The Structure of a sentence

There are three basic kinds of sentences: simple, compound, and complex. They are formed by using one or more independent and dependent clauses and phrases. An independent clause can stand alone as a sentence, while a dependent clause or a phrase can not. A phrase is distinguished from a dependent clause by its lack of a necessary subject. The phrase "sentence fragment" is often appended to a student's work when a professor sees a dependent clause or phrase standing on its own.
If you understand the difference between a dependent clause and an independent clause, you will be able to write proper sentences. You also will be able to form proper compound sentences (which consist of two or more independent clauses) and complex sentences (which consist of one or more dependent clauses and at least one independent clause).


1. Do not leave dependent clauses or phrases standing alone; these are sentence fragments, not sentences. Sentence fragments often contain a verb with no subject (creating a dependent clause or a phrase). A writer who makes this error will invite the ridicule of more experienced writers. The best way to avoid the problem is to be certain that every sentence has at least one subject linked to each verb. You also can avoid the problem by attaching the fragment to an independent clause with a conjunction, a comma, or both. Be careful, however, not to attach two independent clauses with a comma. This error, known as a comma splice, is discussed in rule 2.

Incorrect Use of Phrase:

The appellate court ruled for the plaintiff. Affirming the judgment of the trial court.

Solution #1:

The appellate court ruled for the plaintiff. It affirmed the judgment of the trial court.

Explanation: In the incorrect example above, the sentence fragment is created because there is no subject linked to the verb "affirming." This problem can be solved by providing a subject. In the corrected version, the pronoun "it," referring to the appellate court, is the subject of the verb "affirmed."

Solution #2:

The appellate court ruled for the plaintiff, affirming the judgment of the trial court.

Explanation: By placing a comma before affirming, the writer links the phrase to the independent clause on which it relies for its context.

Solution #3:

The appellate court ruled for the plaintiff and affirmed the judgment of the trial court.

Explanation: By placing the conjunction "and" before the phrase, the writer links the dependent clause to the independent clause on which it relies for its context.

Incorrect Use of Dependent Clause:

The counsel for the defendant was called to the judge's chambers. Because he had failed to file the complaint within the time provided in the statute of limitations.

Solution #1:

The counsel for the defendant was called to the judge's chambers because he had failed to file the complaint within the time provided in the statute of limitations.

Solution #2:

The counsel for the defendant was called to the judge's chambers. He had failed to file the complaint within the time provided in the statute of limitations.
2. Do not link two independent clauses with a comma. This error, known as a comma splice, can easily be avoided. Instead of using a comma to connect two independent clauses, either use a period to create two sentences, a conjunction to link the two clauses in one sentence, or (if the independent clauses are closely related) a semicolon to link the two clauses in one sentence.

Incorrect: The appellate court found that the constitutional prohibition against warrantless searches had been violated, it therefore remanded the case for a new trial.

Solution #1:

The appellate court found that the constitutional prohibition against warrantless searches had been violated. It therefore remanded the case for a new trial.

Explanation: Because the second independent clause can stand alone as a sentence, the writer can avoid the comma splice by replacing the comma with a period and capitalizing the word "It."

Solution #2:

The appellate court found that the constitutional prohibition against warrantless searches had been violated, and it therefore remanded the case for a new trial.

Explanation: A conjunction such as "and" or "but" can be used to link two independent clauses; however, be sure to place a comma before a conjunction that introduces an independent clause.

Solution #3:

The appellate court found that the constitutional prohibition against warrantless searches had been violated; it therefore remanded the case for a new trial.

Explanation: When two independent clauses are closely related in substance, one can link them with a semicolon.


3. Use strong subject-verb formulations. Good writers provide their readers with strong subject-verb formulations early in their sentences. The result is forceful writing that quickly gets to the point. Avoid beginning your sentences with phrases such as "there is" and "it is" in place of subject-verb formulations.

Undesirable:

There is disagreement about the best approach to negligence law.
Better: Scholars disagree about the best approach to negligence law.

Undesirable:

It is a different argument than the one the court adopted.
Better: The argument is different than the one the court adopted.

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How to be a Great Academic Writer

A Great Academic Writer Knows How to Write Well

A thorough understanding of proper grammar and sentence structure is absolutely essential to the success of an academic writer. In other forms of writing, such as fiction writing or poetry, strict adherence to conventional rules of grammar, sentence structure, and punctuation is not required. However, academic writing is held to a much higher standard, and any straying from conventional grammar rules lowers the quality of the paper, even if the content is fantastic.

To Be a Great Academic Writer, You Must Be a Great Listener

An ability to write is important, but it is even more important to able to listen. A great academic writer will be able to listen closely to the needs of the client. This is undoubtedly the most important aspect of becoming a successful freelance writer, and will prevent the need for frequent rewrites when a paper does not meet the client's requested specifications.

A Great Academic Writer is Honest and Reliable

A degree of integrity is important to success in any career, but it is of even greater importance to an academic writer. Clients put a great deal of faith in the writers that are commissioned to produce written material for them, so a great academic writer can be relied on to produce that material and keep all private information completely confidential. Doing so allows for the development of ongoing relationships between clients and academic writers, therefore custompapers.com only maintains independent contract writers that are completely honest and reliable.

Plagiarism is Never Tolerated by a Good Academic Writer

A successful academic writer would never dare consider plagiarizing other writer's works when creating his or her own. This is not only a bad business practice that will certainly destroy any degree of trust between the client and the writer; it is also unethical and can ruin a student's academic career. It is also important to understand that plagiarism is not always blatantly apparent. By not following proper citation procedures, a sub par academic writer can unintentionally plagiarize and cause just as much damage as a writer that does it intentionally. The writers at custompapers.com are thoroughly practiced in the proper way to cite other writers' works and would never even consider plagiarism.

A Great Academic Writer is Willing to Put in Research Time

Our custom essay writers generally write about subjects they have already thoroughly studied during their own academic careers. However, a great academic writer realizes the importance of researching the topic of the academic paper he or she is preparing. Therefore, our experienced writers spend as much time as is necessary to ensure that each paper that is prepared is as detailed and precise as possible.

A Great Academic Writer Can Always Meet a Deadline

Any writing professional understands this, including contracted freelance writers. It is extremely important to able to meet a client's deadline, provided of course that enough time is allowed to complete the amount of work requested.

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writing skills is very important

Of all the classes I took in college and graduate school, the two that have helped me most in my career have been English Composition and Business English. In these classes I learned effective writing skills, which I have used in every job I have ever had. No other job but my work on this site included writing as part of my job description. In spite of this, I was required to write in every job, and it was taken for granted that I would be able to do this. This is the case with most jobs -- whether you must write internal memos, correspond with clients, or help design sales materials. Writing beautiful prose and poetry is a talent. Writing effectively, however, is a skill that can be learned.
Organize Your Writing

Whether you are writing a memo to your co-worker or a report for your boss, you should decide what information you want to convey. Here is how to do this:
1. List each item you need to discuss in your memo or report.
2. Put them in order — from most to least important
3. Write a brief summary of your entire memo — this will be your first paragraph.
4. Expand on each item listed in step 1.
5. If any action needs to be taken by the recipient, state that in your closing paragraph.

Some Tips

Avoid wordiness. Say out loud what you are trying to write. Listen to how the words sound. For example, the sentence, "I found out that I should take a look at our past sales figures in order to come up with a plan to help us re-evaluate our sales technique" could be more simply stated as "I must take a look at our past sales figures to re-evaluate our sales technique."
Write for your audience. Use simple language. You don't want the reader to need a dictionary to decipher what you are trying to say. You should not try to impress your reader with your huge vocabulary. Chances are you will frustrate your reader instead. Most people are juggling several tasks at the same time, and are interested in receiving only necessary information. You are responsible for making this happen. Instead of saying, "His gregarious nature credentials him as a superlative candidate for the job," say "His friendliness makes him a top candidate for the job."

Stay away from jargon your reader may not understand. If your work is very technical, but the person you are writing to is not well versed in that field, stick to words that person will understand. For example, if you are a Web site designer, this sentence in a memo to your client, a psychologist, will make no sense: "What would you like me to use as the BGCOLOR for your site: #ADD8E6 or #FFFFFF?" Anyone proficient in Web page design knows that this question can be translated to "What would you like the background color of your site to be: Light Blue or White?" However, don't expect your client to be more familiar with this technical jargon than you would be with her discussion of a psychological term such as trichotillomania.

A cliche a day keeps the reader away — or at least it does not make him or her remember what you are saying. You want your writing to be memorable. Because we hear cliches often, we become desensitized to them. The words, then, are not uniquely associated with your writing. Rather than saying "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today" in a memo to a subordinate you are trying to motivate. Simply say, "Stop procrastinating. Get the job done now."

When possible, use the active voice. The active voice makes your sentence stronger and usually shorter. Let's try these examples. Passive voice: "Sales increased due to the networking I did." Active voice: "My networking increased sales."

Don't be redundant. It is not necessary to say "2 p.m. in the afternoon" or "the expectant pregnant woman." Saying "2 p.m." or "2 in the afternoon" or "the expectant woman" or "the pregnant woman" all convey what you want to say and are less wordy.

Of course pay attention to grammar. Use Strunk and White's Elements of Style, available on the Web. A good dictionary should be nearby, along with a thesaurus. A thesaurus will allow you to keep your writing fresh by helping you find a variety of words to use. Many of these resources are available online.

Proofreading is one of the most important things you can do. Since you probably do most of your writing on a computer, you have access to automated spelling and grammar checkers. Beware though — some words, used in the wrong context may be missed by computerized spell checkers. For example the sentence "To employees attended too meetings two learn about the gnu software," would pass through the spell check without any misspellings being detected. Have someone else proofread your document, if possible. If time allows, put your composition away, and proofread it later, or even better, the next day.

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Instruction How to Write a Concept Explanation Essay English

1.Select a concept for your essay by considering how well you understand the topic and the availability of sufficient relevant information. If you choose a frequently used repeated topic, think of new information or an interesting angle to cover in your essay. Focus your essay on a few significant aspects of a concept to provide an in-depth explanation rather than briefly touching on a wide range of issues. For example, if you wish to write on the impact of information technology, you obviously cannot cover all areas; concentrate on the effects of technological advancement on healthcare.

2.Search for information on the topic you select. Research books by famous authors or subject experts on the topic. Think of your personal experiences relevant to the topic that you can include in the essay. Find quotes from great personalities that succinctly express the concept. Find quotes that are apt, but rarely used. Locate statistical information that supports the viewpoint your essay propounds.

3. Begin the concept explanation essay with a quotation, anecdote or statistics to grab the attention of the reader. For example, if your essay is on the need for educating kids about drugs and alcohol abuse, offer statistics that highlight the prevalence of such abuse among youth. Give your thesis statement and the gist of the ideas you will explore in the essay.

4.Divide your material into several short paragraphs, each covering a specific point such as classification, comparison and narration of events. Make use of examples, similes and metaphors to convey your point clearly. Remember that a concept essay is an unbiased exploration of the concept and not a vehicle to express your personal opinions.

5. Conclude the essay with a summary of the salient points your essay conveys. Use words and sentences that are different from the ones you have used before, but which essentially convey the same idea. State the concept again clearly in light of the discussion in the preceding paragraphs. Make sure the sentences you use link your conclusion to the beginning of the essay. Use a quotation that aptly sums up the essence of the concept you have developed.

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how to improve your writing skills

f all the classes I took in college and graduate school, the two that have helped me most in my career have been English Composition and Business English. In these classes I learned effective writing skills, which I have used in every job I have ever had. No other job but my work on this site included writing as part of my job description. In spite of this, I was required to write in every job, and it was taken for granted that I would be able to do this. This is the case with most jobs -- whether you must write internal memos, correspond with clients, or help design sales materials. Writing beautiful prose and poetry is a talent. Writing effectively, however, is a skill that can be learned.
Organize Your Writing

Whether you are writing a memo to your co-worker or a report for your boss, you should decide what information you want to convey. Here is how to do this:
List each item you need to discuss in your memo or report.
Put them in order — from most to least important
Write a brief summary of your entire memo — this will be your first paragraph.
Expand on each item listed in step 1.
If any action needs to be taken by the recipient, state that in your closing paragraph.
Some Tips

Avoid wordiness. Say out loud what you are trying to write. Listen to how the words sound. For example, the sentence, "I found out that I should take a look at our past sales figures in order to come up with a plan to help us re-evaluate our sales technique" could be more simply stated as "I must take a look at our past sales figures to re-evaluate our sales technique."
Write for your audience. Use simple language. You don't want the reader to need a dictionary to decipher what you are trying to say. You should not try to impress your reader with your huge vocabulary. Chances are you will frustrate your reader instead. Most people are juggling several tasks at the same time, and are interested in receiving only necessary information. You are responsible for making this happen. Instead of saying, "His gregarious nature credentials him as a superlative candidate for the job," say "His friendliness makes him a top candidate for the job."

Stay away from jargon your reader may not understand. If your work is very technical, but the person you are writing to is not well versed in that field, stick to words that person will understand. For example, if you are a Web site designer, this sentence in a memo to your client, a psychologist, will make no sense: "What would you like me to use as the BGCOLOR for your site: #ADD8E6 or #FFFFFF?" Anyone proficient in Web page design knows that this question can be translated to "What would you like the background color of your site to be: Light Blue or White?" However, don't expect your client to be more familiar with this technical jargon than you would be with her discussion of a psychological term such as trichotillomania.

A cliche a day keeps the reader away — or at least it does not make him or her remember what you are saying. You want your writing to be memorable. Because we hear cliches often, we become desensitized to them. The words, then, are not uniquely associated with your writing. Rather than saying "Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today" in a memo to a subordinate you are trying to motivate. Simply say, "Stop procrastinating. Get the job done now."

When possible, use the active voice. The active voice makes your sentence stronger and usually shorter. Let's try these examples. Passive voice: "Sales increased due to the networking I did." Active voice: "My networking increased sales."

Don't be redundant. It is not necessary to say "2 p.m. in the afternoon" or "the expectant pregnant woman." Saying "2 p.m." or "2 in the afternoon" or "the expectant woman" or "the pregnant woman" all convey what you want to say and are less wordy.

Of course pay attention to grammar. Use Strunk and White's Elements of Style, available on the Web. A good dictionary should be nearby, along with a thesaurus. A thesaurus will allow you to keep your writing fresh by helping you find a variety of words to use. Many of these resources are available online.

Proofreading is one of the most important things you can do. Since you probably do most of your writing on a computer, you have access to automated spelling and grammar checkers. Beware though — some words, used in the wrong context may be missed by computerized spell checkers. For example the sentence "To employees attended too meetings two learn about the gnu software," would pass through the spell check without any misspellings being detected. Have someone else proofread your document, if possible. If time allows, put your composition away, and proofread it later, or even better, the next day.

Read more »

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