Writer's Inc (Complex Cards) Flashcards
six traits of effective writing
- ideas
- organization
- voice
- word choice
- sentence fluency
- conventions
writing process
- prewriting
- writing the first draft
- revising
- editing and proofreading
- publishing
writing trait: ideas
- maintains a clear, specific focus or purpose
- presents information that elaborates on the focus
- holds the reader’s attention (and answers his or her questions about the topic)
writing trait: organization
- includes a clear beginning, middle, and ending
- contains specific details–arranged in the best order–to support the main ideas
writing trait: voice
- speaks in a sincere, natural way
- shows that the writer really cares about the topic
writing trait: word choice
- contains specific, clear nouns and verbs
- presents an appropriate level of formality or informality
writing trait: sentence fluency
- flows smoothly from sentence to sentence
- displays varied sentence beginnings and lengths
writing trait: conventions
- adheres to the rules of grammar, spelling, and punctuation
- follows established guidelines for presentation
prewriting
The stage of the writing proces where you brainstorm, discuss, collect, and plan before you start writing. It consists of four steps:
- select a specific topic that truly interests you
- collect information about it
- focus on a specific part of the topic for writing
- plan how to use the supporting information
directed writing
a series of approaches that can be used when trying to figure out what to write about; they are:
- describe it in sensory terms
- compare it to other things
- apply it to various situations
- associate/connect it with other things
- analyze it (What are its parts and how do they work?)
- argue for or against it
prewriting inventory
a set of five things to consider before prewriting; they are:
- purpose
- my own opinion
- the topic
- the audience
- the form and style of the work
thesis statement formula
(also the topic sentence formula)
a specific topic
+ a particular feature, feeling, or stand
= an effective thesis statement
writing the first draft
the first attempt to get your thoughts about a topic on paper; it consists of three steps:
- collect enough information about your topic
- establish a thesis (focus) for your writing
- organize your supporting ideas
opening paragraph
one of the most important elements in the writing because it sets the tone and establishes the basic organization for your writing; it should help clarify your thinking about your topic and accomplish three things:
- introduce your topic
- gain your reader’s attention
- identify your thesis
closing paragraph
the final part of a written work; it allows you to tie up your essay neatly; you can set up your closing paragraph in one of the following ways:
- refer to your thesis
- review your main supporting points
- answer any unresolved questions
- connect with the reader’s experience
revision
the process of improving the details that carry the message in your writing; it’s made up of the following four steps, which can be completed in any order:
- add information
- delete information
- rearrange material
- rewrite material
When to add information during revision?
Add information to your writing if you need:
- to spell out key details for making a point
- to clarify or complete an interesting idea
- to link sentences or paragraphs and improve sentence flow
When to delete information during revision?
Delete information from your draft if it:
- doesn’t support your focus or thesis
- seems redundant or repetitious
When do you rearrange material during revision?
Move material in your writing around if it:
- does not help to create a clear flow of ideas
- seems out of order
- would have more impact in a different position
When do you rewrite material during revision?
Rewrite material in your writing if it:
- seems confusing or unclear
- doesn’t maintain the proper voice
- is too complex and needs to be simplified
How do you prevent the badlands from occuring?
Ask five questions to prevent the badlands:
- Is your topic worn-out?
- Is your approach stale?
- Is your voice predictable or fake?
- Does your draft sound boring?
- Does your essay follow the formula too closely?
How do you revise a text in order to come up with better ideas?
You revise a text for better ideas by:
- Checking for depth (level of detail)
- Checking the overall focus (thesis statement)
- Checking the focus of each supporting paragraph (details and topic sentence)
- Check for clarify and completeness
How do you revise a text in order to come up with better organization?
You revise a text for better organization by:
- checking the overall plan of your writing (thesis statement, supporting paragraphs, order of details)
- check your opening paragraph
- check for the flow of ideas (body and details)
- check your closing paragraph
How do you revise a text in order to come up with better voice?
You revise a text for better voice by:
- checking your purpose for writing the text
- make sure you are enthusiastic
How do you revise a text in order to come up with better word choice?
You revise a text for better word choice by:
- looking for and eliminating redundant and repetitious words and phrases
- looking for and eliminating jargon
- using the right level of language (formal language for serious works, informal for light-hearted works)
OAQS
an acronym that refers to things that can be used when discussing someone else’s early drafts:
- O means Observe (notice what another person’s text is designed to do)
- A means Appreciate (identify something in the writing that impresses/pleases you)
- Q means Question (ask whatever you want to know after you have read the essay)
- S means Suggest (give helpful advice about possible changes)
alliteration (poetry)
the repetition of initial consonant sounds in words (e.g. It is the happy heart that breaks.”)
assonance
the repetition of vowel sounds without repeating consonants (e.g. Let the unknowable touch the buckle of my spine.”
consonance
the repetition of consonant sounds; although it is similar to alliteration, consonance is not limited to the first letters of words (e.g. above his blond _d_etermined head the sacred flag of truth unfurled”)
stanza
a division of poetry named for the number of lines it contains:
- couplet: two-line stanza
- triplet: three-line stanza
- quatrain: four-line stanza
- quintet: five-line stanza
- sestet: six-line stanza
- septet: seven-line stanza
- octave: eight-line stanza
verse
a metric line of poetry; it is named according to the kind and number of feet composing it (e.g. iambic pentameter):
- monometer: one foot
- dimeter: two feet
- trimeter: three feet
- tetrameter: four feet
- pentameter: five feet
- hexameter: six feet
- heptameter: seven feet
- octometer: eight feet
foot
the smallest repeated pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in a poetic line
- iambic: an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable
- anapestic: two unstressed followed by a stressed syllable
- trochaic: a stressed followed by an unstressed syllable
- dactylic: a stressed followed by two unstressed syllables
- spondaic: two stressed syllables
- pyrrhic: two unstressed syllables
conflict
the problem or struggle in a story that triggers the action; there are five basic types of conflict:
- Person vs. Person: one character in a story has a problem with one or more of the other characters
- Person vs. Society: a character has a problem with some element of society, such as the school, the law, or the accepted way of doing things
- Person vs. Self: a character has a problem deciding what to do in a certain situation
- Person vs. Nature: a character has a problem with nature, such as deadly heat, deadly cold, a tornado, an avalanche, or any other element of nature
- Person vs. Fate (God): a character must battle what seems to be an uncontrollable problem; whenever the conflict is an unbelievable or strange coincidence, it can be attributed to fate or an act of God
concave vs convex
ruminant (animal)
large hoofed herbivorous grazing or browsing mammals that are able to acquire nutrients from plant-based food by fermenting it in a specialized stomach prior to digestion, principally through microbial actions
Ruminating mammals include cattle, all domesticated and wild bovines, goats, sheep, giraffes, deer, gazelles, and antelopes.
cud (animal)
partly digested food returned from the first stomach of ruminants to the mouth for further chewing
phrase
a group of related words that function as a single part of speech
(Example: Finishing the race will require running down several steep slopes.
- finishing the race = gerund phrase functions as a subject noun
- will require = this phrase functions as a verb
- running down several steep slopes = this gerund phrase functions as an object noun
abbreviation mark for: “check this out” or “inspect later”
∧
insert words
begin paragraph
insert comma
take this out
transpose (transfer to a different place or context; switch places)
close up space
insert apostrophe symbol
lascivious
(of a person, manner, or gesture) feeling or revealing an overt and often offensive sexual desire
modulate
1: (music) the change from one tonality to another
2: to adjust to or keep in proper measure or proportion: TEMPER
3: to vary the amplitude, frequency, or phase of (a carrier wave or a light wave) for the transmission of information (as by radio)
4: to pass gradually from one state to another
tonality
principle of organizing musical compositions around a central note, the tonic
amplitude
sus
giving the impression that something is questionable or dishonest; suspicious
