Tips for Writing an Appendix

• First analyze whether writing an appendix for your paper will be beneficial for the target readers. If yes, include it in your paper.
• There can be a single appendix in a paper or more than that depending upon the requirement. If there is a single one, label it as Appendix. If there is more than one, label as Appendices; under that, label it as Appendix 1, 2, Appendix I, II, or Appendix A, B depending upon the style.
• The title of the appendix should be descriptive to the reader.
• The appendix/appendices should be cited in the main text of your paper.
• Each appendix must always begin on a new page.
• It should be well-structured so that the readers can easily understand it.
• The appendix is not included in the word count of a paper. So, you can make it lengthy or brief as per your requirements.
• For the section headings, tables and figures, follow the same style that you have followed in your main text.
• If a paper has an appendix, it should be listed in the Table of Contents.

These guidelines provide an outline idea about writing an appendix. Nowadays, many journals have facilitated to provide this supplementary information to online readers only so as to reduce the printing costs. So, in case you have to include an appendix in your paper, but bothered about the cost factor, you can go for the “online only” option.

The present post on ‘Using Articles (a / an / the) in English Grammar’ provides some valuable tips for properly using articles (a / an / the) in English grammar. This article will help you to avoid making future mistakes while using articles (a / an / the) in English grammar in your paper.

Basic Rules for Using Articles (a / an / the) in English Grammar

In the following are discussed the basic rules for correctly using articles (a / an / the) in English grammar.

The article ‘a’

The article ‘a’ is always used with a non-specific noun. It is used for talking about something in general. It is used to refer to something that has no shared knowledge between the speaker and the listener.

E.g.,

• I brought a cat yesterday.
• John was playing with a ball.
• A good plan is the key to a successful business.

The article ‘an’

The article ‘an’ is used before a word that begins with a vowel. It is also used before the words that begin with a vowel sound, like ‘hour’, ‘honour’, etc.

E.g.,

• I ate an apple.
• An idea can change your life.
• An hour of careful studying can bring you great results.

The article ‘the’

The article ‘the’ is used with a specific noun. It is used when the speaker and the listener have already discussed the subject. The article ‘the’ is used when something has a shared knowledge.

E.g.,

• I brought the cat yesterday.
• John was playing with ball.
• A good plan is the key to start the successful business.

No article

Sometimes, ‘a’, ‘an’ or ‘the’ will be needed in front of nouns in English grammar. But sometimes, no article will be needed at all before the nouns. When a noun is a thing that cannot be counted, also called as an uncountable noun, it will not use an article (a / an / the) before it.

E.g.,

• I travel to India every year.
• I am cooking fish for lunch.
• Beauty lies in the eye of the beholder.

By following the given tips you can learn the basic technique for using articles (a / an / the) in English grammar while writing your paper. The above mentioned rules will help you to learn and also guide you for properly using articles (a / an / the) in English grammar.

Tips for using bullet points

The sentence introducing the bullet list should end with a colon.

Ex.: The menu includes:

• pasta
• sausages
• pineapple pudding

If the bullet point item is a complete sentence in itself, you may capitalize its first letter (not mandatory). Just ensure that the style followed is consistent.

Ex.: The details of the National Development Program are as follows:

• The Rural Development Board will set up healthcare centers in every village, which will provide free treatment to the poor.
• All the rural areas will be connected by proper roads.

Use a period at the end of a bullet point if it concludes the introductory phrase.

Ex.: My weekend plan includes:

• getting up late in the mornings.
• watching a movie with my family.
• hanging out with my friends.

Note: If the items are of one word or short, do not use punctuations at the end.

Do not use punctuations at the end if the bullet point item is not a complete sentence and does not conclude the introductory phrase.

Ex.: I am ready for any of these:

• Shopping
• Partying
• Watching a movie

As per Garner’s Modern American Usage manual, if a bullet item begins with a lower case, a semicolon should be placed at the end of each item, an ‘and’ should be placed at the end of the penultimate item, and the final item should end with a period.

Ex.: It was my duty to:

• book travel tickets;
• book hotel rooms;
• arrange tourist guides; and
• keep a record of all cash transactions.

The bullet points should not be very lengthy. Limit it to around three sentences.

The grammar (tense) used in the bullet point should be consistent throughout. If not, it distracts the attention of the reader from the actual meaning of the bullet point.

After the last bullet point item, give a concluding sentence, which provides a sense of “completeness” to the reader.

Apart from the above tips, just remember that whatever format you choose, you should maintain it consistently throughout the list. In that way, the reader does not get confused and distracted.

The present article ‘Common Grammar Mistakes’ provides some useful tips for recognising and differentiating between some common words that are usually put into wrong use accidentally. This article will help you to avoid making future common grammar mistakes in your papers.

Tips to Avoid Common Grammar Mistakes

In the following are discussed some common grammar mistakes made by people and how to avoid them in the future.

Your or You’re

‘Your’ is used to refer to someone else’s belongings, property or characteristics, etc. E.g., ‘Congratulations. Your hard work has achieved you great successes’.

‘You’re’ is the short for ‘you are’. It is used to refer to someone in person. E.g., ‘You’re formally invited to the party’ or ‘You’re one the best students of our school’.

Avoid committing common grammar mistakes like ‘Your welcome’, which in the correct form should be ‘You’re welcome’.

Their, There or They’re

‘Their’ is used while referring to something that belongs to someone else. E.g., ‘Their enthusiasm was simply irresistible’ or ‘Their apartment was sold last week’.

‘There’ is used in regard to a location. E.g., ‘I will place the table over there’ or ‘There is the red pen you were searching’.

‘They’re’ is the short for ‘they are’. It used to refer to some people as a whole. E.g., ‘They’re joining our team this summer’ or ‘They’re going on a long vacation’.

Loose or Lose

‘Loose’ is the opposite of ‘tight’. E.g., ‘Kindly repair the loose handle’ or ‘My trousers are fitting loose’.

‘Lose’ is the opposite of ‘win’. E.g., ‘I feel that the Red team will lose this match or ‘Do not lose your hope’.

Its or It’s

‘Its’ is a domineering form of ‘it’. E.g., ‘The dog is wagging its tail’ or ‘The wall is losing its paint’.

‘It’s’ is the short of ‘it is’. E.g., ‘It’s going to rain tonight’ or ‘It’s dangerous to play with a knife’.

Affect or Effect

‘Affect’ is used to refer to some kind of influence. E.g., ‘The new Professor is affecting the students’ enthusiasm in a positive way’ or ‘Cigarette smoking can harmfully affect the smokers’.

‘Effect’ is used to refer to some result or outcome. E.g., ‘The lecture had a remarkable effect on the students’ or ‘The effects of the new invention are extremely valuable’.

Than or Then

‘Than’ is used to refer to something that is being compared. E.g., ‘My doll-house is better than yours’ or ‘John is more intelligent than Jack’.

‘Then’ is used to refer to something that is time-related. E.g., ‘I am looking forward to meeting you then’ or ‘Edit your paper first and then proofread it’.

The above discussed tips offer guidance to avoid making common grammar mistakes while writing a research or academic paper. Do not hurry. Always take out some time to cross-check your paper. Re-read and edit your paper, or ask someone else to proofread it for you. These common grammar mistakes may seem irrelevant at first, but your intellect will be questioned when these errors are noticed. Hence, always be careful and patient to create an error-free paper.

Guidelines for Capitalization

• The first letter of the first word in a sentence should be capitalized.

    Example: Will you come with me?

• The pronoun ‘I’ should always be capitalized.

    Example 1: I came here to attend a conference.

    Example 2: I’m extremely sorry for breaking that expensive vase.

• Titles should be capitalized only if they precede a name.

    Example: Managing Director Tom Jones is going to retire today.

• Days of the week and months should be capitalized.

    Example 1: She will come on Monday.

    Example 2: Our school will reopen in June.

    Note: Do not capitalize seasons (Ex.: I learnt painting during our summer vacations).

•  Proper nouns (names, places, organizations, etc.).

    Example 1: He is going to the market with John.

    Example 2: My cousin lives in Yellowstone Avenue.

    Example 3: He works in Venture Technologies.

• Names of countries, languages, nationalities, religions.

    Example 1: He visited the United Kingdom.

   Example 2: He knows many languages including Spanish and French.

    Example 3: She is an Italian.

    Example 4: He likes to visit Hindu shrines.

• Names of mountains, hills, oceans, rivers, etc.

    Example: Mount Everest, Khasi Hills, Pacific Ocean, Missouri River.

•  Titles of books, movie names, etc.

    Example: Othello, Ben Hur.

Note: Articles or prepositions at the beginning should be in capital letters. If in between, they should be in lower case (Ex: A    Tale of Two Cities).

• Names of wars and historical periods.

    Example: First World War, Battle of Plassey, Renaissance, Victorian Era.

• Names of Holy books and deities.

    Example: Bible, Quran, Gita, Jesus, Krishna, Allah, Buddha.

• Names of buildings and monuments.

    Example: The White House, the Statue of Liberty, etc.

• The first word in a direct quote.

    Example: Picasso had said, “Give me a museum and I’ll fill it.”

• Every letter in an acronym should be in capital letters.

    Example: NATO, UN, SAARC, CNN.

• Family relationships when used with a name.

    Example: Aunt Matilda is my favorite aunt.

We have discussed a few of the guidelines for capitalization. Apart from these, there are many more instances where capital letters are used. However, remember that there might be exceptions for a few of these rules. If you have any doubts whatsoever regarding the capitalization of a word, you can even look it up in the dictionary.

Writing or formatting papers in MLA style is a very elusive work. This needs a lot of learning and practice. In order to avoid committing common MLA style mistakes in your research or academic paper, the present article shows some valuable instructions on how to avoid these common MLA style mistakes while writing your own paper.

Common MLA Style Mistakes While Writing Papers

Wrong Organisation

MLA referencing style generally has specific writing procedures. These procedures should be followed by the students without any excuse. Employing wrong structure in the MLA paper is frequently regarded as a failure to give notice to details. These errors often annoy the readers. By failing to follow the instructions, students basically reject themselves of a chance to excel. Thus, always check and ensure to structure your paper according to the MLA referencing style guidelines.

Performing the Opposite

MLA writing guidelines generally provide step-by-step instructions on how to do things. Always refer to these guidelines while writing your MLA paper. Make sure that before starting to write your paper, you have clearly understood the MLA style guide. Academic papers written without proper use of the writing regulations will only diminish your grades. Thus, always make sure that you clearly understand and follow the stated academic writing guidelines.

Misunderstand the Instructions

Majority of students, who submit MLA style papers, usually fail to match their teachers’ expectations. The reason behind this failure is a number of mistakes. These mistakes include misunderstanding particular writing guidelines. In order to avoid this mistake, students should carefully read and thoroughly understand each and every instruction. In case they fail to understand any instruction, they should immediately ask for clarifications.

Improper Referencing Style

In-text referencing should not be treated as just a requirement. Adequate attention should always be paid to in-text citations. Along with making mistakes and omissions, many students submit MLA papers that have reference style mistakes. Ensure that all the in-text citations are done in line with the specific formats. Always make proper use of the MLA referencing style guides to avoid making hasty errors.

Inappropriate Reference List

References should not be merely added in the MLA papers for the sake of it. References section should be formatted flawlessly and precisely. Many MLA papers submitted by students have mistakes in the references list. In order to avoid committing such types of mistakes, always refer to the MLA style guides for learning the proper way to format a perfect reference list for your MLA paper.

Poor content

Writing an MLA paper is considered to be difficult as students typically have too many factors to put into contemplation during the writing course. Along with the failure in studying the MLA style guide properly before writing, some students also fail to select an appropriate content. Ensure to express your ideas and notions in an understandable and comprehensive manner. Make sure to analyse the research findings in order to avoid submitting inadequately researched MLA papers.

The above discussed points offer guidance to avoid the most common MLA style mistakes while writing a research or academic paper. Following these guidelines methodically can be a little tricky at first. However, regular practice will ultimately make you more well-known and better acquainted with the basic rules of MLA style.

Some useful tips for formatting quotations in MLA style are discussed below.

Tips for Formatting Quotations in MLA Style

Short Quotations

• Quotations that are shorter than three or four lines should be placed in double quotation marks (“ ”) and included in the text of the document.
• Give the parenthetical citation right away after the quotation.
• Every punctuation mark, except question (?) and exclamation marks (!), should be inserted after the parenthetical citation.
• Question and exclamation marks, which appear in the original source, should be placed inside the quotation marks.

Long Quotations

• Quotations that are longer than four lines should be typed in block quotations.
• These quotations should be indented one inch from the margin, double-spaced, and devoid of any quotation marks.
• Block quotations are usually initiated by a colon.
• Insert the parenthetical citation following the final punctuation mark of the quotation.

Poetry Quotes

• While quoting a single line of verse, ensure to put it in quotation marks and fit it into the text.
• While quoting two or three lines of verse, ensure to separate each line with a forward slash [/]. Insert the passage in quotation marks and include it in the text.
• While using slashes for separating lines of quoted verse, ensure to put a space before and after the slash.
• Add a parenthetical citation to the author and to the line number(s) of the poem.
• While quoting more than three lines of verse, ensure to type them in block quotations. Indent them one inch from the left margin.
• Block quotations of poetry must precisely reproduce the line breaks, spacing and punctuation as set up in the original text.
• Avoid using quotation marks for block quotations unless they appear in the original.
• The parenthetical citation should appear at the end of the last line of poetry.
• In case, the parenthetical citation does not fit into the last line of poetry, insert it in the subsequent line, flushing it with the right margin of the essay.

Drama Quotes

• For quoting the words of a particular character in a prose play, follow the procedure for a standard prose quotation.
• For quoting the words of a particular character in a verse play, follow the guidelines of MLA-style for quoting poetry.
• For quoting a dialogue between two or more characters, type the passage into a block quotation.
• Name of characters should be in capital letters followed by a period and then the text as it appears in the original text.
• Succeeding lines of the dialogue of the characters should be indented an additional three spaces.
• When a dialogue changes to another character, start it in a new line, which should be indented one inch from the left margin.

Inserting or Changing Words in Quotations

• While adding or changing words in a quotation, ensure to indicate this by inserting square brackets around the words, which are not part of the original text.

Excluding Words in Quotations

• While excluding or omitting words from a quotation, ensure to indicate this by employing ellipsis marks, i.e., three spaced periods.
• Ellipses should be used every time you leave out some material from a quotation that appears to be a sentence or a series of sentences.

By following the given tips you can learn the basic techniques for formatting quotations in MLA style without any major error or fault. The above mentioned strategies will help you to learn and get familiar with formatting quotations in MLA style in the most proper way.

The present article on ‘Writing an MLA Style Outline’ will guide you in preparing an MLA style outline for your writing. Some useful tips for writing an MLA style outline are discussed below.

Tips for Writing an MLA Style Outline

• Create a title for your outline. Arrange the title in the middle of the page header.
• Insert page numbers consecutively at the top right-hand corner.
• Avoid underlining or typing in bold the title of the outline.
• Ensure to keep one inch margins on all sides of the manuscript.
• Introduce quotations in your outline by inserting brackets following the quote. The brackets should include the author’s last name and the page number(s) by which the quote can be found.
• If a reader wants to know more about any particular quotation, he/she can refer to the bibliography.
• Ensure to keep a blank space between the author’s last name and the page number. The period should be put after the bracket close.
• Compose your outline. Cite direct quotes and paraphrases. You only require MLA formatting for quotations, references, paraphrasing and bibliography.
• Bibliography formatting should be started by entitling the section ‘Bibliography’. After inserting the title, strike ‘Enter’ twice prior to starting your first bibliographic entry.
• Each new entry should start on the left-hand side. In case, the entry is longer than one line, the second, as well as the succeeding lines in the same entry should be indented with at least five spaces. This is known as the hanging indentation.
• Insert the author’s last name first and the first name last. Separate the names by a comma in the bibliography. Insert a period after the first name and write the name of the book. Underline it and finish with a period. The book’s name should be followed by the place of publication, a colon, the publisher’s name, a comma and the year of publication. End with a period.
• In case the book has more than one author, begin the reference with one of the authors’ last names. The author’s last name should come first, followed by a comma and then the first name. Insert a comma to illustrate that more authors are present and merely write the full name of the second author. Conclude the reference with the same formatting style as discussed in the earlier step.
• In case there are no authors to be cited, begin with the name of the publication or the work itself. Name the organisation or institution, e.g., a university, if it is the chief publisher.
• Underline the title of the work and insert a period. Write the place of publication followed by a colon, the publisher’s name, followed by a comma, and the year of publication, followed by a period.
• Ensure that your outline is double-spaced throughout, as this is a part of correct MLA style formatting.
• Ensure that the bibliography is alphabetised by the authors’ last names. In case there are no authors present, use the name of the work as the reference for alphabetising.

By following the given tips you can learn the basic technique for writing an MLA style outline. The above mentioned strategies will help you to learn and also guide you in writing an MLA style outline for your future use.

Writing a high-quality abstract need the explanation of what was done and what was found by the study in an easy, concise and direct language so that readers can ultimately decide whether to read the complete paper or not. The general rules provided in the present article will guide you in writing an abstract in MLA style.

General Rules for Writing an Abstract in MLA Style

• While writing an abstract in MLA style, it is firstly needed to summarise the objective of the research and the methods used.
• MLA-style abstract should comprise a short description of the objective, methods, findings and convincing conclusions of the study.
• MLA-style abstract for humanities topics should be short and snappy. It should be about 150–250 words long.
• MLA format does not generally need an abstract. In case an abstract is required, it should be placed after the title page, but before the main text of the document.
• State why you decided to conduct a research on the subject and why the readers should be concerned about the topic of your research.
• Give a detailed account of the research methods used in the study. Also, describe how the results of the study were obtained.
• Give an account of the findings and include what was found as the result of your research.
• In case, the findings have larger implications, comprise them in the conclusion section.
• Avoid ambiguous and unnecessary words, phrases and sentences that hamper the real value of the abstract.
• Ensure there are no grammatical, spelling or punctuation errors in the abstract. The abstract should be error-free in order to achieve the readers’ confidence.
• Abstract should be double-spaced throughout. Use decipherable fonts, like Times New Roman, Arial, etc., in 12-point font size.
• When citing a long work in the abstract, use italics instead of quotation marks.
• Read and revise the abstract several times to make it perfect and faultless.
• Ensure that the final form of the abstract is kept within the word limit.

By following the given rules you can learn the basic manner by which an abstract is written in MLA style. The above mentioned general rules will help you to learn and also guide you in writing an abstract in MLA style.

The basic rules provided in the ‘Formatting in MLA Style’ article will guide you for appropriately formatting various research papers and academic publications. Initially, it might seem a bit difficult in understanding the technique of formatting in MLA style. However, with gradual use, you will become more familiar with this style and its techniques. Some basic guidelines of formatting in MLA style are discussed below.

Rules for Formatting in MLA Style

General Rules

• MLA style of formatting suggests using such type of fonts, in which the regular and italics type styles should contrast adequately so that they are easily identifiable from each other.
• Use a clear and readable font, namely Times New Roman, Arial, etc. Font size should be 12 point.
• The whole document should be double-spaced.
• Use only one space after periods or other punctuation marks.
• Margins of the document should be set to one inch on all sides.
• First line of paragraphs should be indented one and a half-inch from the left margin. MLA suggests using the Tab key rather than using the Space Bar five times.
• Create a header one and a half inch from the top of the page and flush with the right margin. This header should include the page numbers provided in the upper right-hand corner. In some cases, page number on the first page is omitted.
• Endnotes should be included on a separate page before the Works Cited page. This section should be titled as ‘Notes’ and be centre aligned.

First Page Formatting

• Title page for the document should be included if only particularly requested.
• In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, provide your full name, your instructor’s full name, the course, and the date.
• Ensure that the whole document is double-spaced.
• The title should be centred. It should not be underlined, italicised, or placed in quotation marks. The title should be written in the Title Case using standard capitalisation and not in all capital letters.
• Double space should be used between the title and the first line of the text.
• Create a header in the upper right-hand corner. This header should include your last name, followed by a space and the page number.
• All pages should be numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.). In some cases, the last name and page number on the first page is avoided.

Headings

• 1^st level heading should be in bold and left aligned.
• 2^nd level heading should be in italics and left aligned.
• 3^rd level heading should be in bold and centre aligned.
• 4^th level heading should be in italics and centre aligned.
• 5^th level heading should be underlined and flushed left.

The basic guidelines offered in this article will provide you with an outline for formatting in MLA style the research papers and other academic publications. Every characteristic of MLA style guide has much more thorough specifications, which will be discussed elaborately in our subsequent posts.