A Guide for Freshmen at

LUMS

The Art of
Effective
Communicatio
n
Written
Communication
Elements of Writing
effectively
Writing Effectively
GENERAL RULES FOR ALL TYPES OF
WRITINGS

Express, Simple Active,

not sentences rather than
impress. work best. passive.

Don’t write
Avoid using Know who
in sentence
jargon as your target
fragments
much as audience is.
possible.
 CONCISE
Sentences should be clear and simple,
communicating one concept per sentence.
In situations where you want your
message to be unambiguous, simple,
short, direct sentences are best.

Vague or hedging Avoid: basically, to a certain extent, kind

of, language
sort of, stuff, things, something,
number
about
) (+
W ordy make an =
phrases adjustment make adjust
a decision =
provide decide
assistance a =
assist
 Plagiarism and Paraphrasing
Plagiarism means using someone else’s words or ideas and passing them off
as your own. Paraphrasing means putting someone else’s ideas in your own
words.

So when does paraphrasing count as plagiarism?

• Paraphrasing is plagiarism if you don’t properly credit the
original author.
• Paraphrasing is plagiarism if your text is too close to the
original wording (even if you cite the source). If you
directly copy a sentence or phrase, you should quote it
instead.
• Paraphrasing is not plagiarism if you put the author’s ideas
completely in your own words and properly cite the
source.
What happens if you
plagiarize?
The consequences of plagiarism vary depending on the type of
plagiarism and the context in which it occurs. For example,
submitting a whole paper by someone else will have the most
severe consequences, while accidental citation errors are
considered less serious.

If you’re a student, then you might fail the course, be

suspended or expelled, or be obligated to attend a workshop
on plagiarism. It depends on whether it’s your first offense or
whether you’ve done it before.

As an academic or professional, plagiarizing seriously damages

your reputation. You might also lose your research funding
and/or your job, and you could even face legal consequences
for copyright infringement.
Citing a source means that you show, within the body of your text, that
you took words, ideas, figures, images, etc. from another place.

Why citing is important?

• To show your reader you've done proper research by listing sources you used to get your
information
• To be a responsible scholar by giving credit to other researchers and acknowledging their ideas
• To avoid plagiarism by quoting words and ideas used by other authors
• To allow your reader to track down the sources you used by citing them accurately in your
paper by way of footnotes, a bibliography, or a reference list
General Essay Writing
Your guide to writing with an impact

• Read and understand the prompt: Know exactly what is being asked of
you. It’s a good idea to dissect the prompt into parts.
• Plan: Brainstorming and organizing your ideas will make your life much
easier when you go to write your essay. It’s a good idea to make a web of
your ideas and supporting details.
• Make a strong thesis: The thesis (main argument) of the essay is the
most important thing you’ll write. Make it a strong point.
• Respond to the prompt: Once you have worked out any kinks in your
draft, you can start writing the final draft of your essay.
• Proofread: Read your response carefully to make sure that there
are no mistakes and that you didn’t miss anything.
 How to Organize a Coherent Essay?
Introduction
•Hook your reader
Your first sentence sets the tone for the whole essay, so spend some time on writing an effective hook.
Avoid long, dense sentences—start with something clear, concise and catchy that will spark your reader’s curiosity.

•Give a little background

A few general statements about the topic that provides context for your argument.

Depending on the subject of your essay, this might include:

•Historical, geographical, or social context
•Definitions of key terms

The information here should be broad but clearly focused and relevant to your argument.
Don’t give too much detail—you can mention points that you will return to later, but save your evidence and
interpretation for the main body of the essay.

•Thesis Statement
A thesis statement is a sentence or two that sums up your overall argument. The goal is to clearly convey your own
position in a debate or your central point about a topic. You can use explicit lead-ins, such as ‘This essay argues
that...’

•Road Map
A ‘road map’ of the essay is telling the reader how it is going to present and develop your argument. Particularly in
longer essays, it’s helpful to end the introduction by signposting what will be covered in each part. Keep it concise
and give your reader a clear sense of the direction your argument will take.
Body
The body of your essay should be written in paragraphs. A minimum of
three paragraphs should be there but there may be more depending on
the length of the essay. Each body paragraph should develop one main
idea that supports your argument.

Don’t forget to provide evidence and examples to support your

arguments. It is ideal to link each body paragraph in some way or the other to
those that precede and follow it.

Conclusion
Your conclusion should not offer any new material. Your evidence and
argumentation should have been made clear to the reader in the body of
the essay. Use the conclusion to briefly restate the main argumentative
position and provide a short summary of the themes discussed.

It is ideal to give a thoughtful ending to your essay.

 Don’t Forget To
•Cite Sources
Check your citations to make sure they are accurate and complete
Strictly follow if your instructor requires you to use a specific citation style (e.g MLA, APA)

•Run a Spell Check

Make sure spellings are correct and sentences are grammatically complete.
Avoid redundancy and repetition and be mindful that the link between sentences is clear to your readers

•Proofread
Read your essay thrice or ask a friend or family member to give you feedback and check for any errors.

•Check for Plagiarism

Email your essay to library or a friend/senior who has turnitin access to check your essay for plagiarism.
Plagiarism less than 8-10% should be fine.
Email Writing
Etiquettes
Key
Points
1. Don’t Overcommunicate by
Email

2.Make Good Use of Subject Lines

03 Keep Messages Clear and

Brief 04 Be Polite!

5. Check Your Tone

6. Proofread
 Don’t Overcommunicate
by Email

• Remember! Whomever you’re emailing gets dozens of

emails a day just like you
• Email is not a very secure means to share information
• Some things are better communicated in person; for
example, serious messages. Emails can come off
apathetic and unfeeling
Make Good Use of
Subject Lines
• Think of the email subject as the title of an article. Your goal is
to entice someone to click on it and read further
• Blank subject emails are easily overlooked as “spam”
• It is a good idea to add a date in the subject for regular emails
such as project reports
• If you only have to convey a short message through just the
subject
title, you can use “EOM” (End of Message) to let the recipient
know
they don’t need to open the email
e.g. Subject: Could you please send the class
notes? Thanks! EOM
Exampl
e
Bad Example Good Example
Subject: Meeting Subject: Society General
Body
Meeting- 10 a.m. February
25,
2014
Keep Messages
Clear and Brief

• Emails need to be clear and concise. The

body of the email should contain all
pertinent information. Keep your
sentences short and to the point.
• There is nothing wrong with sending
multiple emails. It is better to do so
than to write one confusing, cluttered
email.
 Bad Good Example
Example
Subject: Revisions For our group project Subject: Revisions For our group
project
Hi Shafaq, Hi Shafaq,

Thanks for sending that report last week. I read it

Thanks for sending that report last week. I read it
yesterday, and I feel that slide 2 needs more specific
yesterday, and I feel that Chapter 2 needs more specific
information about our assumptions for the project. I
information about our project’s assumptions.
also felt that the tone could be more formal.

I also felt that the tone could be more formal.

Also, I wanted to let you know that I've scheduled a
meeting with the instructor for this Friday regarding
our project. It's at 11:00 a.m. and will be in the small Could you amend it with these comments in mind?

conference room.
Thanks for your hard work on this!
Please let me know if you can make that
Mariam
time. Thanks!

(Mariam then follows this up with a separate email about

Mariam the instructor meeting.)
Be Polite!

• The emails you send should reflect your

professionalism, values, and attention to detail
• Avoid informal language, slang, inappropriate
abbreviations, emoticons etc. Only use these with people you know
well
• Close your message with "Regards," "Yours sincerely," or
"All the best," depending on the situation
• Recipients could always forward or share your emails
with
others
Check Your Tone
Your choice of words, sentence length, punctuation, and capitalization can
easily be misinterpreted, so always think about how your email “feels”.
Bad Good
Exampl Example
Laiba e Hi
, Laiba,
Thanks for all your hard work on that assignment. Could you please get your
I need your report by 5 p.m. today or I'll miss my deadline.
version over to me by 5 p.m., so we do not miss our group project deadline.

Momal Thanks so much!

Momal
 Proofreading
• Your email messages are part of your professional image,
so always take a moment to review your email for
spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes.
• Review the length of your email. Make sure that it is as
short as possible, without excluding necessary
information.
Sample Emails
 Email 1 Email 2
Hi Mr.
Javed,
I am in your ENGL 101 class on Thursdays, and I have a
hey question about the paper that is due next Tuesday. I’m not
, sure that I understand what is meant by the following sentence
in the prompt:
i need help on my paper can i
come by your “Write a 10 page paper arguing for or against requiring ENGL
101 for all freshmen and provide adequate support for your
point of view.”
office tomorrow thx
I am not sure what would count as “adequate” support. Would
using 3 sources be OK?

Can I come by your office tomorrow at 2:00 pm to talk to you

about my question? Please let me know if that fits your
schedule. If not, I could also come by on Friday after 1:00.

Thank you,

Danyal Nazir
 Email 1
Subject: tomorrow
As you know, tomorrow afternoon we’ll
be meeting to discuss the status of all of
our current projects. Donuts will be
provided. Be sure to arrive on time and
bring along the materials you have been
working on this week—bring enough
copies for everyone.
Some of these material might include
your calendars, reports, and any
important emails you have sent. Also, I
wanted to remind you that your parking
permit requests are due later this week;
you should turn those in to Ms. Jones,
and if she is not at her desk when you
stop by, you can email them to her.
Email 2
Subject: materials for Wed. General Body
meeting
Hi, everyone—
For tomorrow’s 3 p.m. GB meeting in the conference
room, please bring 15 copies of the following materials:
•Your calendar year proposal
•A one-page report describing your progress so far
•A list of goals for the next academic year
•Copies of any progress report messages you have made
in the past month.
See you tomorrow—
Ali
Thank you!