2. "It's" vs. "its." "It's" = IT IS, "Its" = belonging to it
3. "Loose" vs. "lose." "Loose" = not tight (your shoelace is loose). "Lose" is the verb = "I lose my place on the page if I read too quickly."
4. "A LOT" is ALWAYS two words.
5. Mixing singular and plural (we can do this when speaking but not writing a formal paper).
“A person can begin to understand who they are.”
‘Person’ is singular, whereas ‘they are’ is plural. We need to change this to either: “People can begin to understand who they are” or “A person can begin to understand who she or he is.”
6. Statements such as “this shows that,” “this proves that,” “the text states this because….” The mere fact that you are writing about this aspect of the text already shows or proves ‘it.’ You do not need to state this –it makes your writing self-referential and is awkward.
7. Passive voice, such as “it is seen that,” etc. Seen by whom? Use ACTIVE voice (meaning the subject tell us who does the action and we do not have a form of “to be + past participle”) = "Enide sees that..."
8. The apostrophe (’) is ONLY for possession, never to make things plural. (This includes things like “the 1980s.” Many have a tendency to insert an apostrophe “the 1980’s,” but this would imply “belonging to the 1980s.” Similarly "CD's" does not mean "more than one CD" but rather belonging to a CD.)
Some students do not use an apostrophe when needed: “Yvains glory” instead of “Yvain’s glory.”
9. Do NOT use past tense when writing about literature (“Yvain did, Tristan said, etc.”). Literature is always in the present tense because it happens in an eternal present as we read and discuss it.
10. Avoid the present progressive (“Yvain is doing, Tristan is saying, etc.”). Use the simple present tense (“Yvain does, Tristan says, etc.”).
5. Mixing singular and plural (we can do this when speaking but not writing a formal paper).
“A person can begin to understand who they are.”
‘Person’ is singular, whereas ‘they are’ is plural. We need to change this to either: “People can begin to understand who they are” or “A person can begin to understand who she or he is.”
6. Statements such as “this shows that,” “this proves that,” “the text states this because….” The mere fact that you are writing about this aspect of the text already shows or proves ‘it.’ You do not need to state this –it makes your writing self-referential and is awkward.
7. Passive voice, such as “it is seen that,” etc. Seen by whom? Use ACTIVE voice (meaning the subject tell us who does the action and we do not have a form of “to be + past participle”) = "Enide sees that..."
8. The apostrophe (’) is ONLY for possession, never to make things plural. (This includes things like “the 1980s.” Many have a tendency to insert an apostrophe “the 1980’s,” but this would imply “belonging to the 1980s.” Similarly "CD's" does not mean "more than one CD" but rather belonging to a CD.)
Some students do not use an apostrophe when needed: “Yvains glory” instead of “Yvain’s glory.”
9. Do NOT use past tense when writing about literature (“Yvain did, Tristan said, etc.”). Literature is always in the present tense because it happens in an eternal present as we read and discuss it.
10. Avoid the present progressive (“Yvain is doing, Tristan is saying, etc.”). Use the simple present tense (“Yvain does, Tristan says, etc.”).
11. Awkward sounding phrasal verbs such as:
To think it out (‘to reflect on it / process it’ is better)
To be stuck in (‘to be imprisoned / trapped’ is better)
To have got (‘to have’ is better)
To find out (‘to discover’ is better)
When possible, it is better to find a simple verb that expresses the same idea as a phrasal verb.
12. Quite a few people had very colloquial expressions that should only be used when speaking. You cannot write the way you speak.
13. Avoid sentences or phrases that end in a preposition. This is always bad form.
For example: “The situation Yvain finds himself in is complicated” should be “The situation in which Yvain finds himself is complicated.”
14. Whenever we have a gerund (an “–ing verb”), we MUST use the possessive form of the noun or pronoun that comes before it. This is something we rarely do (if ever) when speaking but must be done when writing.
Enide’s crying demonstrates her love for Erec.
To think it out (‘to reflect on it / process it’ is better)
To be stuck in (‘to be imprisoned / trapped’ is better)
To have got (‘to have’ is better)
To find out (‘to discover’ is better)
When possible, it is better to find a simple verb that expresses the same idea as a phrasal verb.
12. Quite a few people had very colloquial expressions that should only be used when speaking. You cannot write the way you speak.
13. Avoid sentences or phrases that end in a preposition. This is always bad form.
For example: “The situation Yvain finds himself in is complicated” should be “The situation in which Yvain finds himself is complicated.”
14. Whenever we have a gerund (an “–ing verb”), we MUST use the possessive form of the noun or pronoun that comes before it. This is something we rarely do (if ever) when speaking but must be done when writing.
Enide’s crying demonstrates her love for Erec.
15. Try to avoid when possible use of the progressive tenses ("Erec is fighting the knight." - this would imply that the event is in progress at this moment. "Erec fights the knight" is preferable.)
16. Some students still have problems with “to lay” and “to lie.” These are not interchangeable verbs. “To lay” requires an object (“I lay the book on the table.”). “To lie” cannot take an object (“I lie down.”)
17. Stating your ideas in a clear and simple manner is always better than trying to ‘sound’ intelligent by writing complex (and many times overly-long) sentences in which your ideas are lost and / or awkwardly stated.
REMEMBER – You can always go to the Reading and Writing Center here on campus for help with writing.
16. Some students still have problems with “to lay” and “to lie.” These are not interchangeable verbs. “To lay” requires an object (“I lay the book on the table.”). “To lie” cannot take an object (“I lie down.”)
17. Stating your ideas in a clear and simple manner is always better than trying to ‘sound’ intelligent by writing complex (and many times overly-long) sentences in which your ideas are lost and / or awkwardly stated.
REMEMBER – You can always go to the Reading and Writing Center here on campus for help with writing.
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