Preparation: Grab a handful of different colored pens, pencils, and/or highlighters. Print out a draft of your paper. I don’t know why, but you can see your writing better—or at least differently—when it’s on paper. Put a squiggly line under your thesis statement and ask: Where does the statement come? Is it precise and arguable? Does it require evidence and analysis to defend it? Go through the draft and underline the topic… Read More

Academic writers are often addicted to “paper-ease”—or “pompousese,” as comic Stephan Pastis calls it—the temptation to use pompous or imprecise words such as “expounds,” “commentates,” “contests to,” “utilize,” “parallels,” and “elaborates on.” Never use a long word when a shorter one will do the same job just as well. Avoid unnecessary words and phrases that sap the energy and humanity from your writing: Don’t: In Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home, the author depicts… Read More