CLAP FIRST DRAFT ERRORS
CITATIONS
• MLA format – works cited page, please!
• An article/book with an author: (Author’s last name page #)
• (Fitzgerald 5)
• (Smith par. 5)
• An article without an author: (Portion of article title page 3)
• (“Deconstructing” 3)
• (“Deconstructing” par. 3)
SECONDARY SOURCE QUOTE SELECTION
• SSQs need to be:
• PURPOSEFUL  highlight an important point/argument
• Something that if you put it in your own words, it would lose some
meaning.
• NOT PLOT SUMMARY!!! You can tell me what happens in the novel in your
own words since you read it.
• Cited correctly
• Attach to a sentence
• Make sure you DO NOT OVERQUOTE  be selective!!!!
TOPIC SENTENCES
• Arguments!
• Don’t rely on plot summary
• Extension of your thesis
• “Wolf’s philosophy of materialism and survival of the fittest often clashes with
Humphrey’s more spiritual beliefs”
• “The often mentioned color, white, is synonymous with purity and civilization throughout
the novel.”
• “To be truly human, as Bradbury’s book suggests, one must know his or her place in the
natural world by not only appreciating its beauties, but also by respecting its power.”
BOOK TITLES
•ITALICIZED OR UNDERLINED!!!! 
GRAMMAR ISSUES – TRENDS
• Agreement – pronoun/noun
• Singular goes with singular – he, she, one, everybody, no one, man, etc.
• Plural goes with plural – people, they, their, etc.
• Comma use
• Passive voice
• Contractions
• No second person
• Present tense
• Vague/ambiguous “It”
PRONOUN AGREEMENT
• Agree in number
• If the pronoun takes the place of a singular noun, you have
to use a singular pronoun.
• If a student parks a car on campus, he or she has to
buy a parking sticker.
• Remember: the words everybody, anybody, anyone, each,
neither, nobody, someone, a person, etc. are singular and
take singular pronouns.
• Everybody ought to do his or her best.
• Neither of the girls brought her umbrella.
USE ACTIVE RATHER THAN PASSIVE VERBS
• Wordy
• An account was opened by Mrs. Simms.
• Your figures were checked by the research department.
• More Concise
• Mrs. Simms opened an account.
• The research department checked your figures.
AVOID OVERUSING EXPLETIVES AT THE
BEGINNING OF SENTENCES
• Expletives are phrases of the form it + be-verb or there + be-verb.
• Ambiguous
• Overuse or unnecessary use of expletive constructions creates wordy prose.
• Example: "It is imperative that society find a solution."
• More Concise: “Society must find a solution."
QUOTATIONS
• How to Use:
• Don’t change spelling, capitalization, punctuation, etc.
• Put quotation marks around the quote if it is four or fewer lines of text.
• Use a parenthetical reference at the end of the quote.
• Don’t end a paragraph with quote.
• Use minimally.
QUOTATIONS
• Introducing Quotes:
• Need to blend with the sentence.
• Create a context for the quote (name of source and title of source).
• Use a signal phrase or verb:
• Adds, argues, concludes, continues, defines, discusses, identifies, that,
etc.
• Ex. He continues to insist that . . .
QUOTATIONS
• Mechanics of Quotes:
• After a full sentence, use a colon to introduce quotation
• Ex. Spinello asks an important question: “What . . .
• Double quotes > replace internal quote with single quotation marks.
• An omission in a quote is marked by ellipsis (. . .)
• Parenthetical for quotation in MLA style: (author page #).
• Note: For material that is quoted in your cited source, add “qtd. in” > (qtd. in Conant
305).
QUOTATIONS
• Mechanics of Quotes Cont…
• Block Quotes
• Try to limit block quotes.
• Are more than four lines.
• Introduce quote with colon.
• Indent quote one inch from the left margin and double space it
• Don’t put in quotation marks
• Put the parenthetical reference after the period at the end of the
quotation.
QUOTATIONS
• Examples:
• According to Natalie J. McKnight, for many of these women “suffering
seems to be the sine qua non of their existence” as this suffering would
largely be perpetuated by mothers’ inability to achieve the maternal ideal
(3).
PARAPHRASING
• How to Use:
• Make sure you use your own words and sentence structure.
• Don’t distort the sources original meaning.
• Quote any words that are repeated from original source.
• Use a parenthetical reference at the end of the paraphrase. (Author Page
#)
PARAPHRASING
• Introducing a Paraphrase:
• Make it clear to your reader when you are beginning to paraphrase.
• Create a context for the source you are paraphrasing (name of source and
title of source).
• Ex. John Smith argues that. . .
PARAPHRASING
• Examples:
• Avery contends that despite common beliefs that EBB had a horrible
childhood with a tyrannical father, her family was actually supportive (25).
• According to Murray, students are frequently chastised by their teachers
for not writing in the erudite manner that is idolized in academia (3).
ANALYSIS NOT SUMMARY
• Let’s take a look at the provided handout
WHAT DO YOU WANT HELP WITH?
1. Sign up for a meeting time on the handout being passed
around.
2. Homework: Print out your essay with my comments by Friday.
Go through your CLAP first draft on Turnitin and jot down any
questions you have for me. When we meet, we can discuss your
concerns.