Organizing Your Organizing Your WritingWriting

Organizing Your Organizing Your WritingWriting

By Pat SomersBy Pat Somers

Organizing frameworks• Advance organizers (Ausubel, 1960)• Concept mapping• Outline• Hypertext (nodes and links)• All are similar ways to help you organize

your thoughts before and during your writing

Much of the technical material in this presentation is taken from Hairston, et al., 2004, which I highly recommend.

Who is your audience?• Scholars• Practitioners• General public• Policy makers

Conceptualizing your writing

• What is the purpose of the paper or chapter?– Explore– Examine– Demonstrate– Make connections

Who cares?• Hopefully, you• Scholars• Practitioners• Policy makers• Teachers

• Administrators• Legislators• Voters• Students• Parents• Etc.

Why this topic?• Significance to scholars• Significance to various other

audiences

Style (from Hairston, et al., 2004) • Constructing paragraphs• Writing opening and closing

paragraphs• Managing transitions• Using language• Constructing effective

sentences• Writing stylish sentences

Constructing paragraphs

• We process info. in units• We write info. in units (i.e.

paragraphs)• Find a focus and stay on track!!• Single idea• Anchor idea with topic sentence

(usually 1st in para.)

Using internal transitions to unify paragraph

• Reduce choppiness• Use transition words to

show relationships among sentences and ideas

• Repeat key words and phrases

• Use parallel phrases (beg. with same word or grammatical structure)

Organizing paragraphs – common patterns• Illustration• Question and answer• Narration or process• Definition• Classification• Comparison and contrast• Cause and effect• Analogy

Polishing your paragraphs

• Revise for variety• Revise for

economy (simple is better)

Improving paragraph appearance

• Break up long paragraphs (the zzzz factor) at:– Shifts in time– Shifts in place– Shifts in direction– Shifts in emphasis or focus

• Use short paragraphs for effect• Adapt paragraph length

– Longer for complicated ideas and more skillful readers

Crafting opening and closing paragraphs • Opening – you need a hook

– Start with narrative– Start with description– Start with question– Start with key quote or

amazing fact– Start with research question

Closings• Summarize your main points (echo)• Make a recommendation• Link end to beginning (echo)• Place argument in broader context• Stop when you are finished

– Don’t keep going on and on and on and on and on…..

Managing transitions• Looking for problems with

transitions– Paragraphs made up of short, simple

sentences that are not connected– Sentences that begin with vague

references (It is, there are….)– Gaps between paragraphs

Strengthening transitions• Use common transition words

– Pointers (First, second, third – spelled out!!)– Relationships (However, therefore, yet)

• Repeat key term to establish central idea• Use demonstrative pronouns (This, that, these,

those, such….)• Use relative pronouns (Who, which, where, that)• Use parallelism to link• Use semicolon to link two related statements• Use headings (APA!!!)

Using language• Choose formal tone

– Distance between reader and writer– Serious topic– Serious tone– Long sentences– Specialized/abstract words– Few personal references– Few contractions

• Be alert to connotations (very good idea) Use dialect when appropriate

Avoiding sexist language

• Avoid using him/his• Use plural• Don’t use masculine as catchall

(man v. people)

Avoiding ethnic, racial, and religious stereotypes

• Use specifics for religious affiliations (Sunni Muslim v. Eastern sects)

• Be accurate (Asian v. oriental; Filipino American)

• Use terminology preferred by group• Use boys, girls, kids for under 18• Person with AIDS; Woman • who is autistic

Effective sentences• Understand sentence patterns (subject,

verb, direct object, adverb, adjective)• Understand verb tenses

– Be consistent– Be wary of future or conditional tense

• Understand compound subjects, verbs, and objects

Verbiage• To be effective,

understand the difference between affect and effect

Modifiers• Adjectives

modify nouns and pronouns

• Use adverbs to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs

Phrases• Proposing prepositional phrases

(but not within)• Appreciate your verbs (infinitive,

gerund, participle)• Appreciate appositives with a

comma

Conjunction junction – what’s my function?• Use coordinating conjunctions to join

independent clauses (and, or, nor, for, but, yet, so)

• Use correlative conjunctions to join independent clauses (if…then, either….or, just as….so, not only….but also)

• Use semicolons, colons, and dashes to link independent clauses

• Use conjunctive adverbs with semicolons to join independent clauses (consequently, however, moreover, nevertheless, similarly, therefore)

Subordinate conjunctions

• Use subordination to clarify relationships between clauses

• Use subordination to shift emphasis of sentences

• Use subordination to expand sentences

• Use subordinate clauses sensibly

Parallel construction• Similar language patterns

– Parallel words– Parallel phrases– Parallel clauses– Parallel verbs (!!!)

• Use to compare and contrast• Expressions that require• Use for emphasis

Balanced sentences

• Effective in openings and closings• “And so, my fellow Americans, ask not

what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country” (JFK inaugural address)

• “The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries” (Winston Churchill)

Writing a powerful argument

• Argument is claim supported

by evidence and reasons (not opinions)

Constructing an argument• Clarify your claim (what should

readers learn from your writing?)• Gather evidence for your claim• Evaluate your evidence• Identify the warrants (beliefs) and

backing (research) that underlie your argument

Being credible• Draw on shared beliefs and values• Present opposing arguments fairly

– Don’t make them weak– Don’t be hostile

• Consider refuting the argument (challenge claim, evidence, warrants)

Recognizing fallacies (flashy shortcuts)• Ad hominem

attack• Circular reasoning• Hasty

generalization• Either/or• Red herring

• Slippery slope• False analogy• Non sequitur• Bandwagon• False cause

Outlining• What’s your point?• Intro (preview paper)• Body (with headers)• Summary (echo intro.)• Revise• Link sections using

headings and connectors

Intro.

Purpose1. Review

lit

Significance

Econ

Social psychology

Anthro

Conceptual model

Summary (echo)

Mapping your paper

Grammar cop• Subject-verb agreement• Verb tense (same for each subject)• Voice and mood• Verbals (parallel)• Plurals and possessives• Active voice

References• Ausubel, D.P. (1960). The use of advance

organizers in the learning and retention of meaningful verbal material. Journal of Educational Psychology, 51, 267-272.

• Hairston, M., Ruszkiewicz, J., & Friend, C. (2004). The Scott Foresman Handbook for Writers. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall.

• Lunsford, A., & Ruszkiewicz, J.J. (2001). Everything’s an Argument. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s.