Ten Rules for Writing an "A" Paper

 

1. KISS, Keep It Simple, Stupid.
 

2. Signposts - Use headings and subheads, Tell em what you're gonna tell em, tell em, tell em what you told em.
 

3. Treat Term Paper as Exercise, emphasize instrumental over expressive, demonstrate mastery of concepts and literature.
 

4. Scope Problem, avoid overly broad topic too diffuse, too many points.
 

5. Central Thesis- put forward thesis and defend, write from clear outline, get to the heart of the matter.
 

6. Coherence, subordinate minor points to single major theme.
 

7. Relate the Specific to the Abstract, what broader theme is your case an example of?
 

8. Avoid Relevance Problem  topic not relevant to course.
 

9. Strategic Topic.  Topic should be more than �interesting� it should be educationally and professional strategic.

 

10. Avoid Novelty Problem, don't be too cute, avoid over dramatization, seek balance.