Fundamentals of Writing Chapter 11

Sentences Keep the subject and verb close together Use short, concise, sentences Use active voice Use action verbs Use transitions

Paragraphs Topic Sentence Body Closing Introduces the subject and provides the focus of the paragraph Body Supports or develops the subject introduced by the topic sentence Closing Summarizes or applies the subject addressed in the paragraph to the facts of a case

Paragraphs Transition Sentence Length Connects the subjects in different paragraphs Length Avoid extremely long, extremely short, or extremely lengthy paragraphs

Word Selection and Usage Avoid excessive or redundant words Avoid noun/verb strings, as they are redundant Avoid nominalizations (nouns made from verbs) Avoid legalese and use plain English Do not use archaic words Use gender-neutral terms Know commonly misused words and use them correctly

Grammar The subject and verb must agree in person and number Use a consistent verb tense Use parallel construction so that items listed are similar in grammatical structure Avoid superfluous verbs

Grammar Avoid problems involving modifiers Misplaced Modifiers Dangling Modifiers Squinting Modifiers Split Infinitives

Grammar Pronouns must agree in number (singular/plural) and gender (feminine/masculine/neutral) with the nouns to which they refer (their antecedents)

Adverbs, Adjectives, and Conjunctions A word used to modify a noun or pronoun Adverb A word used to modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb Conjunction A word that connects words, phrased, clauses or sentences

Adverbs and Adjectives Many but not all adverbs are formed by adding -ly to an adjective Use an adjective if the word following a linking verb describes the subject of the sentence; use an adverb if the word refers to the verb

Adverbs and Adjectives Use a comparative adjective to compare two things; use a superlative adjective to compare three or more things Place adverbs used for emphasis immediately before the word or phrase they modify

Conjunctions Use a coordinating conjunction (e.g., and, or, but, for, so, yet, nor) when joining clauses and words of equal rank Use correlative conjunctions in pairs (e.g., either/or, neither/nor, if/then, both/and, since/therefore) to link items of equal rank

Punctuation Basic Uses of Commas Before a coordinating conjunction joining two main or independent clauses After an introductory phrase After each item in a series of three or more items To avoid a misreading of the subject

Punctuation Basic Uses of Commas (continued) To separate coordinate adjectives To set off transitional or interpretive words or phrases To set off nonrestrictive clauses, appositives, contrasting phrases, quotations, and descriptive titles

Punctuation Uses of Semicolons To separate major elements of complex sentences To separate items in a series if the items are long or if one of the items has internal commas

Punctuation Uses of Colons To introduce a list or series preceded by a complete sentence To introduce or emphasize a quotation To join two separate but related clauses and emphasize the latter

Punctuation Uses of Apostrophes To make singular nouns possessive (followed by s) To make plural nouns possessive (after the final s) To make a compound word or word group possessive To form contractions (not usually used in formal writing)

Punctuation Quotation Marks Ellipses Used to set off short quotes (less than 50 words) Not used with long, block quotes Used to indicate that a word is used in a special way, is a special term, or is questionable Ellipses Indicate the omission of part of a quotation

Punctuation Brackets Parentheses Show changes in or add information a quotation Indicate an error in an original quotation Parentheses Enclose information that is outside the main idea of the sentence Enclose references to other cases, attached material, or an appendix

Punctuation Hyphen Em Dash Forms compound modifiers and compound nouns Emphasizes something Sets off a list or a brief summary containing commas Shows an abrupt change of thought or direction