Effective Writing at the Graduate Level: Overview Student Development Services Writing Support Centre UCC 210

Know your audience General/specific audience Always determine appropriateness The final product is the most important part Effective Writing

Layers of Effective Writing Layer 1: Appearance Grammar, Formatting, Etc. Layer 2: Writing Style Sentence Flow Layer 3: Organization Connecting the Ideas Layer 4: Content The Ideas

Reader vs. Writer While appearance, then style may be the first things noticed by a reader, this should not be your first concern when writing Start with a clear idea of the content and how you will organize it

4: Content The foundation of effective communication Need a clear understanding to be able to communicate effectively

3: Organization Present your ideas in a logical (not chronological) order Essential at the micro (paragraph) and macro (paper) levels

3: Paragraph Organization All about Topic Sentences and Support Each paragraph should cover one Topic that is Supported by clear evidence Follow a logical order (A-B, B-C, C-D) Use transitions to connect sentences and paragraphs

Paragraph Example 1. Determining tissue-diet discrimination may suggest the isotope composition of an animal’s diet, but there is considerable intra- and inter-species variation. 2. The 13 C and 15 N bone collagen-diet values of red-backed voles fed diets with different amounts of protein varied by as much as 3 and 2.5‰ respectively, while hair varied by as much as 3.5 and 3‰ respectively (Sare et al., 2005). 3. Moreover, analysis of the gut contents of several small mammal species showed considerable inter-species variation in 15 N absorption and 13 C values that differed from ungulates by approximately 3‰ (Hwang et al., 2007). 4. Blood, liver, muscle and hair tissues are most commonly used in ecological studies to infer diet, and the tissue-diet discrimination values of these must be measured in a controlled setting before making conclusions about natural diet.

3: Paper Organization See the “Research Paper Organization” and “Essay Organization” presentations for detailed advice on organizing larger written works

2: Writing Style Discipline specific Most areas encourage a clear and concise writing style See “Academic Writing Style” Presentation for more detailed advice

Clarity If it can be misinterpreted, then it is wrong Word choice is key Many clarity issues are caused by inappropriate words

Conciseness Shortening the text without impacting clarity Not the same as brevity Usually improves clarity If a word or phrase can be removed or shortened without losing meaning, do it

There are rules, learn them Sloppy writing indicates sloppy thinking Spellcheck helps, but it can be a crutch 1: Spelling, Grammar

Know the required format Different for almost every science journal, grant and scholarship and class 1: Formatting