Tips to understand an essay question and to respond directly to an instructor’s writing prompt can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/special-kinds-of-writing/answering-essay-questions.pdf
More tips to understand an essay question and to respond directly to an instructor’s writing prompt can be found at the Harvard College Writing Center: https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/how-read-assignment
Tips and steps to plan a draft and to prewrite can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/the-writing-proccess/writing-the-essay.pdf
More tips to plan a draft and to prewrite can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/the-writing-proccess/writing-an-essay.pdf
Guides on developing an argument and thesis statement can be found at the Online Writing Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill:
- https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/argument
- https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/thesis-statements/
Harvard faculty express their viewpoints on writing an argument: https://www.harvardwrites.com/writing-an-argument
Harvard faculty express their viewpoints on using evidence and analysis: https://www.harvardwrites.com/evidence-analysis
Strategies to read a text and to draft the essay can be found at The Harvard College Writing Center:
- “How to Do a Close Reading” https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/how-do-close-reading
- “Developing a Thesis” https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/developing-thesis
Purdue OWL clarifies the distinctions in using summary, paraphrase, and direct quotations to present evidence: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/using_research/quoting_paraphrasing_and_summarizing/index.html
Tips on drafting conclusions can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/the-writing-proccess/writing-conclusions.pdf
More tips on drafting conclusions can be found at the Harvard College Writing Center: https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/ending-essay-conclusions
A video and a guide to eliminate wordiness can be found at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill:
Steps to revise a draft:
- Examine the clarity and relevance of supporting details and evidence within the paragraphs
- Emphasize and explain how direct or indirect quotes support the main ideas of the body paragraphs
- Re-state topic sentences in alignment with supporting details and evidence within the paragraphs
- Re-state the thesis in alignment with topic sentences
- Add, delete, or clarify ideas and sentences in the introduction and conclusion
- Substitute weak words with more precise words.
- A guide on word-choice can be found on the Online Writing Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/word-choice/
- A practice exercise to eliminate wordiness can be found at Purdue OWL: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl_exercises/sentence_style/eliminating_wordiness_test/eliminating_wordiness_exercise_1.html
An overview of revision strategies can be found at the University of North Carolina at ChapelHill: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/revising-drafts/
Another overview of revision strategies can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/the-writing-proccess/proofread-and-revise.pdf
An overview of proofreading and editing strategies can be found at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/editing-and-proofreading/
Another overview of proofreading and editing strategies can be found at Troy University’s Online Writing Center: https://www.troy.edu/_assets/center-student-success/_documents/learning-center/the-writing-proccess/proofread-and-edit.pdf
MLA, APA, and Chicago Formatting and Style Guides can be found at owl.purdue.edu Click on “Purdue OWL” and “Search the OWL” for “MLA, “APA,” or “Chicago Style.”