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Writing cheatsheet

Contents

  1. 1 About this guide
  2. 2 Grammar
    1. 2.1 Their = Adjective, possessive. Belonging to or relating to a particular group.
    2. 2.2 There =
    3. 2.3 You're = You are; Your = possessive.
    4. 2.4 's = Singular possessive.
    5. 2.5 s' = Plural possessive.
    6. 2.6 Your sentence must have a subject and a verb. 
    7. 2.7 Do not = don't
    8. 2.8 Does not = doesn't
    9. 2.9 Will not = won't
    10. 2.10 Cannot = can't (note that "cannot" is one word)
    11. 2.11 A lot = two words, but avoid using this phrase.
    12. 2.12 Pay attention to subject-verb agreement.
    13. 2.13 Use quotation marks properly
      1. 2.13.1 If you include quoted text, put the period INSIDE the quotation marks.
      2. 2.13.2 If you use a quotation from a source that requires a citation, follow your referencing system's guidelines for where to put commas.
      3. 2.13.3 See Purdue University's Online Writing Lab guidelines on using quotation marks
    14. 2.14 You MUST use a standard referencing system for all resources, even if you do not use a direct quote.
    15. 2.15 UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS vs COUNTABLE NOUNS: Know the difference between the two.
    16. 2.16 Don't forget articles
    17. 2.17 Identify proper nouns correctly and consistently
  3. 3 Style
    1. 3.1 TITLES
    2. 3.2 NUMBERS
    3. 3.3 INACTIVE STRUCTURE
    4. 3.4 OUTLINES
    5. 3.5 TRANSITIONS
    6. 3.6 Know who your audience is
    7. 3.7 Try to write economically
    8. 3.8 ATTEMPTS AT ERUDITION (I.E., SOUNDING SMART)
    9. 3.9 SPECIFICITY AND PRECISION
    10. 3.10 Avoid statements that give little or no new insight to your target reader
    11. 3.11 Avoid excessive or inappropriate personification
    12. 3.12 Avoid clichés
    13. 3.13 REPETITION
    14. 3.14 Avoid "a lot," "etc," and "many more"
    15. 3.15 PREPOSITIONS
    16. 3.16 COMMAS
    17. 3.17 SEMICOLONS
    18. 3.18 SPELLCHECK
    19. 3.19 TITLES
    20. 3.20 TENSES
    21. 3.21 NEGATIVE CONSTRUCTION
    22. 3.22 List items properly
    23. 3.23 PARALLEL STRUCTURES


About this guide

Adapted from Jasmine Trice's "Writing Guidelines".

Grammar

Their = Adjective, possessive. Belonging to or relating to a particular group.

a.    Ex: They were mad when their house flooded.  The cabinets had their doors locked.

There =

a.    An adverb used to indicate a place, either one that has already been mentioned or understood, or one indicated by pointing or looking. 
i.    Ex: Their house was flooded over there. 
b.    Pronoun used to introduce a sentence stating that something exists, develops, or can be seen.
i.    There is water seeping under the door. 

You're = You are; Your = possessive.

a.    You're a no-good trying-hard copycat!
b.    Your presentation was engaging.

's = Singular possessive.

a.    Ex: The mall's design discourages people from sitting so that they would be forced to keep moving and to keep spending money. (One mall)

s' = Plural possessive.

a.    Ex: The malls' design discourages people from sitting so that they would be forced to keep moving and to keep spending money. (More than one mall)

Your sentence must have a subject and a verb. 

a.    Ex: Looking at him, wondering what he was doing. WRONG
b.    Ex: I was looking at him, wondering what he was doing. CORRECT

Do not = don't


Does not = doesn't


Will not = won't


Cannot = can't (note that "cannot" is one word)


A lot = two words, but avoid using this phrase.


Pay attention to subject-verb agreement.

NOT: The dimensions of the project looks complex. 
What looks complex? The project (singular)? No, its dimensions (plural). 
INSTEAD: The dimensions of the project look complex. 
 

Use quotation marks properly

If you include quoted text, put the period INSIDE the quotation marks.

a.    EXAMPLE: "School is too expensive," Professor Loakan argued, "so students expect to hold full-time jobs." 

If you use a quotation from a source that requires a citation, follow your referencing system's guidelines for where to put commas.

For example, MLA formatting looks like this:
a.    According to Pease and Weigman, "Wise regulated the temporal dynamics of both social and disciplinary change" (Pease and Weigman 15). The "15" refers to the page number.

See Purdue University's Online Writing Lab guidelines on using quotation marks

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_quote.html

For a funny look at how not to use quotation marks, see www.unnecessaryquotes.com

You MUST use a standard referencing system for all resources, even if you do not use a direct quote.

Otherwise, you could inadvertently plagiarize. A referencing system is a standardized format for writing and referencing sources. Among your choices are APA, MLA, and Chicago. 

UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS vs COUNTABLE NOUNS: Know the difference between the two.

NOT: softwares
OK: software programs

NOT: Plone is a software that manages rich content easily.
OK: Plone is a piece of software that manages rich content easily.
EVEN BETTER: Plone is a software program that manages rich content easily.

NOT: I produced documentations for the company.
OK: I produced documentation for the company.

video and photo creation = "the process of making video and photo products"
video and photo creations = "the video and photo products themselves"

Don't forget articles

NOT: Web is the most widely used feature of Internet. 
OK: The Web is the most widely used feature of Internet. 

NOT:  Search Engine is crucial to locating information on the Web. 
OK:  A search engine is crucial to locating information on the Web. 
OK, TOO:  Search engines are crucial to locating information on the Web. 

But there are times when an article should be dropped, such as when you are talking about general, non-specific nouns:

no article with a plural noun: The Tigers are dangerous animals. (all tigers)
no article with a noncountable noun: The Anger is a destructive emotion. (any kind of anger)

Those examples are from the Online Writing Lab at Purdue. See their section on the use and non-use of articles for more information.

Identify proper nouns correctly and consistently


NO: "the web" (i.e., the World Wide Web)
YES: "the Web"

(See the previous example about search engines, too.)





Style

TITLES

Always title your paper. Your title should indicate something about your perspective on the argument. In addition, it should make your reader want to read the paper. 

NUMBERS

When you use numbers, you can write anything above a ten as a number: "11." Anything below a ten should stay as a word. NOT: "1 dog was left." INSTEAD: "One dog was left." 

INACTIVE STRUCTURE

Inactive verb construction = generally, you should have an active subject in your sentence. 
a.    NOT: The destruction of the simplistic either-or thinking is desired. (What's the verb? Preferred. What's the subject of that verb?)
b.    INSTEAD:  Intellectuals desire the destruction of simplistic either-or thinking.
c.    NOT: The Benton Murals can be accepted. (What's the verb? Accepted.  What's the subject?)
d.    INSTEAD: Faculty can accept the Benton Murals. 

OUTLINES

Make sure you write an outline before you start writing your paper! This is your skeleton; it holds your ideas up and structures them. If you don't write an outline, your paper will be structurally weak. This is an example of one way to structure your essay. It's not meant to be the only way to write an outline:
a.    Introduction
i.    Attention-getting introduction of topic: state the key elements that matter to your essay in as interesting a way as possible. Often writers use introductions as places to include personal experience that sheds light on the matter at hand.
ii.    Statement of thesis: Should be clear and succinct.
iii.    Preview of main points (each body paragraph will be a main point).  
b.    Point 1
i.    Transition sentence (brings the previous paragraph into the next paragraph)
ii.    Argument
iii.    Conclusion of Point 1
iv.    Transition sentence
c.    Point 2
i.    Transition sentence
ii.    Argument
iii.    Conclusion of Point 2
d.    Point 3
i.    Transition sentence
ii.    Argument
iii.    Conclusion of Point 3
iv.    Transition sentence
e.    Conclusion
i.    Summary of main points
ii.    Outcome for the future
iii.    Possible return to personal anecdote from introduction, viewed from a different perspective based on your arguments. 

TRANSITIONS

When you move from idea to idea, set up guideposts for your reader with phrases like "in addition,"  "furthermore," and "moreover" if you're building on the same position. Use words like "conversely" or "on the other hand" if you're moving to an opposing position. Also, if you're moving into another idea that shares features with the first, use words like "similarly" and "likewise." 

But don't attempt to link two completed unrelated sentences together! Transitions will not save a poorly planned paragraph.

Malls have replaced public spaces such as parks and town squares. Moreover, catching a jeep from the mall can be very difficult at the end of the day. 
(Both sentences are about malls, but what does the lack of public spaces have to do with trying to catch a jeep?)

Know who your audience is

If you have been asked to discuss, say, the history of a particular type of digital device, remember that you are writing a critical paper about the device. What you shouldn't be doing is promoting the product and selling it to your reader.

NOT: Palm Company takes pride in presenting Bluetooth Wireless technology built in to Treo 755p.
INSTEAD: The first Bluetooth-enabled Palm device to be released in the market was the Treo 755p.

Try to write economically

Don't feel that a longer sentence means a better sentence. 

Try removing words to make your sentence leaner and stronger.

WORDY: Hypertext documents can also be interlinked forming a web of information which defines what the World Wide Web is.
LEAN: Hypertext documents can also be interlinked forming a web of information which defines the World Wide Web.
EVEN LEANER: Interlinked hypertext documents define the World Wide Web.

ATTEMPTS AT ERUDITION (I.E., SOUNDING SMART)

    

Don't try to use words that you found in a thesaurus unless you know exactly what they mean and are choosing the word because of its particular definition, not because you think it looks smart.  Just because a word is more unusual doesn't mean it's more appropriate. 

SPECIFICITY AND PRECISION

Be as specific as possible. There's nothing worse than reading meaningless generalities that could apply to anything. This could be as simple as replacing words like "people" with "students," "laptop-users," or "minorities."  Instead of words like "good" or "bad," use something more particular to the topic at hand. Ex:

NOT: The people were good at it.
INSTEAD: The students were skilled at boxing. 
Still a little wordy. EVEN BETTER: The students were surprisingly skilled boxers.  

NOT: I've used hard work, determination, and willpower to arrive to where I am today.  
INSTEAD: My experience as an unwed mother, my long nights at the library, and my willingness to sacrifice my weekends have helped pave my road to success. 

("Pave my road to success" still sounds a little clichéd, and the sentence is somewhat flabby. How could you reword this?)

NOT: The Nikon D40 is an affordable camera.
Affordable for whom? Certainly not for everyone. 
INSTEAD: The Nikon D40 costs between P16000 and P28000.

Avoid statements that give little or no new insight to your target reader

In particular, you should avoid grand, sweeping, or over-general statements that you do not justify with sufficient arguments. Consider the following:
  • "Since the beginning of time..." or, "Throughout history..."  

  • "This website is a product of technology." 
    Anything human-made can be described as "a product of technology".

  • "All these types of technology make way for what this website would be in the years and decades to come."
    The author of this statement didn't actually discuss what the website will be like "in the years and decades to come". So this statement not only needs substantiation but also reveals no new information. 
In addition, those statements do not follow the recommendation on specificity and precision.

Avoid excessive or inappropriate personification

Personification is "a figure of speech in which an inanimate object or abstraction is endowed with human qualities or abilities" [source]. Avoid overusing or misusing it. Consider the following paragraph, taken from one of the TMA 1 submissions:

"This paper relives the history of Flickr.com as it looks into the prior technologies involved. It also intends to look at how it upholds its popularity as it checks on the supporting technologies. Finally, it aims to find out how it keeps up with rivalries as it scrutinizes its competitors."

This paragraph is full of awkward uses of personification. An essay could be said to recount history, but can it "relive" it? A website can be said to compete with other similar services, but does it really "scrutinize its competitors" or "keep up with rivalries"? The paragraph sounds too much like a soap opera gone bad. 

Avoid clichés

Avoid clichés (see above). Metaphors and visual writing are great, but you need to make sure you use them well. 

REPETITION

Avoid repeating words or phrases several times within one paragraph, unless you are doing this for stylistic or rhetorical reasons:
a.    OK: Her supervisors refused to listen. Her family refused to listen. The media refused to listen. Finally, she turned to the one person who would: her secret lover, Manny Pacquiao.

Avoid "a lot," "etc," and "many more"

Avoid using "a lot." It sounds too conversational for writing and is often used incorrectly. You should use "a lot" to refer to things that you can't separate into individual units. Use "many" or "several" for things that you can differentiate. 

a.    NOT: There were a lot of people at the demonstration. INSTEAD: There were hundreds of people at the demonstration. 
b.    OK: She used many potatoes to prepare the dish. There were many kind of sisig to choose from. Note that this sentence ends in a preposition (see 28).  If it sounds awkward to reword the sentence ("There were many kinds of sisig from which to choose"), go ahead and end the sentence with the preposition. 

Avoid using "many more" and "etc". Like "a lot", they suggest that you don't actually know all the facts but you're pretending that you do. 

NOT: All these technologies and more are all worth being praised.
NOT: The advent of the internet has enabled the whole social networking thing possible.

Related concepts: 

PREPOSITIONS

Try to avoid ending sentences with a preposition (at, with, in, of, around etc.). For writing, it sounds more formal.
a.    NOT: It's the language she was born with.  
b.    INSTEAD: It's the language with which she was born.

Prepositions are some the trickiest words in the English language. Often, there are no rules that can tell you which preposition to use for a particular instance. Often you have to just "feel the correctness of the sentence structure".

Examples from MMS 100 submissions:
NOT: Facebook and Beyond: A Backward Look on Social Network Sites
INSTEAD: Facebook and Beyond: A Backward Look at Social Network Sites 
NB: It's a confusing title, anyway---is the paper looking "beyond" (into the future) or "backwards" (into the past)?

COMMAS

Students often have problems with commas. If it's a compound sentence (Two sentences that could stand alone, joined by "and"), then you need a comma. Most likely, if you use a prepositional phrase, you need commas around it (as in this sentence).
a.    EX: The dog went into the house, and he ate his lunch.
b.    EX: The dog went into the house and ate his lunch. In the first example, "he ate his lunch" includes a subject and a verb ("he" and "ate"); therefore, it's a compound sentence. In the second example, "ate his lunch" uses the subject from the first half of the sentence, "dog." Therefore, we don't need a comma; one subject shares two verbs: the dog went and ate.

SEMICOLONS

Make sure you include a semicolon (;) or " , and" if you have two autonomous sentences. 
a.    NOT: The cat played with yarn, he was very tired.
b.    INSTEAD: The cat played with yarn; he was very tired.
c.    OR: The cat played with yarn, and he was very tired.
i.    Notice that the two different correct sentences imply different meanings. In the first example, the semicolon indicates that the cat was already tired while he played with the yarn. The second sentence, with the addition of "and," suggests that he became tired because he played with the yarn.  Be aware of these nuances as you write.

SPELLCHECK

Computers can be your friends. If the word processing program underlines something in green (grammar) or red (spelling), it is worth checking to see what the computer suggests. However, keep in mind that the computer is not always the best judge. If you are unsure, have someone look at it. 

TITLES

Underline or italicize the titles of books, movies, albums, and television shows. Put songs, article titles, headlines, poems, and television episodes in parentheses. 

a.    Ex: "The Moth" is her favorite episode of Lost. 
b.    Ex: "Rollercoaster" is his favorite song from Sleater-Kinney's new album, The Woods.

TENSES

Sometimes students use tenses randomly. Make sure you know the differences between 
a. "He was writing" 
b. "He is writing"
c. "He wrote"  
d. "He had written" 
e. "He would have written"

NEGATIVE CONSTRUCTION

Avoid using negatives as descriptors if there is another way to articulate the sentence. It's tidier:
a.    NOT: Charkha also believes that empowering information is not about sensationalizing the suffering of others for media mileage.
b.    INSTEAD: Charkha also believes that empowering information avoids sensationalizing the suffering of others for media mileage.
or
c.    INSTEAD: Charka also believes that empowering information is understated in its coverage of suffering. 

List items properly

Use lists to enumerate ideas that would sound awkward if put in a paragraph.

NOT: First, where is the dog from? Second, what breed is it? Third, why are there so many dogs in this community? Fourth, are dogs better than cats?
INSTEAD:
  • Where is the dog from?
  • What breed is it?
  • Why are there so many dogs in this community?
  • Are dogs better than cats?
Use numbered lists if the order that the material is presented matters. Use unnumbered lists if order doesn't matter.
  1. Connect all the cables.
  2. Flip the switch.
  3. Wait until the welcome message appears.
    • Suman
    • Bibingka
Generally, numbered lists are unreadable when they are embedded in a paragraph. If a simple, comma-separated list will get your point across, use it instead.

NOT: Zoommr.com is very similar to Flickr.com although it has more features: 1) SMS support; 2) Widget support; 3) Instant messaging similar to Twitter; 4) email addresses may be searched; and 5) photos may be sold (Riley, 2008, n.p.).

INSTEAD: Zoommr.com supports SMS, widgets, instant messaging, email address searching, and photo sales.

Some say that when you have a series of nouns listed, you don't need to put a comma after the second to last noun. Either way is fine, but I prefer a comma, so:

NOT: "books, movies, albums and television shows."

INSTEAD: "books, movies, albums, and television shows."

PARALLEL STRUCTURES

"Parallel structure means using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance. This can happen at the word, phrase, or clause level," says Purdue's Online Writing Lab . Learn how to use parallel structures properly.