Academic Writing

 express yourself clearly and concisely

 include what is relevant and necessary in as few words as

possible

 words should be neutral, showing neither too much emotion

nor attitude

 do not use the first person (e.g. "I", "we", "me", "us", "my"
etc.)

 do not use contractions (e.g. isn't, doesn't, it'll, can't)

 do not use slang (e.g. stuff) or qualifiers ("really", "surely",

"basically", "hopefully" etc.)

Steps in the Writing Process

 Before starting, it is important that you read the assignment

question carefully and make sure you understand what you
are being asked to do

 Start to generate your initial thoughts and ideas about the

topic through brainstorming and writing them down

Read and Research

 As you conduct your research, your understanding of the

topic will develop and your ideas may change

 For academic research, you must use credible sources

which are backed up with evidence

 Save interesting and relevant sources

 Take notes

 Summarise the main points

 Make a note of the reference

Outline and Plan

 After you have generated some ideas and conducted some

research, it is important to start to write an outline

 Use short sentences to describe paragraphs

 Use bullet points to describe what each paragraph will cover

 Start writing the first draft of your essay which is subject to

revision and changes as it is the initial attempt

 Do not worry (yet) too much about your introduction

 Pick the way that is most comfortable for you -

laptop/desktop computer or by hand

 Start writing your first draft in plenty of time so you have time
to revise it and make changes

 Keep a copy! It is important to keep copies of any drafts you

write

Review and Edit

 Remember to proofread your essay! This means examining

your essay carefully to spot and correct mistakes in
grammar, style and spelling
 The Proofreading and Editing Process

 Eliminate unnecessary words - write short, clear, concise,

direct sentences

 Look at comments on old assignments and set a list of

mistakes to watch out for

 Proofread using a hard copy of your assignment before

going back to on-screen

 Use a spell checker

 Review and amend the most important parts of your content

 Do not make corrections at the sentence and word level if

you still need to work on the focus, organisation, structure
and overall writing of the paper

 Give yourself time between writing and proofreading your

assignment (this will help you spot mistakes faster and more
easily)

REMEMBER: Academic writing is a skill that is developed

with practice, persistence and good writing habits.