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7 Great Tips for Writing School Papers

• Tips on writing winning admission essays
• Types of academic papers you could write 
• Understand instructions before writing paper
• How to properly punctuate 'et. al' 
• Examples of how to use e.g. vs. i.e. 
• How to use page numbers in APA style citations
• How to use block quotations in APA style
• BONUS: To use or not to use the Oxford comma… 

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

How to create a bulleted list in your book

One of the best ways to convey connected bits of information is through a bulleted list.

Such a list sets each item on a single line after a bullet point. For example...

The five most visited U.S. national parks are:
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park – 11.3 million annual visitors
• Grand Canyon National Park – 5.9 million
• Yosemite National Park – 5 million
• Rocky Mountain National Park – 4.5 million
• Zion National Park – 4.29 million

A bulleted list makes information easier for readers to digest and to refer back to later.

Only create a bulleted list when you’ve got at least two items to include. Even that is iffy, though, for readers probably could just as easily understand your text in a couple of sentences as they could by reading a list. Three to six points – which are more difficult to pick out of a paragraph – are ideal for a bulleted list.

Once your bulleted list gets to seven or more points, however, then it’s time to rethink it. You probably can consolidate points. Or perhaps you may need to split the list into two’s or three’s.

Begin the bulleted list by writing a lead-in line. This is a phrase, clause or sentence that introduces a vertical, bulleted list. It typically appears after the headline and immediately before the first bullet point. In the above example, The five most visited U.S. national parks are: is the lead-in line.

Next comes the bullet point. To create one, in MS Word hit NUM LOCK then after that hit at the same time ALT and the 7 in the keypad.

The bullet point is the beginning of the bulleted line; in the above example, • Yosemite National Park – 5 million is a bulleted line. There are several widely-accepted rules for creating a bulleted line:
• The list of bullet points either can be aligned left or indented.
• Place a blank space between your bullet and the first letter of the text that follows.
• Don’t start bullet point text with articles (a, an, the).
• Only capitalize the first word of the bulleted text, unless the word is a proper noun.
• Use the hanging-indent style; that is, if the text from the first line of bulleted text spills onto a second line, indent the second line and all subsequent text of the bulleted item so it begins beneath where the first line of text started. (Note: This blog does not follow that style to avoid transcoding problems when it is read on different devices.)
• Only use a period at the end of bulleted line if the text forms a complete sentence. Each bulleted line either should be written either as a complete or an incomplete sentence but not a mix of them.
• All text following a bullet point should line up vertically.
• Avoid starting different bullet items with the same word.
• When text after the bullet point is only a line or two long, use compact list format, meaning no space or empty lines between each bulleted item. When most text after the bullet points are three or more lines long, use loose list format, meaning a space or empty line appears between each bulleted item. This list is in compact list format to avoid transcoding issues.
• If the list consists of keywords/phrases followed by definitions/explanations, place the keywords/phrases in boldface and seperate it with a space/en dash/space then in regular font the definitions/explanations
• Sublists follow the the same rules with two exceptions:
○ Use a clear disc (known as an “empty circle”) for the bullet point; to make one, in the keypad hit NUM LOCK then at the same time hit ALT and the 9.
○ Start the new bullet point even with the first left of the text.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Types of lists you can create for your book

Among the best ways to convey information in your nonfiction book is through a list. Lists are easy for readers to scan, and later when needing to recall key takeaways, they can be found quickly.

Lists generally can be broken into two types – run-in or vertical – based on the way they appear in your text.

A run-in list is part of the paragraph rather than separated from it. This usually is a good technique if you have three items in your list. If the items consist of a single word, commas can separate them; if the items consist of phrases, a colon introduces the list while a semicolon is used between items. For example:

The five elements of a story are plot, setting, characters, point of view, and theme.

The five elements of a story are: what happens; when and where it takes place; who is involved with what happens; the perspective from which the events are narrated; and the message or moral.

One kind of run-in list is a numbered list, in which items are separated by numbering them. The numbers are placed in parenthesis. It follows the same aforementioned comma/semicolon rule:

Five types of conflict are: (1) man vs. nature; (2) man vs. man; (3) man vs. society; (4) man vs. God(s); and (5) man vs. himself.

A vertical list separates the points from the sentence and presents in a bulleted format. For example...

The five elements of a story are:
• Plot – What happens
• Setting – When and where it takes place
• Character – Who is involved with what happens
• Point of view – Perspective from which the events are narrated
• Theme – Message or moral of what happened

Once a list is given, you then can elaborate on each item via paragraphs if needed. In such cases, the list essentially introduces a section’s major concepts or supporting points for a statement.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

5 Must-Know Rules for Writing Academic Papers

• Understand instructions before writing paper
• Types of academic papers you could write
• How to properly punctuate 'et. al'
• Examples of how to use e.g. vs. i.e. 
• How to use page numbers in APA Style Citations

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Writing nonfiction: Direct quotations, paraphrases

When writing academic papers or nonfiction books, you’ll likely needed to include the thoughts and observation of experts to bolster your positions or explain your points. These experts’ statements can be presented either as direct quotations and as paraphrases.

A direct quotation provides the expert’s words exactly as they were written or spoken. Should the quotation be shorter than 40 words, they need to be placed in quotation marks:

Bignell (2013) asserts that writing talent likely isn’t genetic: “There’s no doubt, however, that some people spend their formative years garnering the experiences and mastering the skills that later will make them good storytellers.”

If the quotation is 40 words or more, then you would use a block quotation:

Bignell (2013) posits that hard work can play a greater role than genetics in becoming a great writer:

In any case, there are those with “less” talent who work at making themselves writers – and their writing shines brighter than many who are talented. Remember, George Orwell once was viewed as an average kid with no talent; today he is considered one of the greatest writers of the 20th century.

Depending on which style (MLA, APA, Turabian, Chicago Manual, etc.) you’re using to write the paper or nonfiction book, you’ll need to cite the quotation by including at least the name of the quoted expert, the year the book was published or speech given in which the quote appears, and probably the page number in the book. When researching, always write down the author, book title, year the book was published, the publishing company and the city it was published in, and the page number for every quotation and note taken; this will save you time later.

A paraphrase is restating the expert’s words in your own. Sometimes you can state the expert’s ideas in a short or more exciting way; sin such instances, a paraphrase is preferable to reading a long or a dull passage. You also want to cite the expert when paraphrasing, though often a page number isn’t required.

The previously used quotation could be paraphrased as:

Bignell (2013) believes that even if some people are genetically inclined to be great writers, hard work still can produce quality literature, as was the case with Orwell.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Tips on writing winning admission essays

An admission essay is among the most important few hundred words you’ll write. Get it wrong, and you’ll have to apply at another grad school, perhaps one you’re not very enthusiastic about attending.

Or worse, you don’t get into any grad school at all, setting you back from achieving your dreams for another year or perhaps even a lifetime once you settle into the routine of career, marriage and family.

The good news is writing a winning admission essay is easier than you think. You just have to know the four key traits of a successful admission essay:
• Structure is vital - Make an outline with your traditional topic sentence and three supporting points. Those looking over your essay want to see if you possess various traits and qualities, so you must be clear that you have them, not leave everyone guessing if you’re a match. By the way, organization and succinctness are a couple of the secondary traits they want in their students.
• Incorporate key words - Look over the school’s brochure. If it says “The University of Florida’s graduate students help reshape our social and economic culture,” use the key words “help reshape our social and economic culture” when describing how you’ve shown leadership. This shows that you’re not just using the shotgun approach in applying for grad school but have researched the university/school and are serious about going there.
• Be specific - Give very definite examples of your supporting points. On the leadership question, don’t just say you were president of the German Club but also list and explain innovative programs you initiated while president to improve the club for its members and the university.
• Use active voice verbs - Stay away from passive voice such as is, was, were, had, have, etc. Almost every other applicant will use passive voice verbs, so your energy and enthusiasm when you write in active voice will make you stand out.

If applying to multiple grad schools, you’ll likely notice that many ask very similar questions or have the same key words. While each admission essay should be written specifically for the university in question, you likely can reuse sections of answers for one school when applying to another; if you see the key word “leadership” in a lot of university brochures, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel, as the saying goes. This can save you some writing time.

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

How to use page numbers in APA Style Citations

When writing an academic paper, you’ll undoubtedly have to provide in-text citations, which credit the information’s source. This shows you are not plagiarizing and allows readers interested in the cited research to more easily locate it for their own follow-up reading.

If writing your paper in APA style, there are specific rules for listing citations. How to provide page numbers in those citations often proves confusing, probably because they are done differently than in MLA and Kate Turabian.

Following are the APA styles for page numbers.

One page number
If a direct quotation or a paraphrase appears on a single page, the use the abbreviation p. (for page) and list the page number. Always place this in parentheses.

“Writing is creation. Through writing, we can understand what being human means. We can understand our own self…We can bring laughter and tears and deep introspection to our readers. We can store and share knowledge so others may lead better lives” (Bignell, 2014, p. 34).

Bignell (2014) states that “Writing is creation” (p. 34).

A love of words is a key trait of all serious writers (Bignell, 2014, p. 6).

Bignell (2014) claims that a love of words is a key trait of all serious writers (p. 6).

Two or more page numbers
If a direct quotation or paraphrase starts on one page then continue to another, use the abbreviation pp. (for pages) and list both the first and the last page numbers that the reference appears.

“When an idea for your story comes to you, write it down. Don’t limit yourself to that day’s story idea; write down any ideas for any story that come to you” (Bignell, 2014, pp. 7-8).

Bignell (2014) advises, “When an idea for your story comes to you, write it down. Don’t limit yourself to that day’s story idea; write down any ideas for any story that come to you” (pp. 7-8).

Carry a notepad wherever you go, so you can write down story ideas when they pop into your head (Bignell, 2014, pp. 7-8).

Bignell (2014) recommends carrying a notepad wherever you go, so you can write down story ideas when they pop into your head (pp. 7-8).

No page number
In the rare case where no page numbers occur, use the paragraph number. If a paragraph number isn’t provided in the cited source’s margin, you’ll have to count the number of paragraphs starting at the last header. Use the abbreviation para. (for paragraph) and place it in parentheses.

Books “became my companions” (Bignell, 2014, para 1).

Bignell (2014, para. 1) wrote that books “became my companions.”

Professional Book Editor: Having your novel, short story or nonfiction manuscript proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

Types of academic papers you could write

Once you’ve received your writing assignment, you’ll need to determine what kind of paper you’re expected to write. Knowing this information will shape how you conduct your research and ultimately how you structure your paper. Not knowing this information will cost you time as you do unnecessary work or could lead you to writing a paper that doesn’t meet your instructor’s expectations, meaning a low grade.

Broadly speaking, there are three types of papers you could write:
• Report – In this type of paper, you describe what you learned from your readings and research. This is what was taught in elementary school: for example, the teacher might say “Write a report about cardinals” and you would read encyclopedias and some entries in scattered books about birds then collate all of that data into something sensible, making you a mini-expert on the songbird.
• Position – This perhaps is the most common type of paper for high school students and undergraduates to write: They take a position and support it with evidence. For example, they might take the position that the death penalty should be abolished and then offer three supporting points as to why it should be: it is an inhumane and barbaric form of punishment, it is an irreversible sentence that could be carried out against an innocent person, and it doesn’t deter the crime it punishes.
• Analysis – The more advanced the class, the greater the chance that students will be asked to analyze an issue. In a sense, the analysis paper begins as little more than a report, but at its end offers conclusions about this data. For example, an analysis paper might examine both sides of the gun control issue and present the data used to support those viewpoints. The challenge is to draw some conclusion about that data and hence the validity of those arguments. In that sense, an analysis often ends acting like a position paper.

Each of these types of papers can be written using a variety of structures (we’ll examine those in a future entry).

Knowing what the instructor expects will guide your research in the days ahead. If writing the position paper about the death penalty, you may not need to spend a lot of time researching the arguments for capital punishment but instead to go very in depth finding evidence and explaining the reasoning that supports your position. If you wrote an analysis paper about the same topic, you’d have to spend as much time researching one side of the argument as the other.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you live in a big city like San Jose, California, or a small town like Humptulips, Washington, I can provide that second eye.

Understand instructions before writing paper

Before you even begin writing your paper, you need to fully understand what the instructor expects. Knowing that will help you focus your thoughts about what you’ll write and will prevent you from later having to rewrite when the instructor reviews your paper before you turn it in.

Hopefully, the instructor has given more than verbal instructions about what to write. If that’s all he does, though, make sure you take notes. If the assignment is unclear, ask the instructor to clarify. Even if the instructions are given in written form on a marker board, in a syllabus, or via email, always ask for clarification if some element is unclear.

From the instructions, you should be able to answer the following questions:
• What is the paper’s topic or thrust? You need to know the scope of what you can write about. This will help you determine what you should research and your thesis (or the main point of your paper).
• What is the paper’s length? You don’t want to write too little or too much. Usually the paper’s maximum length is given by page or word count.
• When is the paper due? Knowing the deadline will help you set up a timetable for completing the paper. The instructions also may include some pre-deadline dates, such as when you must meet the instructor for a conference to discuss the paper.
• What kind of paper do you have to write? Not every paper is a straight report in which you describe what you learned from your readings and research. In some papers, you must take a position and support it with evidence; in others, you might analyze an issue.

Also, watch in the instructions for any information about:
• How should the paper be structured? All papers follow a basic structure of introduction, supporting points, and conclusion. There are many ways, however, to organize that middle section of supporting points, which is the meat of your paper. Your instructor may have a preference for how you organize that section, such as three supporting points or using comparison and contrast.
• What style should you write the paper in? You’ll likely need footnotes and a bibliography for your paper, especially as you advance in your coursework. Knowing if the instructor wants you to use APA, the Chicago Manual of Style, or another format is key as this determines how your footnoting, bibliography and more will be done.
• What sources can I use? Your instructor may limit from where you can gather information to quote or reference in the paper (usually encyclopedias are a no-no). He also may require that you use specific sources, such as books read for class or experiences that you had while working on a class project.

There are many other instructions or bits of information that might be given (such as how many points or percent of your grade the paper is worth), all based on the paper you’ve been asked to write and the course you’re taking. It may seem like extra work to read or ask about all of these instructions, but fully understanding them will make planning and writing your paper considerably easier and in the long run save you far more time.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Hartford, Connecticut, or a small town like Hebron, New Hampshire, I can provide that second eye.