FUNDAMENTAL OF WRITING

• A composition can either be a paragraph or an essay
• Paragraph


  A group of interrelated sentences that talk about one main idea
• Essay


  A group of paragraphs that talk about one central idea
• Differences between paragraph and essay


  • Paragraph is organized around a topic sentence
  • Essay has a more elaborate structure with introduction, body, and conclusion
• Parts of an essay

  1. Lead or Attention-Getter

  2. Transitional Statement

  3. Thesis Statement
• Introduction


  1. Major Point 1

  2. Minor Details 1

  3. Minor Details 2
• Body


  1. Major Point 2

  2. Minor Detail 1

  3. Minor Detail 2

  4. Major Point 3

  5. Minor Detail 1

  6. Minor Detail 2
• Conclusion


  1. Reiteration of thesis statement

  2. Transitional statement/reiteration of purpose, benefit, and recommendation

  3. Closing statement
• Since the essay compromises individual paragraphs, the rules of writing paragraphs still have to apply to each part
• Lead or Attention-Getter


  The first statement in the essay which aims to hook the readers
• Transitional Statement


  The sentence which links the lead to the thesis statement
• Thesis Statement


  States the main idea or argument of the essay
• Transitional Paragraph


  A paragraph that does not directly support a thesis statement but bridges one paragraph to another
• Unity


  A composition contains one focused idea
• Coherence occurs when ideas are connected at the conceptual or idea level
• Cohesion is the connection of ideas at the sentence level
• Three techniques for applying cohesion

  • Use of pronouns to refrain from using a specific word repeatedly
  • Use of transitional devices to connect sentences with linked ideas
  • Repetition of keywords to tie up the paragraph subtly
• Knowledge of the parts of a composition is an excellent help in adhering to the correct organization of ideas
• Language use enables the writer to communicate ideas without confusing the reader effectively
• Principles in writing


  • Use clear and concise sentences
  • Avoid redundancies, wordiness, cliches, and high fallutin language
  • Avoid excessive "there" and "it" structures
  • Use precise vocabulary
  • Be consistent with your pronoun's point of view
  • Avoid sexist language
  • Use the appropriate level of formality