The Meaning of "Rule of Thumb"

How to Use Rules of Thumb

PART 1: THE BASICS: SPELLING, PUNCTUATION, AND GRAMMAR

A Word about Correctness

Commonly Confused Words

One Word or Two?

Spelling

Capitalization

Abbreviations and Numbers

Apostrophes

Consistent Pronouns

I vs. Me, She vs. Her, He vs. Him, Who vs. Whom

Vague Pronouns

Recognizing Complete Sentences

Run-on Sentences and Sentence Fragments

Feature: Using but, however, although

Commas

Semicolons

Colons

Dashes and Parentheses

Quotation Marks

Titles: Underlines, Italics, or Quotation Marks

Shifting Verb Tenses

Verb Agreement

Word Endings: -s and -ed

Parallel Structure

Dangling COnstructions

Mixed Sentence Patterns

PART 2: PUTTING A PAPER TOGETHER

What to Do When You're Stuck

Addressing Your Audience

Writing with a Thesis

Arguing for Your Position

Finding an Organization for Your Essay

Introductions

Paragraphs--Long and Short

Transitions

Incorporating Quotations

Conclusions

How to Make a Paper Longer (and When to Make It Shorter)

How to Work on a Second Draft

Shortcuts for "Word"

Proofreading Tips

Format of College Papers

Special Case: Writing an Essay in Class

Special Case: Writing about Literature

PART 3: THE RESEARCH PAPER

Seven Steps to a Research Paper

How to Conduct Research

Feature: Tips for Fact-Checking

Going Beyond Google and Wikipedia

Feature: When You Find Too Few or Too Many Sources

Writing the Research Paper

Feature: PowerPoint Presentations

Plagiarism (Cheating)

What Is Documentation?

Feature: Where to Find Specific Entries for Works Cited, References, and Bibliography

Documentation: The MLA Style

Documentation: The APA Style

Documentation: Endnotes and Bibliography

PART 4: STYLE

Finding Your Voice

Adding Details

Repetition: Bad, Not-So-Bad, and Good

Recognizing Cliches

Eliminating Offensive Language

Trimming Wordiness

Using Strong Verbs

Varying Your Sentences

Keeping a Journal

Postscript

A List of Valuable Sources

About the Authors

Index

Troubleshooting Guide, inside back cover

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