https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/Recent content in Composition on Teddy Rook Bookhttps://teddyrookbook.com/img/share.jpghttps://teddyrookbook.com/img/share.jpgHugoenhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/writing-process/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/writing-process/Writers prewrite, draft, revise, edit and publish, and they go back and forth between the steps as needed. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/purpose-audience/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/purpose-audience/Before you write, ask why you are writing and who will read it. Both shape what you say and how you say it. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/prewriting/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/prewriting/Brainstorm, list, freewrite or cluster ideas, then narrow the topic to one you can cover well in the space you have. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/topic-sentences/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/topic-sentences/A topic sentence states the main idea of a paragraph, usually as the first sentence. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/supporting-details/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/supporting-details/Facts, examples, reasons and details support the main idea of the paragraph. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/unity/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/unity/Every sentence in a paragraph supports its one main idea. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/transitions/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/transitions/Transitions show how ideas connect: time (then, later), addition (also), contrast (however), cause and effect (therefore) and example (for instance). Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/paragraph-order/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/paragraph-order/Arrange details in an order the reader can follow: by time, by place, by importance, or by comparison. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/concluding-sentences/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/concluding-sentences/A concluding sentence wraps up the paragraph’s idea without just repeating the topic sentence. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/narrative/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/narrative/A narrative tells events in order, from a point of view, with characters, a setting, a conflict and a resolution. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/show-dont-tell/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/show-dont-tell/Show a feeling with action, dialogue and sensory details, and tell when a quick summary moves the story along. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/descriptive/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/descriptive/Use precise nouns, strong verbs and sensory details, arranged in a clear order. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/expository/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/expository/Expository writing explains or informs, with facts, definitions and examples, in a neutral voice. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/text-structures/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/text-structures/Explain by definition, classification, process, compare and contrast, or cause and effect. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/fact-opinion/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/fact-opinion/A fact can be checked. An opinion is a belief or a judgment. A claim is a statement an argument sets out to prove with reasons and evidence. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/persuasive/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/persuasive/Persuasive writing takes a position and gives reasons and evidence to convince a reader. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/thesis/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/thesis/A thesis states the main point or claim of an essay, in a sentence or two, and the whole essay supports it. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/thesis-strength/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/thesis-strength/A strong thesis is specific, can be argued or explained, and can be supported in the space you have. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/outlining/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/outlining/An outline puts the thesis, the main points and their support in order before you draft. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/introductions/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/introductions/An introduction catches interest, gives the reader the context they need, and leads to the thesis. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/body-paragraphs/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/body-paragraphs/Each body paragraph has a topic sentence tied to the thesis, evidence, an explanation of the evidence, and a link to what comes next. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/conclusions/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/conclusions/A conclusion returns to the thesis in new words and shows why it matters, without starting a new argument. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/five-paragraph/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/five-paragraph/An introduction, three body paragraphs and a conclusion: a starting form that teaches how an essay holds together. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/beyond-five/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/beyond-five/Let the argument decide the number and order of paragraphs: longer sections, a paragraph for the other side, and conclusions that do more than restate. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/evidence-types/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/evidence-types/Facts, statistics, examples, expert testimony and anecdotes: each kind has strengths and limits. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/quotations/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/quotations/Introduce a quotation, quote the words exactly, cite the source, and explain what the quotation shows. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/summarizing/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/summarizing/A summary gives a source’s main ideas in your own words, much shorter than the original, without your opinions. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/paraphrasing/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/paraphrasing/A paraphrase restates one passage in your own words and your own sentence structure, about as long as the original, with a citation. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/plagiarism/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/plagiarism/Give credit for other people’s words and ideas: quotation marks for exact words, and a citation for anything you quote, paraphrase or summarize. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/source-credibility/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/source-credibility/Check who wrote it and what they know, the evidence they give, the date, the purpose, and whether other good sources agree. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/research-questions/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/research-questions/Turn a topic into a focused question, find several good sources, and take notes that record where each idea came from. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/why-cite/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/why-cite/MLA (9th edition, 2021) is used in literature and the humanities, APA (7th edition, 2020) in psychology and the social sciences, and Chicago (18th edition, 2024) in history and publishing. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/mla-works-cited/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/mla-works-cited/MLA builds each entry from core elements in order: author, title of source, title of container, other contributors, version, number, publisher, publication date, location. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/mla-in-text/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/mla-in-text/An MLA in-text citation gives the author’s last name and the page, with no comma: (Morrison 45). Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/apa/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/apa/APA uses author and date: (Lee, 2020, p. 12) in the text, and reference entries that begin Lee, A. B. (2020). Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/chicago/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/chicago/Chicago’s notes-and-bibliography style uses numbered footnotes or endnotes and a bibliography; Chicago also offers an author-date system. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/citation-parts/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/citation-parts/Pick out the author, the title, the container, the publisher, the date and the pages in a citation in any style. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/revision/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/revision/Revise by adding, cutting, moving and replacing: check the thesis, the support, the order and the clarity. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/feedback/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/feedback/Useful feedback is specific, kind and something the writer can act on: name what works, then one or two things to try. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/editing/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/editing/Edit for grammar, punctuation, spelling and format. Read slowly and aloud, or on paper, to see what you wrote and not what you meant. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/concise/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/concise/Cut words that add nothing: “due to the fact that” → “because,” “in my opinion, I think” → “I think.” Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/business-letter/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/business-letter/A formal letter has the sender’s address, the date, the inside address, a salutation, the body, a closing and a signature, usually in block format. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladderhttps://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/email/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://teddyrookbook.com/writing/composition/email/A clear subject line, a greeting, the main point first, short paragraphs, a polite closing and your name. Composition · Writing & Grammar Ladder