GHC Tutorial Center’s Top Ten Tips for a Better Paper

1. Answer the question

• What is your assignment? Have you read over your instructions several times? Ask yourself: what is this assignment asking me to do?
• If the instructor has requested that your paper be formatted in a certain way, go ahead and set up a Word document with “page setup” according to the instructions. Do this before you type a single word of your paper.

2. Know your subject

• If the assignment is to write an essay about a book: read the book first.
• If the assignment is to write an essay about a current event issue: read about the issue in various sources.
• If the assignment is to write a personal essay: know what you want to say before you start writing.

3. Establish a thesis

• The thesis statement is not a question or a list or a fact but an arguable opinion.
• The thesis statement is in the introductory paragraph.
• The introductory paragraph should indicate how the thesis statement will be supported.

4. Organize your main ideas

• The supporting ideas for the thesis, or the main points of the essay, should be briefly introduced in the introductory paragraph.
• Determine how you plan to organize your essay before you begin to write. Will you discuss one point per paragraph? Will you compare and contrast different ideas within each paragraph? Does your topic suggest a particular order for your ideas?

5. Hold hands with your thesis

• After every paragraph, go back and reread your thesis statement.
• Ask yourself if the paragraph you just wrote contributes to your thesis.

6. Flow

· "Flow" simply refers to the organization of your paper: does it follow a logical sequence of events or examples?

• Do you use transitional words or phrases that help readers get from one paragraph to the next?
• Do you stray from your main point or include extraneous information that gets in the way of your argument and confuses your readers?

7. Jazz up your language

• Vary sentence length & structure
• Use active verbs
• BUT, avoid slang

8. Proofread at least twice

• Read once for content

Ø Did you stay awake?

Ø Did you understand what you were trying to say?

Ø Did you feel the flow?

• Read again for grammar

Ø Read the entire paper backwards—begin with the last sentence and then read to the beginning. Often our brains correct grammar errors as we read them if we know what the sentence is supposed to mean. If we know the context, we automatically correct any errors. Taking the paper out of its logical context lets you see each individual sentence and correct grammar errors.

Ø For more grammar help, come by the Tutorial Center, or check our page on the GHC website. (Click on “current students,” then “Tutorial,” then “English Help,” then “Work on Grammar.”)

9. There is no YOU

• This is the #1 most common mistake we see in the Tutorial Center.
• Even in a personal essay, never use the word “you.”
• Use “a person,” or “one,” “he,” “she,” or “someone.” Better yet, try to restructure the sentence to see if a pronoun is really needed.

10. Finish strong

• Make sure your paper doesn’t fizzle at the end—write a strong conclusion that restates the points made in support of the thesis.
• Re-read your opening paragraph to help write the concluding paragraph.
• Do not introduce any new information or subjects—stick with themes you’ve already established in the body of the paper.