Writing Help
A quick-tip sheet for how to cite sources in a Works Cited page and how to cite and punctuate quotations following MLA format.
Step-by-step instructions for how to format your paper.
SCSU English Department Blue Book
Basic writing guidelines for English Majors and Minors, including how to work with quoted evidence, voice and clarity, and sentence mechanics.
Honors First-Year Inquiry (HON 150) Blue Book
Basic writing guidelines for first-year students in the Honors College.
Sign up for additional writing help at the Writing Center, located on the second floor of Buley Library.
General Writing Resources
The following are general writing guidelines for English students at SCSU.

Writing Handouts and Models - First-Year Students
These are writing handouts and models frequently used in my first-year composition and inquiry courses.
Writing Well-Developed Paragraphs
The four steps of writing strong paragraphs: claim, evidence, analysis, refined claim
The basics of introducing topic, issue, and thesis in an introduction
Writing Well-Developed Paragraphs, Part 2: Connecting Paragraphs
Connecting claims, evidence, and analysis between body paragraphs
An example of how to revise sparse paragraphs
Sample First-Year Student Essay
A sample student essay analyzing a text or film, using multiple sources
Advice for first-year students on how to get more out of their emails to professors
Writing Handouts and Models - English Majors and Minors
The following are writing handouts that frequently appear in my English 300 and 400-level courses.
Moving from Problems to Theses, Part 1 (Three Sentences or Less)
How to introduce a problem-based thesis statement in the opening paragraph of a literary essay, in only three sentences
Moving from Problems to Theses, Part 2 (Three Sentences or More)
How to write a longer opening paragraph for a literary essay that advances a problem-based thesis statement
Close Reading at the Paragraph Level
A sample student paragraph that does a lot of close reading in a limited amount of space
Sample Student Essay – Close Reading
An excerpt of a close reading of a lyric poem by a sophomore SCSU English major for an introduction literature course
Sample Student Essay – Critical Essay
An excerpt of a critical essay written by a junior SCSU English major for an upper-level literary history course