How Not to
Fear Writing
…and other tips and tricks
to get you through ELA 3-4H
AP means answer the prompt
Pro tip:
1.) Annotate your prompt, highlighting
directional words/phrases.
2.) Turn the prompt into a question.
3.) Answer the whole question.
Essay terms explained here
BTW, the “meaning of the work as a whole” =
theme.
2009 Form B prompt:
Many works of literature deal with political or
social issues. Choose a novel or play that
focuses on a political or social issue. Then write
an essay in which you analyze how the author
uses literary elements to explore this issue and
explain how the issue contributes to the
meaning of the work as a whole. Do not merely
summarize the plot.
theme
Pro tip: Often, the directives in a prompt will
help you to organize your essay. More later…
In a question…
How does the author use literary elements to
explore political or social issues, and how do
those issues contribute to the theme of [work of
literature]?
But Gordon, what if I get asked about an
author’s style or voice? What does that even
mean?
Go here.
This guy knows.
Now, the planning
 Chickenfoot
No, seriously. Click on the link and watch
the video.
A good thesis…
 Makes
a claim: it is debatable, strong,
well-phrased and precise.
 Focuses your argument: it sets parameters
for the depth and breadth of your
argument.
 Organizes your argument: it signals to the
reader (either directly or indirectly) the
evidence you will use to prove your claim.
A sample thesis:
Shakespeare portrays both the hostility and
despair of Wolsey's reaction through
dramatic diction, figurative language, and
a shift in tone.
Structure of your argument
set up here: how the author
is going to prove the claim
about how Shakespeare
creates Wolsey’s reaction
Depth
and
breadth
of thesis
set up
here
Paragraphing

Body paragraphs should be voluptuous. I
won’t impose a sentence minimum, but I will
demand more than an anorexic argument.
Pro tip: In general, a good body paragraph will
contain a topic sentence (which should have
commentary in it ancillary to the claim), at least
2-3 pieces of solid evidence, and
commentary/analysis.
I need help with…
 Organizing
 Making
a paragraph
my topic sentences NOT sound
repetitive while supporting my thesis
Introduction FAILS…
 DEFINITIONS:
“Webster’s dictionary
defines love as…”
 SWEEPING GENERALIZATIONS: “Since the
beginning of time…”
 AUTHOR LOVE FEST: “In Edgar Allan Poe’s
amazing masterwork ‘The Raven’…”
So what do I do in an intro?
 Author
& text (punctuated correctly)
 Author’s ideas and/or purpose
 Context (if needed)
 Thesis
Writing pet peeves



Don’t talk about how an author ‘uses’ (or
‘utilizes,’ fancy pants thesaurus kids) a literary
device. They’re literary devices, not power
tools.
No ‘this shows that.’ No, no, no. Too much
potential for antecedent confusion.
Don’t stack prepositional phrases. From the
bottom of my heart and in all seriousness, if
you go beyond the standard number of
prepositional phrases in one sentence you will
get crazy wordy. (See what I did there?)
Writing pet peeves
 No
‘There is/there are’ as the beginning of
a sentence. Nope. ‘There’ is nonspecific.
 Eliminate ‘in conclusion’ from your
conclusion. Too obvious. Don’t let your
organization show too much. It’s like
letting your underwear show, and nobody
wants to see that.
Rid us all of these words…
 Stuff,
things, very, a lot (especially when
you spell it a lot, which is not a word, btw),
really, cuz, cray-cray (I had a student put
that in a paper once and part of my soul
died, no joke)or any slang ….actually,
anything on this list.
 Also, copula. That’s a fancy way to say
“to be” verbs (is, am, are, was, etc.). You
can find some alternatives here.
For the love of all that is decent,
honest and true in life….
 Proofread.
Click the pears for
common errors in
grammar, spelling
& mechanics.
Wrapping it all up…
In your conclusion:


DO restate your thesis without being
formulaic.
DO connect what you’ve read/written
about to bigger ideas and universals…the
“so what?” factor applies here. Why is the
topic even important?
More pro tips…

I need another walk-through on how to
analyze a writer’s style.

I need help embedding quotes.

I need help making my
themes not sound like
fortune cookies.
One last thing…
 How
do I make sure my whole paragraph
isn’t just plot summary? Click below…
RUBRICS WE USE
 The
AP rubric
 The AzCCRS rubric
You’ve got this.