The Sickest Email of All

Cold season is here! Flu season is very near! Oh, how I dread this time of year!

All right, I promise I won’t rhyme this entire entry, but a girl has to have a little fun. Many of you probably have already had the sniffles, congestion, sore throat, and headache that usually accompany a cold this year. I definitely have. It might keep you off your feet for a day or two, or maybe a few, depending on how severe. Though, very soon you’re back on your feet and ready to hit the books once again (just what you were thinking of doing once you got better, I bet)! You’re proud of yourself, too. You only skipped the classes that gave you free absences, instead of the ones that you’re required to go to every day.

Along you go, on your merry way in the fall! Then, BAM! Like a brick wall, you’re hit directly with the flu... before flu season! You were just about to get a flu shot next week too… Chills, fever, aches, nausea, and everything else rain down upon you in bed and you struggle to keep warm (or cool, depending on what mood the flu is in that hour). You think about your classes this week. In a panic, you realize that, although you have enough freebie absences left to use up for the week, your mandatory classes are coming up. You decide that you don’t feel that bad – you could probably make it through the class, at least. As the week progresses, and your un-missable class draws ever nearer, you begin to feel worse than before. Soon, you are too weak to even leave bed. You think about emailing your professor, but what good would that do? The syllabus says that you can’t miss class for anything.

So what do you do?

Do you email your professor? Do you try to make it to class? Do you just skip anyway?

Never fear! In fact, I was recently in this exact situation. Here’s some advice: don’t be afraid of your professors! They are people too, not bent on making your life miserable. In my crisis, the same as above happened. Too weak to do much of anything productive, and in a fever-induced stupor, I fretted for hours over what I would do about the classes that I couldn’t miss, or what I would be penalized with if I did miss them. I had been sick for over a week and getting worse, and the plan was to try to get a free few days from class to be able to rest, go to the doctor, and go home with my family to take care of me (who doesn’t love his or her mother bringing them hot tea, soup or maybe some sprite when sick?).

What did I do?

I simply emailed the professors of the classes that I was worried about.

Now, before you get too excited, there are some guidelines to the sick email:

Keep it professional:

As with any email to a professor, despite the fact that you’re sick, you need to still be cordial and professional. Just because you’re ill, doesn’t mean you can jumble up words and letters and not use greetings. Trust me, it won’t make you sound more ill, just like you don’t care. Spell out whole words, use correct punctuation and grammar, and employ good sentence structure, please.

Get the right subject:

I’m not talking about the fact that you’re sick – you know this. I’m talking about the subject area in your email. Most professors prefer their students to type the class title in the subject with another short subject after (ex. PSYC 241 – Class Wednesday). Some professors also like you to put the section number in the subject. Professors often teach more than one class; this just helps them prioritize emails and stay organized. It’s nice to help them out.

Greet your professor:

“Dear Professor Smith,” “Dear Dr. Smith,” “Greetings Professor/Dr. Smith,” and so on. I’m sure you’ve heard all the different ways of greeting someone in a letter – use them! Even a simple “Professor Smith,” or “Dr. Smith,” will do (I personally use this one). As long as you greet your professor cordially, your email will start off being well-received.

Explain, but don’t write a novel:

Chances are that your instructor will want to know what will be keeping you from class. It’s a good idea to tell him or her that you are sick, what is wrong, and why exactly it’s keeping you. However, no professor wants to open his or her email from a student and read an entire novella on the woes of the flu and how you are slowly dying in your bed. Don’t be melodramatic. Keep it simple. Usually, I will tell my professor what I have (if I haven’t been to the doctor, what I think I have), give a few major symptoms (usually the ones that will be keeping me from class), inform him or her that I will be missing class, and ask if I will be penalized/how I can make it up. No sob story needed. Most professors will be more than understanding. After all, most have children.

The end:

End on a good note. This you must do! Be sure to thank your professor for his or her time. Close properly (using “Thank you,” as a closing works too). It will be greatly appreciated. If your instructor responds, be sure to email them back, thanking them for responding to you, or responding quickly, if it’s the case, and acknowledging that you received the email.

Following these rules, you’re sure not to offend a professor, but rather get on his or her good side when asking for a day off or explaining an absence. Usually, instructors are more than happy to accommodate serious and polite students.

Happy fall!

5 Simple Ways to Improve Your Writing in 5 Minutes

Everyone wants an easy way to fix all of our writing woes, but it takes practice and hard work. Here are a few tricks of the trade that can improve everyone’s writing in just a few short minutes.

1) Use sentence opening variety

Why you should use it: Sentence opening variety is using better, unique words to start an opening sentence in order to draw your audience in. It’s better to say, “Throughout the film The Social Network, the foundation of social media is discussed” than “The Social Network discusses the start of social media.” You may not see much of a difference at first, but you will with time, and so will your English teachers! Here’s a list to start with:

Therefore As a result of On the other hand

Throughout Another In order to

Since Whether Upon

Through While However

According to In addition Consequently
Furthermore Moreover Nevertheless
Similarly On the contrary Whereas

Where you should use it: The good news is you don’t have to use sentence opening variety in every sentence. It’s perfectly fine to start a sentence with ‘the’ or ‘a’ when it’s buried in the paragraph or as a sentence starter a couple of times (but not too many). Start by trying to write your topic sentences with one of the words above and see how it feels. You may need to move some words around, but I bet your sentence will sound better.

2) Spell Out Numbers

Why you should do it: It is much easier to hit the 8 button than type out eight, I know. However, some professors, especially those in English, get picky about typing out numbers. In general, it makes you look more professional so for most college papers you’ll want to spell them out. If you’re writing an informal paper it’s okay to stick with the number keys, but be careful!

Where you should do it: Everyone has a different preference of which numbers should be spelled out. Spelling out 0-10 is most common, but it’s best to check with your teacher. You definitely DO NOT have to write out 26,439!

3) Don’t Use Conjunctions

Why you shouldn’t use them: You’re probably saying, but you just used a conjunction! I did, BUT this is an informal piece of writing so it’s okay. Basically if you’re writing a paper in college you’re probably going to want to spell contractions out.

It sounds more professional to say, “I cannot believe her argument is not in support of the government.” versus “I can’t believe her argument isn’t in support of the government.” It may not seem like a big difference, but it will be to your English teacher and it’s an easy fix!

Where you should/shouldn’t use it: You have to know if your paper is formal or informal. Usually if you’re talking about yourself or your life, it’s informal and you can use contractions. However, if you’re writing about another subject and can’t use ‘I’ or ‘we’ then it’s probably formal and contractions are a no-no.

4) Eliminate that

Why you shouldn’t use it: Often ‘that’ is just a filler word. There are times when you have to use it like, “that ride was really fun,” but there are also A LOT of times when it isn’t needed. For example “when I blew out the candles I wished that I would get good presents” still makes sense if you just say “when I blew out the candles I wished I would get good presents.” You still understood what I meant and I didn’t say ‘that’! Woah, it’s mind blowing, I know!

Where you should use it: EVERYWHERE! This may not be something teachers focus on, but you never know. Cutting out ‘that’ can make your writing more concise. If that’s (this one’s okay!) something your teacher says you’re lacking then I suggest looking at an old paper and circling all of the ‘that’s, it could be the problem.

5) Don’t start with because

Why you shouldn’t use it: We’ve all heard since Kindergarten not to start a sentence with ‘because’, but sometimes it may seem unavoidable. The next time you start a sentence with ‘because’, see if replacing it with ‘since’ or ‘as a result of’ would work.

Where you shouldn’t use it: I can’t think of a place where ‘since’ or ‘as a result of’ couldn’t take the place of ‘because’. For example, saying, “Because I went to the bar last night, there’s no way I can go to class” sounds better if you say, “Since I went to the bar last night, there’s no way I can go to class.” Same with “Because of my exam grade, I got a B in Biology,” which can become: “As a result of my exam grade, I got a B in Biology.”

Give these 5 quick types a try and see how it goes. Your teacher may not notice a few of them, but they will make you a better writer and help you in the future, I promise!

Get Your License!

As a Creative Writing major, I tend to have to go through my papers for other classes to make sure I did not throw in an ungrammatical sentence. Like this.

Just thinking about the topic of Creative License, or Artistic License, gives me the warm fuzzies inside. I love the freedom I have in a Creative Writing class to write however I choose, however my brain sees fit at the time. How comforting it is to know I don't have to use correct grammar (though most of the time I do) and structure! What I place on the paper is right, no matter what. With Creative License, we have the power to do anything with our stories, poems, essays, etc.

...
Take
this, for
example. I
canwrite a poem
shaped like a Christ
mas tree about the love
of others during the season.
And I can putspaces and periods
andcommas
wherever
I choose.

That's a poetry example. For prose, we could do the same thing, but it is not very common. Usually in prose, the creativity comes from the structure and the language. Once I wrote a nonfiction essay consisting of five short paragraphs separated by white spaces. They all narrate completely different scenes, but they share a common topic.

And for the creative writer, it makes perfect sense.

If it weren't for the solid training I had in formal writing in middle school, I would not have proceeded to write creatively in high school. Similarly, if it weren't for the solid training I had in creative writing in high school, I probably would not have grown as a stronger formal writer in the rest of high school and college. The two types of writing complement each other. What good is a formal piece if there is no creative voice, nothing that stands out from the rest?

And, well, what good is a creative piece if there is no skill in writing in general?

So, will you get your license?

As Summer Draws to a Close...

A commonly used cliché states that you should go out with a bang. Working at the WVU Writing Center, a common problem I see is in a neglected conclusion. Most professors stress the necessity of a strong introduction, and while this is essential to any good paper, so is a good concluding paragraph. In my experience, I have come across many wonderful introductions, yet it was obvious that the writer focused most of their energy on the beginning, causing the end of their paper to be lacking. Therefore, as the new semester begins, I hope that you will begin to consider the necessity of ending your paper with a bang.

Concluding paragraphs, along with the introduction, provide the back-bone for a good essay. This said, a conclusion can be one of the most difficult things to write in a paper. The point of a conclusion is to help a reader relate the ideas in your paper to their everyday lives by establishing a logical ending to your writing. Abrupt or inadequate endings can suddenly cut readers off in the middle of an idea, and long, wordy, conclusions may leave a reader hanging or confused on specific issues. Therefore, writing a good conclusion is essential. For an ending that reinforces the main points and flows smoothly, a couple strategies can be used:

• Ask yourself "so what" about the information and ideas presented in your paper to help yourself discover what you want to say in your conclusion.
• Start the concluding paragraph by finding new words in which to restate your original thesis.
• Synthesize, don't summarize. Blend your main ideas in a brief summary.
• Have a clincher to end your paper. For example, challenge the reader to seek more information, point to the broader implications, or look to the future.

Additionally, there are a few things that you should strive to avoid doing when writing a conclusion. For instance, you should try not to introduce new ideas, use clichéd phrases such as "In conclusion," and reword the introduction instead of restating the thesis. A conclusion is meant to wrap up your paper. It should not be just another body paragraph with a concluding sentence tacked on the end, nor should it be only a sentence or two. Good conclusions will hopefully leave your readers happy that they read your essay.

On the whole, while concluding paragraphs can sometimes be difficult to write, with the proper help and knowledge, not all endings have to be painful. Whether a conclusion lacks substance because the writer just wants to finish their paper quickly or because a person is ignorant of what a proper conclusion should contain, I hope with the information I have just provided, you will now know enough to not be able to claim the latter as an excuse. Alas, as the conclusion allows you to have the final say in your paper, I will conclude this blog entry by wishing you good luck and happy writing for the fall semester!

7 Ways to Be Successful Early in the Semester

Now is the time of year when classes have just started, and students are beginning to force themselves back into the academic routine. While everyone probably feels like they can slack off at the start of the semester and make up for it later in the year, starting off on your best foot can really help you once it comes time for mid-terms and finals. In order to help out with the end of the summer drag, the WVU Writing Center is offering seven easy tips to help students be successful early this academic year.

1. Come to Class: I know that no one wants to be awake and thoughtful for an 8:30 AM class, but simply showing up on time, listening to lectures, and taking a few notes will seriously aid you in the long run. By doing this, students know what the teacher covers from a particular chapter in the book or section of the class and can be better prepared when it comes time to study. Not to mention the fact that nobody should lose any easy points for attendance.

2. Write down Due Dates for Assignments Early: Once I receive all the syllabi for my classes, the first thing I do is record every due date for a paper and every test date. This way, you can see which week or day will be particularly difficult from having multiple assignments and exams overlapping. Later, on, you will thank yourself for the early warning.

3. Put Your Best Effort into Classes Early: Even though everyone is tempted to put off readings, papers, and studying at the beginning of the semester, it’s always best to keep on top of your class work at the start so that you won’t get overloaded with work once it comes time for the first exam and mid-terms. Also, you will perform better overall if you stay ahead of the work early before finding out exactly how difficult a class will be.

4. Make Lists: Sometimes the pure act of listing what needs to be done will help you remember to do school or house work and give you the motivation to complete it. I know that it’s tempting to simply watch TV or surf the Internet whenever you get a break, but keeping a to-do list will remind you to budget that time wisely. Then once you feel good about crossing off your work as done, you’ll enjoy checking up on Facebook or watching TV that much more.

5. Get on a Good Sleep Schedule: Figuring out the time that you should be in bed by may seem very juvenile, but getting a good night of sleep is imperative to being rested and ready for class the next day. Not to mention the fact that you’ll be more motivated to do school work when you aren’t drowsing off into a mid-day nap. While becoming adjusted to a different bedtime routine is difficult at first, once you get into the groove of being in bed by midnight or so, you’ll find it hard to break your new healthy pattern of sleeping, that is until the weekend rolls around.

6. Don’t be Afraid of Your Professors: Making a good impression on your teachers early on in the year will definitely help you at the end of year when grades are given. I’m not saying that you will automatically get the best grade in the class without putting in any effort, but I am saying that your professor will look upon you more favorably. First, you should try to sit at the front of the class and not be afraid to participate if the opportunity presents itself. Second, you should try to visit professors during their office hours to get extra help. Not many students take advantage of the opportunity to get to know their teachers during this time and get extra feedback on papers and studying.

7. If you get behind, don’t get stressed out! This advice doesn’t mean that you should give up or not try; it means that getting overly stressed will only hurt your performance and health in the long run.

The WVU Writing Center wishes students good luck and a great job this new semester. Following these tips is an easy way to get a head start on the academic year. Though some may sound like common sense, it’s always helpful to have a reminder of what we should be doing, especially when it seems like the hard choice.

A Blog about Writing Blogs

Lately, many students have been coming into the WVU Writing Center interested in receiving help in developing their blogs, whether for a class or personally. As tutors, we have been working with these students, coming up with ideas for posts or figuring out the blog's format. But what really makes a good blog? Here are some tips to help your blog achieve web stardom:

Attracting Readers: The most important part of a blog is what you have to say. The content of your blog will attract a certain audience who will return and read your posts if they are interested and enjoy the material. Make sure you avoid using jargon or terms that your audience will not be able to understand. You do not have to flaunt your smarts on your blog, but include intelligible content that your readers will relate to and learn from as well. Keeping your blog posts simple will keep your readers engaged!

Using Keywords: When you are writing your blog, make sure you use keywords! These will link to search engines and people will be able to discover your work from Google to Bing. This will also be useful if you have ads on your blog and are trying to make some money off of readers' clicks. Be careful about your use of keywords though! Do not fill your posts with keywords, rather place them in here or there when relevant.

Creating an Eye-catching Format: If your blog is filled with long blocks of text with little breaks, your readers may become bored and lose interest. Using headings, bullet points, and short paragraphs will make your blog easier to follow and enticing. Also, using a layout that is colorful or has images that relate to your blog's content is important in making your blog stand out from the millions of others online.

Incorporating Pictures: Placing pictures into your blog is also very important. For example, if your blog is about baking and you are writing out the steps of a recipe, using a picture to demonstrate the directions can be very helpful for readers. Pictures help put what you are writing into context, but make sure that they are your own or that you have permission to use them!

Looking at Feedback: When your readers post comments on your entries, take time to read their ideas. Sometimes your readers may have suggestions that could possibly improve your blog. Paying attention to your audience's wants and needs is very important!

By investing time into mastering your blog's writing style and content, your blog's readership will increase every day. Blogging can be a lot of fun and rewarding as well! If you use these helpful hints, maybe one day your blog will be almost as awesome as ours! :)

Argument…Debunked

As your professor hands back your argumentative research paper, you notice “Excellent Thesis” scribbled next to the last line of your introductory paragraph. You quickly turn the pages in anticipation of that A++ you were hoping for…when you are taken aback with the grade that lay before you. Comments such as, “remember the rhetorical triangle?” and “will your audience find this believable?” litter your final page.

Writing an argumentative research paper for the first time can be a daunting task. Although the thesis and supporting evidence (body paragraphs) entail the main framework of an argumentative paper, there are other aspects that cannot go ignored. By focusing entirely on the thesis, many students ignore certain elements of rhetoric that are absolutely essential to effective argumentation. Referring back to the mini story at the beginning of the post, how do you improve a paper that already contains a strong thesis PLUS ample supporting evidence? This is where the elements of the Rhetorical Triangle come into play. So, what do words like ethos, pathos, logos, and kairos mean anyway?

Interestingly enough, each and every one of us utilize these terms on a day-to day-basis. Do not allow the seemingly bizarre nature of the words themselves to overshadow their underlying simplicity. Let’s take pathos as an example. As you approach the MPA employee ticketing your car in the Mountainlair, what is the first thing that you do? You tell a sob story about your life to get out of it, that’s what! Not only are you making a claim, but you are strengthening that claim with a pathetic appeal (sob story). Remember, persuasion is an essential element of everyday life. The following presents a more detailed analysis of each of the elements of the Rhetorical Triangle:

Ethos: The author’s (of a particular source) credibility is just as important as his or her argument. Imagine that your thesis effectively argues for the implementation of a simplified tax code. Utilizing a publication (as supporting evidence) from the top researcher of the American Tax Association would provide more convincing support to your thesis than simply paraphrasing an anonymous author from Wikipedia.

Logos: The main framework of your paper consists of your claim (thesis) and the supporting evidence (main body paragraphs). How will you utilize evidence to support your thesis? Will you employ extrinsic evidence that is mainly pulled from outside sources (Data/Other author’s arguments)? What about intrinsic evidence? Can you form your own reasoning as to why your argument should be deemed superior?

Pathos: Empathy is an important concept to consider when writing to your audience. In other words, how can you tailor your writing style to appeal to the emotions of your audience? Let’s refer back to the example of an argumentative research paper that argues for a simplified tax code. Imagine that you include a paragraph on family hardship and discuss the fact that the complexity of the tax code forces families to pay burdensome fees for the services of a professional tax preparer. Rather than simply stating that these taxes “create hardships” for families, utilize charged language in order to keep your reader more engaged and more empathetic to the lives of these families (“extremely burdensome” instead of “creates hardships”).

And last, but certainly not least, is kairos. Rather than jumping right into the core of your argument, take a step back and analyze the entire issue with which you are arguing. How will you position yourself (and your argument) within this issue? Is the issue current? If so, can you use a sense of urgency to your advantage? For example, imagine sending a letter to Congress to prevent controversial legislation from passing. An opportune time to present this letter may be the day before the legislation is to be voted upon. At this point in time, the stress level within Congress has probably reached its maximum…raising the possibility that politicians are more easily swayed when they are weak-willed (aka highly stressed). You may still be asking, is kairos even that important to consider? Imagine presenting this same letter the day after the legislation is passed. That would assuredly be an inopportune time to present an argument when the issue has already been decided upon. Thus, it is vitally important to analyze the entirety of the issue before picking a side and defending it.

Tutoring Across the Disciplines

Nearly every time that I tell someone on campus about my job as a tutor at the Writing Center, their immediate response is, "so you're an English major." The truth is that I'm not, and neither are at least half of the tutors working at the WVU Writing Center. The value in having student tutors from diverse academic backgrounds is that the Writing Center can then better cater to a wide range of students across the disciplines. If any student has been wary of coming in with a paper outside of an English class, tutors are still there to help and alleviate any reservations.

Since the writing style in each major is different, any student coming in to work with a tutor outside of their discipline cannot expect the same level of expertise on the content that is possessed by professors in their classes. However, this doesn't mean that the Writing Center is powerless to help students. Luckily, language and ideas can traverse the academic divisions. The organization of paragraphs into single ideas remains the same; awkward wording and other grammatical mistakes also remain the same. The student coming in for help must realize this limitation and cooperate to overcome the divide.

Furthermore, the Writing Center tutors are aware of the differences in academic writing, and the differences can translate into a benefit. In a paper, the writer must convey their ideas to the reader, and the tutor who may not be knowledgeable on a topic is then left to the student's explanations. The discussion between student and tutor in a session is useful to ensure that the student's ideas translate into the text. Then, if an issue comes up that is outside of the tutor's understanding, the student can be steered in the right direction for the help they need.

As long as both tutors and students are aware of these limitations on the writing style, then any problem becomes minimal. When coming in for an appointment, the academic background of an assignment can be addressed so that the best help can be offered. Tutoring outside of the major can then be beneficial to both. Students should never feel isolated from the Writing Center because of their academic area or class level.

10 Tips on How to Write Badly

Just kidding, all. It's April Fools Day! I was browsing the Chronicle of Higher Education’s website today and found an older article (dated from last fall) that I thought would be handy to pass along. “10 Tips on How to Write Less Badly: Do Your Job Better” is written by Duke University’s Michael C. Munger, who outlines 10 key points for more successful writing. The title is a bit curt, but the information is valuable for anyone looking for ways to improve both the writing process and product.

Below are the first five tips, and you can find the original article—with all 10 tips—here.

1. Writing is an exercise. The fact that this tip is listed first is an indication of its extreme importance. If we want to write better, we have to write, write, write. The old cliché “practice makes perfect” didn’t become a cliché for nothing. If we want to become good at anything, particularly something as complicated as writing, we have to practice. It is also helpful to practice reading—books, magazines, the newspaper—to absorb different types of writing that can also influence how we write.

2. Set goals based on output, not input. This piece of advice speaks to one of our earlier blog posts. We should set writing goals based on how much writing will be done, not based on how much time we will spend writing. If you set a one-hour goal versus a one-page goal, the one-page goal will ultimately be easier to reach; technically, you can accomplish nothing more than Facebook-stalking in an hour. Once you finish that one page, though, you can take a productive break and feel good about having written something.

3. Find a voice; don’t just “get published.” This tip is intended for writers who are trying to publish, but it is also applicable for students who are interested in getting a good grade. It is always important to express our ideas in ways that are genuine and true to our own voices; we can write in “Engfish” all day long, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we’re making any good academic points. Writing that is clear and natural is much more likely to make an impact on readers—if nothing else, they will understand what you’re saying!

4. Give yourself time. This piece of advice is something that we have also covered in detail on this blog. We never write our best work at the very last minute or on the first go. We have to have time to think about ideas, to work through multiple drafts, and to take the time to say exactly what we want to say.

5. Everyone’s unwritten work is brilliant. There are always people who want to talk about how their recent project is going to be brilliant. The problem? They haven’t written it yet. However, they’re still super confident that it will be the most awesome writing the world will encounter. This particular tip is interesting because Munger stresses the importance of not stressing. He warns that the people who flaunt their writing as “brilliant” probably aren’t working hard enough. It is important to recognize that writing is an often-frustrating, time-consuming process; however, working through those frustrations and producing a quality product is very rewarding—maybe even brilliant.

Spring 2011 NewsPrezi Available

The WVU Writing Center Spring 2011 NewsPrezi is available online. Check it out at: http://prezi.com/qsjijfh-k7aj/spring-2011-newsprezi/