Writing Skills for

Doctoral Students

Kathy Neff

The Writing Process Prewriting Writing Rewriting

The Five C’s Common Errors APA

Documentation

TOPICS

WRITING WORKS

ONLY

WHEN IT WORKS

FOR THE

READER.

REMEMBER THIS:

THE WRITING SITUATION

Purpose Audience Due Date Content Format Length Documentation Style

WRITING IS FIRST AND FOREMOST A THINKING TASK

Knowledge Comprehension Application ANALYSIS SYNTHESIS EVALUATION

WRITING AND THINKING

What IS good writing?

SO…..

COMPLETE

CLEAR

CONCISE

CORRECT

COMPELLING

Characteristics of Effective Writing

HOW DO YOU START TO WRITE?

PREWRITING

WRITING

REWRITING

THE WRITING PROCESS

Generate ideas

Do research

Organize ideas

Plan content and structure

Purposes of Prewriting

Prewriting

Brainstorming

Free Writing

Mind Mapping

Branching

Reporter’s Questions

Cubing

Outlining

Writing

Just

DO it!

Do just IT!

REVISE

EDIT

PROOFREAD

Rewriting

“DATA”

“SIGNIFICANT”

“THEIR”

COMMON ERRORS

INDEFINITE PRONOUNS

COMMAS

DOCUMENTATION

Citations

No URLs Author (or title) and

Year Page/paragraph

numbers with quotations

Punctuation after citation/parentheses

Personal communication

Reference Page

Alphabetical order Hanging Indent Author name Capitalization in

titles Formatting in titles

Integrate sourceinformationsmoothly!

DOCUMENTATION SANDWICH

Lead in or signal phrase

In-text citation

Information from a source

AcknowledgesAgreesArguesAsserts BelievesClaims ConcludesConfirms

ContendsDemonstratesDescribes

EmphasizesExplains FindsIllustrates Indicates

Maintains NotesObserves Points

outProves QuestionsRecognizes

RecommendsRefutes RejectsRemarks ReportsSays ShowsStates

SpeculatesSuggests Supports

VERBS YOU CAN USE

Purdue Online Writing Lab http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

Diana Hacker Bedford Handbook http://bcs.bedfordstmartins.com/

bedhandbook7enew/Player/Pages/Main.aspx

Brian’s List http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/

errors.html

ONLINE RESOURCES

QUESTIONS?