1. A guide to Not fail the first & subsequent essays for eng 2322/2323
Writing 101 – Carter Style
A guide to Not fail the first & subsequent essays for eng 2322/2323

2. Mla format Times new roman, 12 font Double-spaced
1 inch margins all around
Header (top right corner, same font & size as paper is written) – last name and pg no. – for example: carter 15
Heading: student name, professor carter, eng 2322, date in Mla (2 sept 2016)

3. titles Centered on line 5
Not bolded, underlined, italicized, or all-caps
May be creative
Must be grammatically correct
Must be in relation to the assignment, not your feelings about your writing

4. Citing poetry
Cite poetry by line number; if no line number given, use page number
May be cited parenthetically – (“Beowulf” lines 24-26) – or in the sentence -- …in lines 24 – 46…
Title of poem goes in quotation marks
If title and main character are the same name, make sure to differentiate between them with the quotations for the title

5. In-text citations
Lines from the poem: the line number(s) with word line (the first time you quote from the poem…subsequent times only the numbers)
Example – (lines ) OR (line 1250)
Info from book notes: (Damrosch, dettmar #) with the letter p., or pp.
(Damrosch, dettmar p. 36)
Class notes or lecture: (Carter date)
(carter 28 Aug 2016)

6. Line breaks
When quoting poetry, use line breaks ( / ) and stanza breaks ( // )
Example from sample lines: “hearing daily the hall filled / with loud amusement;” (lines 87-88)
Stanza Sample: “…creature that creeps and moves. // So the company of men…” (lines 98-99)

7. Long quotes
Quotes over 4 typed lines are double indented with no quotation marks
Keep these to a minimum as you are doing a close reading and will give the lines you select in the introduction – the entire quote is not needed in the paper

8. Citing specific words/letters
Any word or letter pulled from the line must go in quotations with a citation
Citations may follow each word/letter – “F” (line 24), “R” (26), and “D” (30) – or may be listed in parenthesis – (lines 24, 26, 30)

9. Do not use:
You!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! – Use One or the reader instead
Contractions
Colloquialisms
…the reason….is because – instead Use …the reason…is…
A lot

10. colloquialisms
Do not use any of the following, or any new ones you think of!!! If you are unsure, Ask!!!
Older than dirt
He’s the man
She’s hot
It’s a piece of cake
Back in the day
Gave me a vibe
It didn’t click for me

11. Much versus many…and more
Much measures; many counts
Less measures; few counts

12. Works cited Keep same paper formatting
Indent 2nd and subsequent lines one inch
Italicize book titles
Poetry and excerpts go in quotation marks
Include entire title of anthology – The Longman Anthology of British Literature: The Middle Ages Volume 1A
Title – works cited – first line, centered – even if you only have 1 source
Hanging indent for 2nd and subsequent lines

13. Works cited
Poem: “Beowulf.” trans. Michael alexander. The longman anthology of british literature: the middle ages. Vol. 1A. Ed. David Damrosch and kevin j. h. dettmar. pearson longman, pp
Historical info: Damrosch, david, and kevin j. h. dettmar. “before the norman conquest.” The longman anthology of british literature: the middle ages. Vol. 1A. pearson longman, p. 34.
info from class notes/lecture: carter, amy. “title of notes and/or lecture.” eng 2322: british literature I. Floresville high school, floresville, tx. Date of lecture/notes.
If Lecture, write “’Beowulf: Battle With Grendel’ Lecture”
If notes, Write “Anglo-Saxon Period Notes”

14. Learn from past students
Don’t procrastinate!!!
Only capitalize “king” if you are putting the name with it…King Hrothgar; if talking about someone being king, it is lower-cased
Use hyphens for compound words – hard-headed, upper-class, etc.
Don’t repeat “in the epic”, “the epic poem”, etc.

15. Info from board in class
The “p” sound and the “d” sound in line # showcase…
Using the words “pain,” “powerful,” and “spirit” in line 86 emphasizes… OR “pain” (line 86), “powerful” (87), “spirit” (88), although in different lines shows…
According to Damrosch and Dettmar, the epic was blah, blah, blah (p. 34) OR The epic was blah, blah, blah (Damrosch, Dettmar p. 34).
In lines # of “Beowulf,” blah, blah, blah

16. Questions????? Ask for help while in the lab!!!
Send me a chat if you have questions about anything.
There will be exceptions to some of this information depending on what you are writing…we will fix it in class.