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Copyright: Please consult policies at outside sites linked from this page. For all materials housed on our server, non-commercial users may incorporate any pages needed into their classes, institutional resources, or publications provided that they either reproduce pages in their entirety or make a full citation if only a portion of a page is used. Please contact contact Writing Center Director Joe Essid, jessid@richmond.edu , with corrections, questions, or suggestions.

Explore topics by stages of the writing process

Or try our topic index & search engine.

Getting Started--

Where to Start a Paper
Working with Groups on Papers
by David Roberts (coming soon)
Writing for Professors: Get in the Driver's Seat
by David Roberts
Confronting Writing Anxiety
by Lauren Cone
Core-Course Expectations
Freewriting: A Way Around Writer's Block
Brainstorming for Ideas
Effective Reading Strategies by Amy Addison
Keeping a Pre-writing Journal by Amy Addison
Clustering Ideas by Melanie Dawson & Joe Essid
Exploring Ideas Through "Cubing" by Melanie Dawson
Planning to Write Introductions
Building Writing Confidence
by G.M. Smith

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Writing in the Disciplines--

Writing in Biology by Molly Cage and Jon Wakefield
Writing in Dance
Writing in French by Alicia Surdyk
Writing in History by Glen Henkle
Writing in Political Science
by David Roberts & Political Science faculty (beta version)
Scientific Writing: Qs about a Journal Article
by Dr. John Bishop

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Writing First Drafts--

Writing a Book Review by U Houston Victoria's Academic Center
Writing Summaries from the UVic Writer's Guide
Thesis Statements
Multiple-Subject Papers
Analytic Research Papers
Literary Terms: A list from the English 299 syllabus
Writing Effective Conclusions
Writing Effective Paragraphs
Writing Exam Essays
from UVic Writer's Guide

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Focusing & Connecting Ideas--

Adding Action & Clarity to Writing
Concise Writing: Using Lanham's Paramedic Method
Glossing: A way to check the focus of paragraphs
Transitional Phrases by Joanna Taraba
Using Transitions
Focusing Sentences Through Parallelism
Focusing Sentences Through Subordination

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Analysis, Argument--

What is Analysis?
Reasoning & Its Errors by David Roberts
Good Reasoning: Arguing Cogently
General Inferential Errors
Errors in Causation
Errors in Generalization
Other Reasoning Fallacies
Supporting Arguments & Avoiding Fallacies
Writing Critically: A Guide to Tasks & Questions
Using Details to Support a Claim
The Three Appeals: 3000 Years of Success!

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Editing a Draft--

Editing Checklist
Reading Aloud: Catching Fossils and Flubs
Warning Signs of a Rushed Paper

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Peer Editing Strategies--

Do's and Don'ts of Written Commentary by Adria Bader
Peer Editing Guide
Writing Critically: A Guide to Tasks & Questions
Tips for English-as-a-second-language (ESL) conferences
Addressing Grammar Problems in Conferences
What to Expect from a Writing Center Conference by Ryan Jackson

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Punctuation--

Commas
Semicolons by Liz Atkins
Quotation Marks
Apostrophes, Possessives, and Contractions

Other Punctuation--Colons, Parentheses, Ellipses, etc.

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Sentence Structure & Mechanics--

Misplaced Modifiers: The funniest errors in the world
Agreement: Nouns & Pronouns
Agreement: Subject & Verb
Writing About Events in Books: Past Tense? Present?
Complete Sentences vs. Fragments
Run-on Sentences
Abbreviations
Capitalization
Titles: Underline or Quotations?
Using Numbers & Numerals by Amy Addison
Using Articles: A, An, The

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Editing for Clarity & Style--

Guidelines for Nonsexist Usage
Commonly Confused Words
Avoiding Cliches and Tired Phrases
Confusing Pronouns
Putting Voice into Writing by Krysti Sibley

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Documentation--

APA, Turabian, MLA: print & electronic sources (UR Libraries)
APA Documentation: Print Sources--our page
MLA Documentation:
in-text citations--our page
Guide to Turabian's Manual for Writers: our page
Examples of Chicago/Turabian:
from the Chicago Manual of Style's site
Examples of each model of documentation

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Using Sources Effectively--

Introduction to Using Source Materials
Creative Use of Sources
by Heather Logan
Effective Direct Quotations

Incorporating Quotations

Using Paraphrases

Sources: Past Tense? Present? by Melanie Dawson & Joe Essid
Titles: Underline or Quotations?
Quotation Marks

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List

Writing On-Line

Basics of Electronic Writing
Columbia Guide to Online Style
(Janice R. Walker & Todd Taylor)

Table of Contents | A-Z Topic List


Many other topics are available through the University of Victoria's Writer's Guide; thanks to Arnie Keller for granting permission to place UVic links here. Thanks to The McKenzie Group and Allfreelance.com for listing us.