3-Step Strategy for Writing College Papers
- Take the assignment apart, piece by piece, analyze it, analyze it, analyze it, especially for key words.
- Ask the right questions and keep asking until you have all the information you need.
- Own the assignment.
Step 1: Analyze the Assignment
Read the assignment over and then over again. If the assignment was given orally, be sure to write it all out. You should have memorized the question by the time you've finished your answer. Pay particular attention to the procedure of thought your instructor expects you to use. Often it's captured in a single, key instruction word---or a set of key words: Summarize, Interpret, Evaluate/Critique, Define, Describe, Compare/Contrast, Discuss.
Step 2: Ask Questions
Professional writers, before they write an article, make sure they know why they are writing, who they are writing to, and what they are writing: purpose, audience, subject. And they make sure that their editors answer any questions they can't answer themselves. Successful student writers do the same thing.
- So, first, ask yourself why your instructor has asked you to write this paper, who the intended audience is (it's often more than just the instructor) and what you are supposed to write.
- If the assignment's purpose or subject or audience is not clear ask your instructor questions. Don't ask the worst question in the book: "What do you want in this paper?" Ask more specific questions like: "What do you want me to gain from writing this?" "Who is the target audience?" "What form do you want me to use?" Keep asking until all your questions are answered. College instructors sometimes need your help to clarify an assignment. Everyone will be happier with the results!
- Ask for the name of the form or method of writing your instructor wants. Make sure you understand what the form is. AND, if you can't find a description of the form somewhere, ask your instructor to point you to a place where you can find more information about it. Commonly assigned papers are the Essay, the Research Paper, the Summary-Reaction, Journal Writing and the Book Review, the Synthesis Paper.
- Ask to see a sample, a model, of what the instructor wants, Student models are often the most help. Sometimes instructors forget how important it is to be able to experience a certain form of writing before you can write it. They need you to ask. Check out the File Cabinet in the Writers' Complex to find student models.
Step 3: Make the Assignment Your Own
After you are pretty sure about what's expected in an assignment, turn the question around: Not "What does the instructor want?" but, "What do I want to say about the assigned subject, or question?" Look for a special angle, a different slant on the question that reflects who you are. Or relate the assignment to something you're familiar with. Or don't be afraid to ask your instructor if you can change the assignment a little so you can do something you really want to do.
Write down what you already know about the topic and why you care about the topic and why you think you reader should care about it. You will be answering the question, Why write about this, anyway? After you have answered the question, read over what you have written until you can "hear" it. When you begin to hear a voice and can let it flow through your hands onto the screen or paper, in a comfortable rhythm (and this takes practice!), you have begun. You have found your voice. Take dictation from that voice, it's the real you and you're controlling it. It may sometimes lead you to dead ends or to places too uncertain to incorporate in your writing right then, but it will lead you, and direct your paper. It will teach you and surprise you. It's a kind of music that can tell you what you feel and think and what you want to say to others. Write about why you really want to write about it. Write about why you think what you say might matter to others.
