Writing Center

Help Now

If you are having trouble getting an appointment at the Writing Center, or if you have an appointment and want to prepare for it, here are some questions that you can ask yourself about your paper. You do not need to answer all of the questions, just the ones that apply to your paper. If you are having trouble answering these questions about your paper, have a friend or relative read the paper and answer the questions.

1. Who is my audience? What do they know, and what do they need to know? What is my attitude towards the reader?
2. What do I want to accomplish in this paper? What are the major ideas I want to share in my paper?
3. What kind of information or sources do I need to use in my paper? Am I missing any important details or arguments?
4. How do my beginning and ending work?
5. Through my thesis and introduction, what am I promising to do in my paper? Do I keep that promise? If I do not, where do I fail to do so?
6. What is my attitude towards the subject? Is my attitude appropriate for my topic/format? Is my language appropriate for the subject?
7. Do I have an order to my paper? If so, what is the order? Does my order help or hinder the movement of my paper?
8. What parts of my paper are most effective?
9. What parts of my paper are least effective? What parts are not clear?
10. Am I having any particular problems with this paper (grammar, documentation, word choice, sentence variety, transitions, spelling, etc.)?