Quick Access Compact

1 Understanding College and Other Writing Situationsa. What is a writing situation?b. What does “purpose” mean for writing?c. What does “audience” mean for writing?d. What resources can help me with writing?2 Essential Processes for Academic Writinga. What processes do academic writers use?b. How do I begin a college writing project?c. How can I come up with ideas and information?d. What is a thesis statement?e. How do I plan and organize my ideas?f. What is outlining?g. What can help me write a first draft?h. How can I overcome writer’s block?i. How do I revise?j. How do I edit?k. How do I proofread?l. A student essay in three drafts3 Writing Paragraphs, Shaping Essaysa. How do I shape essays?b. How do paragraphs work?c. How do I write effective introductory paragraphs?d. What are body paragraphs?e. What are topic sentences?f. How do I develop my body paragraphs?g. How do I create unity and coherence in paragraphs?h. How can I arrange a paragraph?i. How can rhetorical patterns help me write paragraphs?j. What is a transitional paragraph?k. What are effective concluding paragraphs?4 Thinking Critically a. What is critical thinking?b. What are the elements of critical thinking?c. How do I read to comprehend?d. How do I analyze a reading?e. How do I draw inferences?f. How do I synthesize?g. How do I evaluate?h. How do I assess reasoning processes critically?i. How do I recognize and avoid writing logical fallacies?j. How can I view images critically?5 Writing Argumentsa. What is a written argument?b. How do I choose a topic for an argument?c. How do I develop a claim and a thesis statement for my argument?d. What is the structure of a classical argument?e. What types of appeals can provide support?f. What is the Toulmin model for argument?g. What part does audience play in my argument?h. What is a reasonable tone in an argument?i. How do I handle opposing arguments?j. How did one student draft and revise his argument essay?6 Writing with Othersa. What is writing with others?b. How can I collaborate with other writers?c. How can I give useful feedback to others?d. How can I benefit from others’ help?7 Strategies for Writing Typical Kinds of College Papersa. What are typical kinds of papers I’ll write in college?b. What sources will I use in college writing?c. How can I write about experiences?d. How can I write about observations?e. How can I write about quantitative data or information?f. How can I write about readings?8 Style and Tone in Writinga. What do style and tone in writing involve?b. How do style and tone operate in writing?c. How do I write with style?d. How do I write with appropriate tone?9 Sentence Variety and Style a. How do sentences affect style?b. What are variety and emphasis in writing?c. How do different sentence lengths create variety and emphasis?d. What are coordination and subordination?e. What is coordination of sentences?f. What is the structure of a coordinate sentence?g. What meaning does each coordinating conjunction convey?h. How do I use coordination effectively?i. What is subordination in sentences?j. What is the structure of a subordinate sentence?k. What meaning does each subordinating conjunction convey?l. How do I use subordination effectively?m. How do I effectively use subordination and coordination together?n. How do questions, commands, or exclamations create variety and emphasis?o. What are cumulative and periodic sentences?p. How do modifiers create variety and emphasis?q. How does repetition affect style?r. How else can I create variety and emphasis?10 Parallelism a. What is parallelism?b. How do words, phrases, and clauses work in parallel form?c. How does parallelism deliver impact?d. How can I avoid faulty parallelism?e. How does parallelism work in outlines and lists?11 Conciseness a. What is conciseness?b. What common expressions are not concise?c. What sentence structures usually work against conciseness?d. How else can I revise for conciseness?e. How do verbs affect conciseness?12 The Impact of Words a. What is American English?b. What is edited American English?c. What is figurative language?d. How can using exact diction enhance my writing?e. How can using specific words enhance my writing?f. What is gender-neutral language?g. What other types of language do I want to avoid?h. What are clichés?i. When is jargon unnecessary?j. What are euphemisms?k. What is bureaucratic language?13 Usage Glossary 14 Parts of Speech and Sentence Structuresa. What is a noun?b. What is a pronoun?c. What is a verb?d. What is a verbal?e. What is an adjective?f. What is an adverb?g. What is a preposition?h. What is a conjunction?i. What is an interjection?j. What are a subject and a predicate in a sentence?k. What are direct and indirect objects?l. What are complements, modifiers, and appositives?m. What is a phrase?n. What is a clause?o. What are the four sentence types?15 Verbsa. What do verbs do?b. What are the forms of main verbs?c. What is the -s, or -es, form of a verb?d. What is the difference between regular and irregular verbs?e. What are auxiliary verbs?f. What are intransitive and transitive verbs?g. What is verb tense?h. How do I use the simple present tense?i. How do I form and use the perfect tenses?j. How do I form and use progressive forms?k. How do I use tense sequences accurately?l. What is “mood” in verbs?m. What are subjunctive forms?n. What is “voice” in verbs?o. How do I write in the active, not passive, voice?p. What are proper uses of the passive voice?16 Pronouns: Case and Referencea. What does “case” mean?b. What are personal pronouns?c. How do pronouns work in case?d. Which case is correct when and connects pronouns?e. How do I match cases with appositives?f. How does case work after linking verbs?g. When should I use who, whoever, whom, and whomever?h. What pronoun case comes after than or as?i. How do pronouns work before infinitives?j. How do pronouns work with -ing words?k. What case should I use for -self pronouns?l. What is pronoun reference?m. What makes pronoun reference clear?n. How can I avoid unclear pronoun reference?o. How do pronouns work with it, that, this, and which?p. How do I use they and it precisely?q. How do I use it to suit the situation?r. When should I use you for direct address?s. When do I use that, which, and who?17 Agreementa. What is subject-verb agreement?b. Why is a final -s or -es in a subject or verb so important?c. Can I ignore words between a subject and its verb?d. How do verbs work when subjects are connected by and?e. How do verbs work with each and every?f. How do verbs work when subjects are connected by or?g. How do verbs work with inverted word order?h. How do verbs work with indefinite pronouns?i. How do verbs work with collective nouns?j. Why does the linking verb agree with the subject, not the subject complement?k. What verbs agree with who, which, and that?l. How do verbs work with amounts, fields of study, and other special nouns?m. How do verbs work with titles, company names, and words as themselves?n. What is pronoun-antecedent agreement?o. How do pronouns work when and connects antecedents?p. How do pronouns work when or connects antecedents?q. How do pronouns work when antecedents are indefinite pronouns?r. How do I use nonsexist pronouns?s. How do pronouns work when antecedents are collective nouns?18 Adjectives and Adverbsa. What are the differences between adjectives and adverbs?b. When should I use adverbs—not adjectives— as modifiers?c. What is wrong with double negatives?d. Do adjectives or adverbs come after linking verbs?e. What are comparative and superlative forms?f. Why avoid a long string of nouns as modifiers?19 Sentence Fragmentsa. What is a sentence fragment?b. How can I recognize a sentence fragment?c. What are major ways of correcting fragments?d. How can I fix a fragment that is part of a compound predicate?e. What are the two special fragment problems?f. How can I recognize intentional fragments?20 Comma Splices and Run-on Sentencesa. What are comma splices and run-on sentences?b. How can I recognize comma splices and run-on sentences?c. How can I correct comma splices and run-on sentences?d. How can I correctly use a conjunctive adverb or other transitional expression between independent clauses?21 Misplaced and Dangling Modifiersa. What is a misplaced modifier?b. How can I avoid split infinitives?c. How can I avoid other splits in my sentences?d. How can I avoid dangling modifiers?22 Shifting and Mixed Sentencesa. What is a shifting sentence?b. How can I avoid shifts in person and number?c. How can I avoid shifts in subject and voice?d. How can I avoid shifts in tense and mood?e. How can I avoid shifts between indirect and direct discourse?f. What is a mixed sentence?g. How can I correct a mixed sentence due to faulty predication?h. What are correct elliptical constructions?i. What are correct comparisons?23 Periods, Question Marks, and Exclamation Pointsa. When does a period end a sentence?b. How do I use periods with abbreviations?c. When do I use a question mark?d. When do I use a question mark in parentheses?e. When do I use an exclamation point?f. What is considered overuse of exclamation points?24 Commasa. What is the role of the comma?b. How do commas work with coordinating conjunctions?c. How do commas work with introductory clauses, phrases, and words?d. How do commas work with items in a series?e. How do commas work with coordinate adjectives?f. How do commas work with nonrestrictive elements?g. How do commas set off parentheticals, contrasts, words of address, and tag sentences?h. How do commas work with quoted words?i. How do commas work in dates, names, addresses, correspondence, and numbers?j. How do commas clarify meaning?k. How can I avoid misusing commas?l. How can I avoid comma errors?25 Semicolonsa. What are the uses of a semicolon?b. When can I use a semicolon, instead of a period, between independent clauses?c. When else can I use a semicolon between independent clauses?d. How do semicolons work with coordinating conjunctions?e. When should I use semicolons between items in a series?f. How do I avoid misusing the semicolon?26 Colonsa. What are the uses of a colon?b. When can a colon introduce a list, an appositive, or a quotation?c. When can I use a colon between two independent clauses?d. What standard formats require a colon?e. When is a colon wrong?27 Apostrophesa. What is the role of the apostrophe?b. How do I use an apostrophe to show a possessive noun?c. How do I use an apostrophe with possessive pronouns?d. How do I use an apostrophe with contractions?e. How do I use an apostrophe with possessive indefinite pronouns?f. How do I form the plural of miscellaneous elements?g. When is an apostrophe wrong?28 Quotation Marksa. What is the role of quotation marks?b. How do I use quotation marks with short direct quotations?c. Are quotation marks used with long quotations?d. How do I use quotation marks for quotations within quotations?e. How do I use quotation marks for quotations of poetry and dialogue?f. How do I use quotation marks with titles of short works?g. How do I use quotation marks for words used as words?h. How do I use quotation marks with other punctuation?i. When are quotation marks wrong?29 Other Punctuation Marksa. When can I use a dash in my writing?b. When can I use parentheses in my writing?c. When do I need to use brackets in my writing?d. How do I use ellipsis points in my writing?e. When can I use a slash in my writing?f. When do I need a hyphen in my writing?g. When do I use a hyphen at the end of a line?h. How do I use a hyphen with prefixes and suffixes?i. How do I use hyphens with compound words?30 Capitals, Italics, Abbreviations, and Numbersa. When do I capitalize a “first” word?b. When do I use capitals with listed items?c. When do I use capitals with sentences in parentheses?d. When do I use capitals with quotations?e. When do I capitalize nouns and adjectives?f. What are italics?g. How do I choose between using italics and quotation marks?h. Can I use italics for special emphasis?i. What are standard practices for using abbreviations?j. How do I use abbreviations with months, time, eras, and symbols?k. How do I use abbreviations for other elements?l. When can I use etc.?m. When do I use spelled-out numbers?n. What are standard practices for writing numbers?o. How do I use hyphens with spelled-out numbers?31 Spellinga. What makes a good speller?b. How can I proofread for errors in spelling and hyphen use?c. How are plurals spelled?d. How are suffixes spelled?e. What is the ie, ei rule?f. How are homonyms and other frequently confused words spelled?g. What are compound words?32 Writing Research papersa. What is the role of research in writing?b. What is the process of doing research?c. What is a research paper?d. What is a research log?e. How do I choose and narrow a research topic?f. What is a research question?g. What documentation style should I use?h. What is a working bibliography?i. How do I draft a thesis statement for a research paper?j. How do I outline a research paper?k. How do I draft and revise a research paper?33 Finding and Evaluating Published Sourcesa. What is a published source?b. What is a search strategy?c. How do I find books?d. How do I find periodicals?e. How do I use reference works?f. How do I find government publications?g. How do I evaluate sources?h. What should I know about searching the web?i. How do I evaluate web sources?34 Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarisma. How do I use sources well?b. What is plagiarism?c. How do I avoid plagiarism?d. How do I work with internet sources to avoid plagiarism?e. What don’t I have to document?f. What must I document?g. How do I effectively integrate sources into my writing?h. How do I use quotations effectively?i. How do I write good paraphrases?j. How do I write good summaries?k. Which verbs can help me weave source material into my sentences?35 MLA Documentation with Case Studya. What is MLA style?b. What is MLA in-text parenthetical documentation?c. What are MLA guidelines for parenthetical documentation?d. What are MLA guidelines for a works cited list?e. A student’s MLA -style research paper36 APA Documentation with Case Studya. What is APA documentation style?b. What are APA parenthetical in-text citations?c. What are APA guidelines for in-text citations?d. What are APA guidelines for writing an abstract?e. What are APA guidelines for content notes?f. What are APA guidelines for a references list?g. What are APA format guidelines for research papers?h. A student’s APA-style research paper37 Writing About Literaturea. What is literature?b. How do I write different types of papers about literature?c. Sample student essay about literature38 Writing in the Social Sciences a. What are the social sciences?b. What are different types of papers in the social sciences?39 Business and Professional Writing a. How do I format and write memos?b. How do I write business letters?c. How do I write a resume?d. How do I write a job application letter?40 Writing for the Publica. How can I understand public writing situations?b. How do I write for the public?41 Document and Visual Designa. What is visual design?b. What are basic principles of design?c. How do I design with text?d. How do I incorporate graphics?e. What is page layout?f. Open letter to multilingual students42 Singulars and Pluralsa. What are count and noncount nouns?b. How do I use determiners with singular and plural nouns?c. How do I use one of, nouns as adjectives, and states in names or titles?43 Articlesa. How do I use a, an, or the with singular count nouns?b. How do I use articles with plural nouns and with noncount nouns?c. How do I use the with proper nouns and with gerunds?44 Word Ordera. How do I understand standard and inverted word order in sentences?b. How do I understand the placement of adjectives?c. How do I understand the placement of adverbs?45 Prepositionsa. How do I recognize prepositions?b. How do I use prepositions with expressions of time and place?c. How do I use prepositions in phrasal verbs?d. How do I use prepositions with past participles?e. How do I use prepositions in expressions?46 Gerunds, Infinitives, and Participlesa. How do I use gerunds and infinitives as subjects?b. When do I use a gerund, not an infinitive, as an object?c. When do I use an infinitive, not a gerund, as an object?d. How does meaning change when certain verbs are followed by a gerund or an infinitive?e. Why is the meaning unchanged whether a gerund or an infinitive follows sense verbs?f. How do I choose between -ing and -ed forms for adjectives?47 Modal Auxiliary Verbsa. How do I convey ability, necessity, advisability, possibility, and probability with modals?b. How do I convey preferences, plans, and past habits with modals?c. How do I recognize modals in the passive voice?