TYPES OF WRITING STYLES Developed from "About Writing"

There are four main types of writing: EXPOSITORY, DESCRIPTIVE, PERSUASIVE, AND NARRATIVE. Each of these writing styles is used for a specific purpose. A single text may include more than one writing style if the author chooses to do so. When an author is writing for himself, he can choose to intertwine writing styles if he wishes, but this freedom does not apply to writings crafted in a school-setting or assignments for work. Those writings require specific style, content, and structure to be followed.

For papers written for a specific purpose, to a specific audience, in a specific classroom, as part of a graded assignment, the author must follow the writing style assigned by the instructor. Instructors at the college-level will typically assign a persuasive argument assignment, and so the specific details relating to that style of writing must always be adhered to. At the college-level, authors will always assess the writing prompt for clear details as to what writing style is assigned and the key specifics that the instructor will require.

EXPOSITORY

Expository writing is one of the most common types of writing. When an author writes in an expository style, all they are trying to do is explain a concept, imparting information from themselves to a wider audience. Expository writing does not include the author’s opinions but focuses on accepted facts about a topic, including statistics or other evidence. The purpose of this style of writing is simply to EXPOSE information about a topic—with an even-hand and free from bias.

DESCRIPTIVE

Descriptive writing is often found in fiction, though it can make an appearance in nonfiction as well (for example, memoirs, first-hand accounts of events, or travel guides). When an author writes in a descriptive style, they are painting a picture in words of a person, place, or thing for their audience. The author might employ metaphor or other literary devices in order to describe the author’s impressions via their five senses (what they hear, see, smell, taste, or touch). But the author is not trying to convince the audience of anything or explain the scene – merely describe things as they are.

PERSUASIVE

Persuasive writing is the main style of writing you will use in academic papers. When authors write in a persuasive style, they are trying to convince the audience of a position or belief. Persuasive writing contains the author’s opinions and biases, as well as justifications and logical reasoning given by the author as evidence of the correctness of his/her position. The evidence and assertions presented by an author writing a persuasive essay will contain source materials from scholarly sources. These sources will be used to defend the assertions already made by the author in the paper. The sources will not ‘make’ the argument for the author. The sources defend the argument that was already declared by the author. Any “argumentative” essay you write in a school-setting will be in the persuasive style of writing.

NARRATIVE

Narrative writing is used in almost every longer piece of writing, whether fiction or nonfiction. When an author writes in a narrative style, they are not just trying to impart information, they are trying to construct and communicate a story, complete with characters, conflict, and settings.

RESEARCH

Research writing is used at various educational levels and for various reasons. However, research writing requires one main skill: locating, integrating, and properly documenting sources in a specific format: MLA, APA, or Turabian. When an author writes using research, the purpose of that writing can be to expose a situation, argue a side of an issue, or to present findings relating to a current issue. When writing in a paper with research, you are writing in a style that requires the use of 3^rd person voice. Do not include 1^st or 2^nd person voice in any academic writings.

Friday, February 8, 2019

MLA CITATIONS

MLA CITATION EXAMPLES

IN-TEXT CITATIONS

In-text citations in MLA style are sometimes called parenthetical citations. An in-text citation is used to let the reader of your work know that an outside source contributed to your writing of a particular phrase, idea, or argument. In-text citations need to be used following every direct quotation and paraphrase/summary that you write.

IN-TEXT CITATION FOR SOURCE WITH KNOWN AUTHOR

These citations need to include the author’s last name and the page/paragraph number on which the information was found. If a signal phrase is used earlier in the sentence which includes the author’s name, the name does not need to be included in the citation.

Stephen Hawking describes the climate at Oxford while he was studying there as “very anti-work” (33).

The climate at Oxford during his studies is described as “very anti-work” (Hawking 33).

IN-TEXT CITATION FOR SOURCE WITH UNKNOWN AUTHOR

These citations need to include the title or shortened title of the work and the page/paragraph number on which the information was found.

While some suggest that transgender individuals should rely on law enforcement for protection it’s reported that “police often participate in the intimidation themselves rather than providing protection” (“Fighting Anti-Trans Violence” 2).

IN-TEXT CITATION FOR SOURCE WITH MULTIPLE AUTHORS

These citations need to include the authors’ last names and the page/paragraph number on which the information was found. If a signal phrase is used earlier in the sentence which includes the authors’ last names, the names do not need to be included in the citation. If the source has three or fewer authors, all the authors’ last names need to be listed in the citation.

Ishiguro, Garcia, and Schmidt suggest that more scientific research is needed before a conclusion between cause and effect can be drawn (198).

“More scientific research needs to be completed before any conclusions about causation can be drawn” (Ishiguro, Garcia, and Schmidt 198).

If the source has more than three authors, only the first author’s last name needs to be listed in the citation, followed by the phrase ‘et al’.

De Walle et al. suggest that mainstream scientists and media organizations have ulterior motives when it comes to conducting such research (231).

The scientists involved in these studies have suggested that mainstream scientists and media organizations may have ulterior motives when it comes to conducting such research (De Walle et al. 231).

WORKS CITED ENTRIES

WORKS CITED ENTRY FOR BOOK/PRINT SOURCE WITH KNOWN AUTHOR

Last name, First name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.

Ip, Greg. The Little Book of Economics. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2010. Book.

WORKS CITED ENTRY FOR AN ARTICLE IN A SCHOLARLY JOURNAL

Author(s). “Title of Article.” Title of Journal Volume.Issue (Year): pages. Medium of publication.

Belzer, Alisa. “From Heroic Victims To Competent Comrades: Views Of Adult Literacy Learners In The Research Literature.” Adult Education Quarterly. 65.3 (2015): 250-266. Web.

WORKS CITED ENTRY FOR A WEBPAGE

Editor, author, or compiler name (if available). “Page Title.” Name of Website. Name of publisher, date of resource creation (if available). Medium of publication. Date of access.

Ravenscraft, Eric. “How to Change Your Car’s Oil.” Lifehacker. Lifehacker, 1 August 2014. Web. 24 June 2016.

LICENSE

MLA Citation Examples by Robin Jeffrey is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

Essay Writing (Style)

Pages