost much of their main food source in the Arctic, the rare owls are now wintering across Nebraska.

Bloated: For the reason that our landfills are at capacity, the city should implement a recycling program.

Improved: Because our landfills are at capacity, the city should implement a recycling program.

Bloated: At this point in time, NASA is expanding its recruitment of women and minorities.

Improved: Currently, NASA is expanding its recruitment of women and minorities.

Some other common bloated phrases include

for the most part
for all intents and purposes
as a matter of fact
in my opinion

Ease Up on Modifiers

The term “modifier” is a word that can help describe meaning, or gives more information about another word in a sentence.

Intensifiers and qualifiers are types of modifiers. Used sparingly, they can enhance writing and clarify meaning. When overused, they can create wordy sentences.

The modifier, “really” is one of the most common modifiers (and commonly overused!):

Eliminating paper waste is a really good idea. (A better idea than just plain “good”?)

Eliminating paper waste is a really, really good idea. (Is it a better idea because they’ve used two “really”?).

Eliminating paper waste is a really, really very good idea. (Or is it simply just a very good idea?).

Often, when we start to pile on these intensifiers, the word they attempt to intensify isn’t strong enough (as in the first example, “quite hard”).

Eliminating paper waste is an excellent idea.

This sentence has omitted the intensifiers and utilized more precise language. You don’t have to eliminate these words completely, but only use when you really, really must.

Better still, only use when you absolutely must.

Best: only use when you must.

Other common words that could be omitted include

basically, totally, essentially.

Transitional Words

Our essays may require transitional words to help the reader navigate our argument’s points. Common transitional words in academic essays are ordinal (ordered) adverbs. For example:

First, second, third.  

I have 3 reasons students should study abroad. First, students will more quickly learn another language. Second, they will gain a greater appreciation for different cultures. Third, students will gain a greater understanding of the world.

If I had 6 reasons that students should study abroad, it would read, fourthly, fifthly, sixthly. . .

Oh my, what if I had twelve reasons? Twelthly? Twelvely?

Dictionary icons Samuel Johnson and Noah Webster didn’t recognize “firstly” as a word. While it isn’t incorrect to use the adverbial form, firstly, secondly, thirdly, it can become a bit ridiculous, as you can see!

Finally, when concluding an essay, use “finally,” instead of lastly.  

Other phrases to avoid include “and last but not least,” “in conclusion,” and “in summary.”

While “in conclusion” is a common concluding transitional phrase, your reader should know your essay is concluding by the content of the writing and the visual cue of the pages. While it might be necessary to use “in conclusion” when giving a speech, in writing, it can appear lazy and unnecessary.

In conclusion. . . the end.

Writing in Isolation

Improve your health and mood through expressive writing

The ongoing pandemic has taken a toll on everyone’s mental health, but has especially affected students at every level. The day-to-day uncertainties with no clear end in sight can make it difficult for students to concentrate and focus on the demands of schoolwork. To combat the daily anxieties and sense of isolation, narrative writing, either through a class or independent of school, could be a great way to increase our physical and mental wellness.

Research suggests that sharing our thoughts and feelings through the act of writing can improve our overall physical and mental health. The act of narrative or expressive writing has been shown to lessen our stress levels, overcome negative emotions, lessen our feelings of loneliness, and increase our sense of connectedness to others. Dr. Jeremy Nobel, faculty at the Harvard School of Public Health and Harvard Medical School, and founder of the Foundation for Art and Healing, believes using expressive writing as a way to connect with others can have numerous positive benefits, similar to healthy eating and exercise.

Social connection is essential to our physical and mental health, says Nobel, and writing allows you to make sense of yourself and the world around you. “Having a deeper understanding of how you think and feel — that self-knowledge — provides you with a stronger connection to yourself,” says Dr. Nobel. “It’s that connection that often allows you to move past negative emotions (like guilt and shame) and instead access positive ones (like optimism or empathy), fostering a sense of connection to others in addition to oneself.”

Through expressive writing, we often write about things that others may be experiencing and can identify with. Even though we are not directly engaged with others, we can still feel a sense of connectedness through expressing those thoughts and feelings, even if the experiences differ.  

Write On

If you’ve never tried expressive writing, this is a great time to give it a whirl. Maybe you’ll be hunkered down for the winter, the days will be longer soon, or your work or class load is less. Pick up a pen and paper and see where your mind takes you. Below are some ways to explore writing and connect with others, and possibly, finding your tribe.

Online Writing Classes

Consider taking an online creative writing class. Your college may offer creative writing classes or workshops through either a credit or non-credit class option. Here at MCC, our creative writing program offers an Associate in Arts degree in Creative Writing, in genres including poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. For those not interested in attaining a degree, consider a community writing class or non-credit class, where you’ll have instruction without the assignments or grading. Check out MCC’s offerings here.

Join a Writing Group

Want to meet some like-minded people? Consider joining a writing group or club at your college. Many writing groups meet at local coffee shops, but most have moved to ZOOM meetups for now. To find a local writing group in your area, call local bookstores, libraries, colleges, or check Facebook groups. MCC has their own Writing Club for students that offers mentoring, workshops, and public reading opportunities for interested students.

Can’t find a writing group in your area? Start your own! It’s as easy as creating a Facebook page and sharing it with friends. You’ll likely have other aspiring writers beating down your door.

Follow Active Writing Communities on Social Media

I follow several online writing groups who offer advice, fellowship, and some will let you post your writing for feedback. They’re a great way to stay connected, and many members split off to start their own “group” with similar interests. Check out the online writing community, WritersCafé.org, or on Twitter, check out #writingcommunity.

Take the First Step

The pandemic has created some challenges for us all, to say the least. Don’t add to your stress by taking on too much. If you don’t have experience writing expressively, start with journaling. Once you become comfortable with just jotting down your thoughts and feelings, consider how your experiences might translate into a poem or short essay.

I just took an online workshop on making a pandemic writing plan. The focus was to just pick one piece of writing we wanted to focus on for the short term (three or six months, for instance) and make an action plan to complete one writing project. Whether you are outcome oriented or just simply wanting to write for fun, having loose goals can help your jittery mind stay focused on something positive that you enjoy. Who knows? By this time next year, you could have the next great memoir!

Visit Dr. Nobel’s The Foundation for Art and Healing webpage here to check out The Unlonely Project.

Nobel, Jeremy, MD, MPH. “Writing as an Antidote to Loneliness.” Harvard Health Publishing. September 14, 2018. https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/writing-as-an-antidote-to-loneliness-2018091414807

Student Success Strategies: Coping with Class during Covid

As colleges have closed and we have transitioned to distance learning, many students are faced with the task of completing class assignments largely on their own. For students who didn’t sign up for online classes, independent learning can be stressful and difficult. English Composition classes can be especially challenging, as much of the vocabulary is new to Freshmen, and the writing assignments – policy proposals, research papers, analysis essays – are much longer and more complicated than perhaps they were in high school. Take a deep breath and read on for some tips on how to complete your class assignments and make it to the finish line.

Keep a Schedule

“If you do not conquer self, you will be conquered by self.” – Napoleon Hill

Get out your academic calendar and write down “appointments” for every online class meeting. But don’t stop there. The academic rule of thumb is that for every credit class hour, you should spend 2-3 hours of outside study. If your professor has reduced the class meeting times because you’re now in class on ZOOM, that doesn’t mean the (normally) 2-3 hours weekly class is now only 30 minutes. Keep to the original schedule; if your English Comp class was to meet twice a week for a weekly total of 3 hours, schedule out an additional 6-9 hours of study/writing time. This is the MINIMUM amount of time students should devote to college-level coursework; for many of us, the current distractions could necessitate additional hours of study.

Stick to a Routine

“We are what we repeatedly do; excellence then is not an act but a habit.” – Aristotle

It’s essential during these times of crisis to have a regular routine. Trying to navigate life right now without some kind of regular routine is like trying to run a marathon without regular training. Not gonna happen.

Establish a daily routine. Wake up at the same time, get dressed, go to bed at the same time, eat at least 3 meals a day, exercise, and maintain relationships. Once your basic needs are met, you’ll have more space – mental, emotional, and physical – to meet life’s other demands, including college coursework.

Check your syllabus to see when your professor holds virtual office hours. Pencil those hours into your academic calendar so you’ll have access to your instructor when you need it if questions or problems arise. If your instructor has offered the option of recorded classes, try your best to virtually attend the live class meeting, as you’ll have the benefit of immediate chat or breakout sessions. These live sessions can also be a great way to keep up our social interactions with our classmates.

Break School Work into Smaller Chunks

“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” –Confucius

A long research paper takes time, but try to avoid sitting in front of the computer screen for hours on end. Schedule in break time to get outside and take in some fresh air and give your brain a break. Instead of scouring library databases for hours collecting sources, schedule a research session for one hour and take a break. Try creating an outline of your research assignment, and break each point in the outline into smaller chunks of actual work time.

Alternate between doing coursework and listening to music. Research has shown that listening to music can help improve cognitive performance, but listening to your favorite music before you have an especially stressful or challenging assignment or exam will also improve your emotional state (The Benefits of Studying with Music).

We’re All in this Together

“If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path.” – Buddha

If you find yourself struggling with an assignment, don’t delay in reaching out to your classmates or instructor. If you have a question, I guarantee a classmate has the same question, but might be too embarrassed or intimidated to ask. Consider starting your own virtual study group. It’s not only a great way to keep up with classes, but also a great way to keep up social connections and prevent isolation fatigue.  

If you find yourself falling behind, keep putting in the effort. In our current academic environment, professors really do appreciate the effort, and the last thing anyone wants is their students to drop or disappear. If your institution offers a virtual writing center, make an appointment with a writing consultant for assistance.

Also, consider that instructors might be struggling too. This might be the first time they’ve taught online, and many professors are just trying to figure things out as they go. They might have let some of the lessons drop that could have made your assignment easier to understand. By speaking up and posing questions, you’re not only helping your classmates, but you’re helping your instructor navigate this new academic territory we’re all finding ourselves in.

Final Thoughts

Reach out, make connections, and keep showing up. The antidote for worry is action. Take action, even if the action is imperfect. Finish the assignment, even if it’s not your best work. You’ll feel a sense of accomplishment, and you’ll be one step close to that final goal.

Simple Steps to Organize an Argument Essay

You’ve created a strong thesis statement, you’ve compiled your research, you may have even written your intro, but where do you go from here? Are you stumped about how exactly to put all of this information together?

Organizing a long research paper can be a daunting task, but fear not! Read on for a quick and easy way to lay out your argument essay. This organization method is only one option, and your instructor may have a preferred method, but if you are lost, this is a great road map to get you unstuck.

Start with Your Thesis

To begin, you’ll need to write down your thesis statement.

Thesis: The US should implement a cross-country high-speed rail system.

Now you have to answer the big question: Why should the US implement a cross-country high-speed rail system?

Reasoning out an Argument

Answering this question in a series of what we’ll refer to as “because clauses,” will fill out the body of your paper. These will be the reasons why your audience should support your position. Let’s pick three strong reasons, and list them here:

Thesis: The US should implement a cross-country high-speed rail system because. . .

Because Clause #1: because a rail system will greatly reduce highway congestion, resulting in lower automobile fatalities.

Because Clause #2: because a rail system will serve the poor population who cannot afford the cost of owning and maintaining a car.

Because Clause #3: because a national rail system will greatly reduce automobile emissions and be more environmentally friendly.

As you can see, each because clause smoothly follows the thesis statement. You should be able to combine the thesis with each because clause in one succinct, logical sentence. These three (or four) reasons or because clauses, as well as the information and research you include to support these reasons, will constitute the majority of your paper.

Once you decide on what your reasons will be and what research you’ll use to support each reason, you’ll simply begin to lay them out after your introduction. Organize your paper by following your reasons, keeping each “because” reason in its own paragraph/s. In other words, don’t talk about information related to because clause #1 in the paragraph for because clause #3.

Simple, right?

Think of the body of your essay as a train; each rail car is lined up one after the other, holding its own separate contents. Just as the engineer wouldn’t want to mix the rail car full of coal with a car full of apples, you don’t want to mix the information in your clauses.

Including Opposition and Rebuttal

After you have given all of your reasons, now you’ll need to include a section (one or more paragraphs) of opposition and rebuttal. Below, we have included two different oppositions.

Opposition #1 (followed by rebuttal): Many opponents against a high-speed rail system believe the monetary costs outweigh the benefits.

Opposition #2 (followed by rebuttal): The cost of high-speed rail tickets will be unaffordable for the low-income population it hopes to attract.

These opposition points are developed depending on the audience you’re hoping to persuade. The length of your paper will usually dictate how many different oppositional points (with accompanying rebuttal) you will need. For our purposes, we are placing the opposition after the reasons have all been argued, but it is also acceptable to place a direct opposition immediately after each reason, if the opposition directly argues against the specific reason. Above, Opposition #2 directly relates to Because Cause #2, and could be placed directly after.

It’s a good idea to outline your argument before you begin writing. If you’re not into numerical outlines, just draw a box for every paragraph or section, and label each box with what’s going inside, like this:

You can get as detailed as you want, including what research goes where.

To break down the body section, for instance, it might look something like this:

Once you’ve determined your reasoning, you can easily arrange and rearrange as needed. After outlining the Intro, Body, and Opposition, all that’s left is the concluding thoughts.

Easy, right?

Final Thoughts

Organizing a longer argument essay takes some time and forethought. Remember to keep the coal with the coal, and the apples with the apples! With a little work on the front end, you’ll be on track for focused and well-organized essay.