This guide is designed to be a resource on writing for faculty and students. It includes resources on different aspects of the writing process from choosing a topic to structuring an argument to citing sources. There are resources on grammar and style and a video library.
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How Do You Get Started Writing a Paper |
Video LibraryThe video library covers a wide range of writing topics. OER (Open Education Resources) on WritingFreely available textbooks on writing Writing Help at BC3For writing assistance, see BC3 Tutoring or email tutoring@bc3.edu
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Any piece of writing is shaped by external factors before the first word is ever set down on the page. These factors are referred to as the rhetorical situation, or rhetorical context, and are often presented in the form of a pyramid. The three key factors–purpose, author, and audience–all work together to influence what the text itself says, and how it says it.
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Any time you are preparing to write, you should first ask yourself, “Why am I writing?” All writing, no matter the type, has a purpose. Purpose will sometimes be given to you (by a teacher, for example), while other times, you will decide for yourself. As the author, it’s up to you to make sure that purpose is clear not only for yourself, but also–especially–for your audience. If your purpose is not clear, your audience is not likely to receive your intended message (read more).
In order for your writing to be maximally effective, you have to think about the audience you’re writing for and adapt your writing approach to their needs, expectations, backgrounds, and interests. Being aware of your audience helps you make better decisions about what to say and how to say it. For example, you have a better idea if you will need to define or explain any terms, and you can make a more conscious effort not to say or do anything that would offend your audience (read more).
The final unique aspect of anything written down is who it is, exactly, that does the writing. In some sense, this is the part you have the most control over–it’s you who’s writing, after all! You can harness the aspects of yourself that will make the text most effective to its audience, for its purpose (read more).
Voice is conveyed through the author's choice of diction or level of formality. It should directly connect to the text's audience and purpose.
Reading (and thinking) acritically does not mean being critical about something and claiming it is flawed. Critical reading involves interacting with what you read. It means engaging with what you read by asking yourself questions such as, "What is the main point of this text?" "What is the author saying?" It involves questioning, evaluating and analyzing. To read critically is to exercise your judgement about what you are reading, that is, not taking anything you read at face value.
Annotating is any action that deliberately interacts with a text to enhance the reader's understanding of, recall of, and reaction to the text. Sometimes called "close reading," annotating usually involves highlighting or underlining key pieces of text and making notes in the margins of the text.
By annotating a text, you will ensure that you understand what is happening in a text after you've read it. annotating will help you summarize a text, highlight important pieces of information, and ultimately prepare yourself for discussion and writing prompts that your instructor may give you. (read more)
Reading an Assigned Research Article
Critical Reading for Evaluation
Critical Reading for Analysis and Comparison
How to Write a STRONG Thesis Statement, Scribbr
Purdue OWL: Thesis Statements
Thesis Claims OWL Purdue
Video: Rhetoric: Essentials of Argument
Handout on database searching techniques.
Boolean Searching: Pirates vs Ninjas
Generating Search Terms
The CRAAP test is a method for evaluating sources that was designed by the Meriam Library, California State University, Chico. CRAAP is an acronym and stands for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy and Purpose. It provides you with a list of questions to help you evaluate the information that you find. You will be more confident in selecting sources to meet the expectations of your assignment. Not all criteria apply equally at the same time to all resources.
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Video: Paragraph Organization and Flow
Video: Drafting and Revising
Feedback and Peer Review
Peer Review Commenting Strategies
Drafting and Revising
Global Editing and Revising
Cutting While Revising
How to Proofread Your Final Draft
Articles
Articles are words that come before a noun and indicate whether the noun is specific/non-specific, as well as singular/plural. This document provides information about using articles in your writing along with specific examples.
Verb tenses
A verb's tense indicates the point in time when the action takes place. This chart provides examples of English verb tenses and describes the situations in which they are most appropriately used.
Singular or plural?
Nouns can be either singular or plural. A verb must always agree with the subject noun (i.e. a plural form of a noun requires the plural form of the verb).This document contains more information on how to distinguish between singular and plural.
Modal verbs
Modal verbs, including words such as “can”, “could”, “will”, and “would", express likelihood, ability, permission, and obligation. This handout features a guide to using modal verbs in your writing, as well as many examples.
The Gerund-Participle Gerunds and participles are words derived from verbs which express action but do not function as verbs in a sentence. A gerund is a verb that functions as a noun in the context of a sentence. A participle is a verb which functions as an adjective or adverb. This handout gives an overview of how to use these kinds of words in your writing, as well as examples of common errors.
Prepositions A preposition is a word that modifies nouns, pronouns, adjectives, or verbs to provide information about time, space, or direction. This document provides more information and specific examples.
