Chapter One Collecting Ideas 1
1.1 Getting Started 1
1.2 Asking the Right Questions 4
1.3 Generating Some Ideas 5
1.3.1 Free Writing 5
1.3.2 Brainstorming 7
1.3.3 Visualization 12
1.3.4 Clustering 15
1.3.5 Cubing 17
Chapter Two From Words to Sentences2.1 Types of Words 19
2.2 Choice of Words 20
2.3 Synonyms 23
2.4 Arrangement of Words in a Sentence 24
2.5 Making Correct Sentences 29
2.6 Types of Sentences 32
2.7 Figurative Language 37
2.7.1 Simile 37
2.7.2 Metaphor 38
2.7.3 Personification 38
2.7.4 Allegory 38
2.7.5 Synecdoche 39
2.7.6 Metonymy 39
2.7.7 Exclamation 39
2.7.8 Hyperbole 40
2.7.9 Apostrophe 40
2.7.10 Vision 40
2.7.11 Antithesis 40
2.7.12 Climax 41
2.7.13 Epigram 41
2.7.14 Interrogation 41
2.7.15 Irony 41
Chapter Three From Sentences to Paragraphs3.1 Elements of Effective Sentences and Paragraphs 43
3.1.1 Unity 43
3.1.2 Coherence 44
3.1.3 Conciseness 49
3.1.4 Clarity 57
3.1.5 Emphasis 61
3.1.6 Variety 64
3.2 Topic Sentence 70
3.3 Development of a Paragraph 71
3.3.1 Criteria of Good Paragraphs 72
3.3.2 Basic Paragraph Structure 73
3.3.3 Ways of Developing a Paragraph 79
Chapter Four From Paragraphs to Compositions4.1 Paragraph Variety 90
4.1.1 Introductory paragraph 90
4.1.2 Body Paragraph 92
4.1.3 Concluding paragraph 93
4.2 Building the Essay 94
4.2.1 Process of Writing an Essay 94
4.2.2 Structure of an Essay 104
4.3 Specific Types of Essays 105
4.3.1 Narrative Essay 105
4.3.2 Descriptive Essay 108
4.3.3 Process Essay 111
4.3.4 Exemplification Essay 114
4.3.5 Definition Essay 116
4.3.6 Comparison/Contrast Essay 119
4.3.7 Classification Essay 121
4.3.8 Cause and Effect Essay 124
4.3.9 Persuasive/Argumentative Essay 126
4.3.10 Combination of Methods 135
Chapter Five Writing for Practical Purposes5.1 Notes and Announcement 137
5.1.1 Notes 137
5.1.2 Announcement 141
5.2 Letters 142
5.2.1 General Introduction to English Letters 142
5.2.2 Personal Letter 146
5.2.3 Business Letter 148
5.3 Resumes 175
5.4 Addressing an Envelope 181
5.5 Book Review 181
5.6 Summaries 184
5.7 Abstracts 185
Chapter Six Writing Research Paper6.1 Steps of Writing a Research Paper 188
6.2 Basic Paper Format 192
6.2.1 APA Style 192
6.2.2 MLA Style 197
6.3 Online Sources 208
Chapter Seven Punctuation and Grammar7.1 Capitalization 211
7.2 Punctuation 213
7.2.1 Period 213
7.2.2 Ellipsis Mark 214
7.2.3 Comma 215
7.2.4 Semicolon 216
7.2.5 Colon 216
7.2.6 Question Mark 217
7.2.7 Exclamation Point 218
7.2.8 Parenthesis 218
7.2.9 Dash 218
7.2.10 Quotation Mark 219
7.2.11 Apostrophe 219
7.2.12 Italic 220
7.3 Grammar 220
7.3.1 Parts of Speech 220
7.3.2 Parts of a Sentence 221
7.3.3 Using Numbers in Writing 223
7.3.4 Double Negatives 224
7.3.5 Twelve Common Errors:A Self—Editing Checklist for Students 225