Each Works Cited entry has 9 components. You may not use each component in the reference; however, they all form a function to help the reader find the source you have cited.  Note the punctuation after each element: Author. Title of Source. Title of Container, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication date, Location.

When citing electronic sources (such as articles from websites and databases), keep in mind that MLA, like all other style guides, was designed for books and journals (the paper versions!) Sometimes, making the entries for electronic sources feels like you are putting a square peg in a round hole. And, in some ways, you are. Many students wonder, why can’t I just link to the electronic source in the paper? Why Not Just Use Hyperlinks to Credit Sources?   Hyperlinks are very useful for linking to information that will be read immediately. We all use hyperlinks in emails to link to videos, articles, and recipes. These are good uses of hyperlinks because, most likely, the information will still be there. And, you are probably linking to information that is free and available to the public. However, hyperlinks are not very useful for academic papers. Here are some reasons: Links change: The internet changes every day. Websites add and remove articles, on-line magazines and newspapers change their links. If there is only a link to a source and if that link changes, then the reader cannot find the source. Inaccessible Databases: Some of the information you will use will be from CNM databases. The readers of your article may not have access to the same database; therefore, a link is not sufficient. The reader needs to know pertinent information, such as the author’s name, title, etc., to be able to find the source.

Giving credit where credit is due enhances your own credibility.

Citing Indirect Sources  If another source is cited within your source, it is called an “indirect source. When citing this, use “qtd. in” to indicate the source you actually consulted.

If you need to cite multiple publications by different authors in the same sentence, you should list the multiple sources in alphabetical order by author and use a semicolon to separate them.

If you are using a website or other electronic source that does not have page numbers, use only the author’s name or title of the source in the in-text citation.   Here are examples:   If the source has page numbers: (Pauling 113).  If the source does not have page numbers: (Pauling).  If the source has page numbers: (“Bilingual Minds” 113).  If the source does not have page numbers: (“Bilingual Minds”).

When writing, make sure you inform the reader when you are using information from a source, whether that be direct quotations or paraphrasing information. And, it should be equally clear when you are expressing your own ideas.

If you follow MLA style and indicate your source both in your essay and in the Works Cited section, you will prevent the possibility of plagiarism

In-text citations are used throughout your paper to credit your sources of information. In MLA style, the in-text citation in the body of the essay links to the Works Cited page at the en

Free online encyclopedias and wikis may seem like a great source of information. They usually appear among the first few results of a web search, they cover thousands of topics, and they include articles with an informal, straightforward writing style. Unfortunately, these sites have no control system for researching, writing, and reviewing articles. Instead, they rely on a community of users to police themselves. At best, these sites can be a starting point for finding other, more trustworthy sources. Never use them as final sources.

All information sources are not created equally. Sources can vary greatly in terms of how carefully they are researched, written, edited, and reviewed for accuracy

Smart researchers continually ask themselves two questions: “Is this source relevant to my purpose?” and “Is this source reliable?

When you search for periodicals, be sure to distinguish among different types. Mass-market publications, such as newspapers and popular magazines, differ from scholarly publications in their accessibility, audience, and purpose. Consult your instructor because they will often specify what resources you are required to use.

Library catalogs can help you locate book-length sources, as well as some types of non-print holdings, such as CDs, DVDs, and audio books. To locate shorter sources, such as magazine and journal articles, you will need to use an online database. CNM’s library website holds a large online database you can use to begin your research

Your topic and purpose determine whether you must cite both primary and secondary sources in your paper. Ask yourself which sources are most likely to provide answers your research questions. If you are writing a research paper about reality television shows, you will need to use some reality shows as a primary source, but secondary sources, such as a reviewer’s critique, are also important. If you are writing about the health effects of nicotine, you will probably want to read the published results of scientific studies, but secondary sources, such as magazine or journal articles discussing the outcome of a recent study, may also be helpful.

The following are examples of secondary sources: Magazine articles Biographical books Literary and scientific reviews Television documentaries

Other primary sources include the following: Research Articles Literary Texts Historical documents such as diaries or letters Autobiographies or other personal accounts Podcasts

Writers classify research resources in two categories: primary sources and secondary sources. Primary sources are direct, firsthand sources of information or data. For example, if you were writing a paper about the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, the text of the First Amendment in the Bill of Rights would be a primary source.

Example of a Research Process A successful research process should go through these steps: Decide on the topic. Narrow the topic in order to narrow search parameters. Consider a question that your research will address. Generate sub-questions from your main question. Determine what kind of sources are best for your argument. Create a bibliography as you gather and reference sources.

No matter what field of study you are interested in, you will most likely be asked to write a research paper during your academic career

Presenting what you have learned from research can be just as important as performing the research

The text Successful Writing stresses that when you perform research, you are essentially trying to solve a mystery—you want to know how something works or why something happened. In other words, you want to answer a question that you (and other people) have about the world. This is one of the most basic reasons for performing research.

Your thesis will probably change as you write, so you will need to modify it to reflect exactly what you have discussed in your essay

Assertiveness A thesis statement that is assertive shows readers that you are, in fact, making an argument. The tone is authoritative and takes a stance that others might oppose.

Ability to be demonstrated For any claim you make in your thesis, you must be able to provide reasons and examples for your opinion. You can rely on personal observations in order to do this, or you can consult outside sources to demonstrate that what you assert is valid. A worthy argument is backed by examples and details.

Ability to be argued A thesis statement must present a relevant and specific argument. A factual statement often is not considered arguable. Be sure your thesis statement contains a point of view that can be supported with evidence.

Precision A strong thesis statement must be precise enough to allow for a coherent argument and to remain focused on the topic

Specificity A thesis statement must concentrate on a specific area of a general topic. As you may recall, the creation of a thesis statement begins when you choose a broad subject and then narrow down its parts until you pinpoint a specific aspect of that topic. For example, health care is a broad topic, but a proper thesis statement would focus on a specific area of that topic, such as options for individuals without health-care coverage.

A thesis is not your paper’s topic, but rather your interpretation of the question or subject. For whatever topic your professor gives you, you must ask yourself, “What do I want to write about it?” Asking and then answering this question is vital to forming a thesis that is precise, forceful, and confident. A thesis is generally one to two sentences long and appears toward the end of your introduction. It is specific and focuses on one to three points of a single idea—points that will be demonstrated in the body. The thesis forecasts the content of the essay and suggests how you will organize your information. Remember that a thesis statement does not summarize an issue but rather dissects it.

Lastly, thanking your classmates for feedback is a gracious way to acknowledge that your classmates attempted to complete the assignment and took the time and care to read and comment on your writing.

A reader may not have experienced similar life circumstances as yours, but that doesn’t mean the reader won’t be able to identify emotionally with what you and your characters go through

When writing a personal narrative for class, first consider the prompt your teacher assigned you. Then, freewrite about topics that are of general interest to you

The intended effect of creative writing differs depending on the writer’s goals.

Creative writing can take place in a variety of forms: poems, short stories, memoirs, novels, and even song lyrics.

After you choose a topic, critical reading is essential to the development of a topic. While reading almost any document, evaluate the author’s point of view by thinking about his/her main idea and support. When you judge the author’s argument, you discover more about not only the author’s opinion but also your own. If this step already seems daunting, remember that even the best writers need to use prewriting strategies to generate ideas.

When selecting a topic, you may also want to consider something that interests you or something based on your own life and personal experiences. Even everyday observations can lead to interesting topics. After writers think about their experiences and observations, they often take notes on paper to better develop their thoughts. These notes help writers discover what they have to say about their topic.

These are the five most common steps in the writing process: Prewriting Outlining the structure of ideas Writing a rough draft Revising Editing

Although you might think editing and proofreading aren’t necessary since you were fairly careful when you were writing, the truth is that even the brightest people and best writers make mistakes when they write.

Finally, avoid ending a paper with new ideas or a thesis you have not already supported or explained in the paper. Remember, a conclusion is meant to reiterate the paper’s main argument and then return the thesis to the larger issue the paper is addressing and should not present any new arguments or topics in the process

After doing all this by yourself, seek help from others. First, find an individual who knows about the assignment, your intended audience, and the purpose of the essay. This person is likely one of your peers who has participated in class. Then, share the paper with someone who fits the description of the audience for whom the document is intended. Ask your readers if everything is clear and easily understood, if phrases are worded correctly, if the document is logically sound, etc. If you have other specific concerns — Is the second example effective? Does my conclusion resolve the paper nicely? — ask your readers to direct their attention to those issues.

Writers should note that revising, editing, and proofreading are considerably different processes.

successful writers rely on revising as an integral part of the writing process, and it is important for authors to spend the majority of their time revising their texts. Revising and editing are two separate processes that are often used interchangeably by novice writers. Revising requires a significant alteration in a piece of writing, such as enriching the content, or giving the piece clarity; editing, however, is not as involved and includes fixing typos and grammatical errors. Although editing can be a part of this process, revising generally involves changes that concern bigger issues, such as content and organization. While revising, a writer might notice that one idea needs to be developed more thoroughly and another idea omitted. The writer might decide that rearranging paragraphs will provide clarity and support for their argument, strengthening the paper as a whole. Writers should also change grammar and punctuation while revising, but if that is all they are doing, then they are simply editing.

Two Formulas for Paragraph Structure We have looked at the basic parts of your essay, and now we have a sample formula to help you expand your ideas about your evidence. Between the Introduction (and thesis) and the Conclusion (and reflection on the thesis) comes the body of the essay. For your essay’s body to be solid and focused, it needs to have clear, well-developed paragraphs. Even paragraphs need to have a beginning, middle, and end. To help you think about paragraph organization, think about TEAR: T = Topic Sentence This is like a little thesis for your paragraph. It tells the reader what that paragraph is all about. If your reader were only to read the topic sentences in your essay, he/or she should have a general idea of what you’re talking about. Of course, he/she can’t get a complete picture unless you provide… E = Evidence This is the “how do you know?” part of your paragraph. Evidence comes from the real world. You may present your evidence in the form of statistics, direct quotes, summaries, or paraphrases from a source, or your own observations. Evidence is available to us all. What your reader needs is for you to make sense of that evidence so that s/he understands what all this has to do with your thesis or claim. That is why you provide… A = Analysis This is the ‘so what?’ part of your paragraph. You say what is important and why. This isn’t just personal taste or opinion. You have to provide good reasons to support your conclusions. And just to make sure you’re still on track, you… R = Reflection This sentence concludes the paragraph and relates to the topic sentence and the thesis. Ideally, it should also prepare us for the next paragraph.

Examples of Appropriate Thesis Statements The societal and personal struggles of Troy Maxon in the play “Fences” symbolize the challenge of black males who lived through segregation and integration in the United States. Shakespeare’s use of dramatic irony in Romeo and Juliet spoils the outcome for the audience and weakens the plot. J. D. Salinger’s character in Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, is a confused rebel who voices his disgust with phonies, yet in an effort to protect himself, he acts like a phony on many occasions. Compared to an absolute divorce, no-fault divorce is less expensive, promotes fairer settlements, and reflects a more realistic view of the causes for marital breakdown. Exposing children from an early age to the dangers of drug abuse is a sure method of preventing future drug addicts. In a crumbling job market, a high school diploma is not significant enough education to land a stable, lucrative job. Examples of Weak Thesis Statements Now that you have read about the contents of a good thesis statement and have seen examples, take a look at the pitfalls to avoid when composing your own thesis: A thesis is weak when it is simply a declaration of your subject or a description of what you will discuss in your essay. Avoid creating an announcement. Weak thesis statement: My paper will explain why imagination is more important than knowledge. A thesis is weak when it makes an unreasonable or outrageous claim or insults the opposing side. Weak thesis statement: Religious radicals across America are trying to legislate their Puritanical beliefs by banning required high school books. A thesis is weak when it contains an obvious fact or something that no one can disagree with or provides a dead end. Weak thesis statement: Advertising companies use sex to sell their products. A thesis is weak when the statement is too broad. Weak thesis statement: The life of Abraham Lincoln was long and challenging.

After developing an outline, a good next step is refining your thesis statement. The textbook Successful Writing explains that writers need a thesis statement to provide a specific focus for their essay and to organize what they will discuss in the body of their writing. A thesis statement is an argumentative central claim in a paper; the entire paper is focused on demonstrating that claim as a valid perspective. Your thesis statement should be in your introduction because you must make sure that the audience is aware of your paper’s intent so that there is clarity from the outset. Consider placing the thesis toward the bottom of your introduction. This allows you a few sentences to introduce the concept and prepare the reader for your purpose

Organizing Ideas

But don’t take our word for it. Each instructor is different. For that reason, if you have questions about the purpose of an assignment, raise your hand in class and ask. Chances are someone else is thinking the same question

If an assignment asks you to summarize, you will know that your teacher wants to make sure you comprehend the material, and the teacher would like you to re-state a text’s main ideas in your own words. If you see a verb like evaluate, rate or assess, you will know that your instructor expects you to write evaluative paragraphs. There aren’t many synonyms for synthesis in an assignment prompt. If your teacher asks you to synthesize in writing, you can expect that they would like you to use multiple sources and discuss them together, how they relate to one another, and how they relate to your ideas and claims in an essay. If your teacher asks you to examine, interpret, consider, or investigate a piece of writing, chances are they would like to see you writing analytical paragraphs.

Set due dates for the stage of your writing process, for example when you would like to pick a topic and complete your rough draft. Procrastination rarely results in a good paper.

Don’t play a guessing game when it comes to tackling assignment criteria–ask the right person for help: the instructor. Discuss any and all questions with the person who assigned the work, either in person or via email. Visit him or her during office hours or stay after class. Do not wait until the last minute, as doing so puts your grade at risk. Don’t be shy about asking your professors questions.

regardless of genre, one can use some basic strategies to approach these assignments constructively.

That process works for her; however, that process might not work for you.

An important part of developing academic writing skills includes developing your own writing process. Your writing process includes all the steps you take from the time you receive a writing prompt to the time that you turn in a final draft for a grade.

The power of simple words – Terin Izil

Which example has a more formal voice or academic style? Which one would you want to read further? Keep in mind that voice is not something you can automatically create. There are times when you may be tempted to use unusual syntax or fancy vocabulary in the hopes of making your writing stand out, but that would not be your genuine style. There are no quick ways to give yourself a recognizable voice; it is something that can only be developed over time. The best way to develop voice is to keep writing and to think about what kind of writing you like. Pay attention to how you speak — what words you use, what sorts of phrases and sentence structures you favor, even what kind of punctuation appears in your work frequently. These are the choices that will eventually become markers of your authority.

As a writer, it is important to know your audience and to consider which content will be appropriate for that audience

Content is also shaped by tone. When the tone matches the content, the audience will be more engaged, and you will build a stronger relationship with your readers.

For example, you update your status on a social networking site with the awareness of who will digitally follow the post. If you want to brag about a good grade, you may write the post to please family members. If you want to describe a funny moment, you may write with your friends’ senses of humor in mind. Even at work, you send e-mails with an awareness of an unintended receiver who could intercept the message.

Although the audience for writing assignments—your readers—may not appear in person, they play a vital role in the development of your writing

It balances the busyness of our lives with reflection.  It encourages us to put our ideas on paper so we are taking our first step toward action.  It helps us focus on constructive, creative, and exciting pursuits, and we are freed from needless worry.

Using experience and observations  Reading  Free-writing  Asking questions

Prewriting is the first stage of the writing process, typically followed by drafting, revision, editing, and publishing

your primary comprehension goal is to identify the main point: the most important idea that the writer wants to communicate and often states early on.

Reflect – You should go through what you read and try to answer the questions you noted before during the pre-reading stage. Check in after every section, chapter or topic to make sure you understand the material and can explain it, in your own words. Pretend you are responsible for teaching this section to someone else. Can you do it?   It’s at this stage that you consolidate knowledge, so refrain from moving on until you can recall the core information.

Planning strategies.To help you manage your reading assignments before you begin reading. Active Reading strategies.To help you understand the material while you read. Application strategies. To solidify your understanding at a higher and deeper level after you finish reading.

A discourse community is a group of people who share basic values and assumptions and ways of communicating their goals. In the academic world, discourse communities are usually defined by field and subfield. That means that the discourse community of geology represents the common scholarly conversation that takes place among geologists. If an audiologist entered into their conversation (or picked up one of their journals), it’s likely that many of the terms and concepts would be unfamiliar, and a geologist would have the same problems in a conversation about audiology. Entering your academic discourse community and learning about its conventions is the first step to becoming a successful college student.

Regardless of your field of study, honing your writing skills—plus your reading and critical-thinking skills—will help you build a solid academic foundation.

We believe it shouldn’t cost money to learn how to write, and that is why we are making this book available to you.