OVERVIEW
Each discipline has its own style, structure, and format when it comes to academic writing. This section provides resources on writing in specific disciplines, broken down into the following five general academic categories: Business and Communication, Humanities, Social Sciences, Sciences and Mathematics.
The Humanities category is further broken down by subject and common rhetorical writing tasks in that discipline: analysis, argument and persuasion, cause and effect, classification, comparison and contrast, definition, description and narrative.
Also see: Citing Sources for discipline-specific citation styles | Professional Writing for common non-academic writing resources such as writing for email, for the web and for the job search.
BUSINESS AND COMMUNICATION
Business Writing (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center) “This handout will help you write business letters required in many different situations, from applying for a job to requesting or delivering information. While the examples that are discussed specifically are the application letter and cover letter, this handout also highlights strategies for effective business writing in general.”
Communication Studies (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout describes some steps for planning and writing papers in communication studies courses.”
Montclair State University Databases: Business, Economics & Management (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing for a North American Business Audience (Purdue OWL)
“This handout provides examples and information (written for non-North Americans) on how to write for a business audience. It includes information on getting to the point, keeping it simple, active and passive voice, nondiscriminatory language, and verb overgeneralizing.”
Writing for an Indian Business Audience (Purdue OWL)
“This handout provides examples and information on writing for both domestic and international audiences doing business in India. It includes information on letters and memos, as well as important stylistic considerations. The handout concludes with comments on some important characteristics of English writing in India, and on the status of English in business writing compared with native Indian languages, such as Hindi and Bengali.”
Writing in Business (Writing@CSU)
An online writing guide about writing for business. Sections address writing business letters, resumes, press releases and executive summaries.
HUMANITIES
Resources for writing in the Humanities are broken down into the following sections. See resources for each below.
- General
- Art and Art History
- Dance
- Drama
- Film
- Journalism
- Literature
- Music
- Philosophy
- Poetry
- Religion
- Rhetorical Tasks
HUMANITIES > GENERAL
Four Keys to Writing in the Humanities (Mark T. Unno, University of Oregon)
“One of the challenges of writing papers in the humanities is that courses and instructors have different requirements and expectations. Nevertheless, there are certain things that tend to be consistent across the curriculum, such as focus and simplicity, basic forms of argument, documentation, and writing as a craft. When you begin to understand these basic elements, then the variety of requirements and expectations will actually become a source of inspiration and wisdom rather than confusion and frustration.”
Writing in the Humanities and Arts (UCLA Graduate Writing Center)
“The books and articles below offer advice on writing dissertations, theses, articles, proposals, and abstracts in the humanities and arts (although some of these sources address a broader audience).”
HUMANITIES > ART AND ART HISTORY
Art History (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout discusses several common types of art history assignments, and talks about various strategies and resources that will help you write your art history papers.”
Montclair State University Databases: Art and Design (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing Across the Curriculum: Writing About Art (Hunter College Writing Center) (PDF)
This handout explains different types of art history papers and includes a series of rhetorical questions for analyzing paintings, portraits, figural scenes, landscapes, sculptures, and architecture.
Writing About Art (Marjorie Munsterberg)
This page discusses the different ways to approach an art history paper and includes sample excerpts.
HUMANITIES > DANCE
Guidelines for Viewing Dance and Writing Critiques for Dance Performances (Myra Daleng, University of Richmond Writing Center)
Ideas and suggestions for writing a critique of a dance performance. One of the most interesting sections of the handout is the “Dance Critique Pet Peeves” that lists words and phrases to avoid when writing a dance critique. There is also a checklist for writing a critique at the end. Also see: Research-Based Writing.
Montclair State University Databases: Theatre & Dance (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing a Dance Critique (Utah Tech University)
This handout presents five steps to critiquing a performance and includes questions for evaluation.
HUMANITIES > DRAMA
Drama – UNC Chapel Hill (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout identifies common questions about drama, describes the elements of drama that are most often discussed in theater classes, provides a few strategies for planning and writing an effective drama paper, and identifies various resources for research in theater history and dramatic criticism.”
Drama Terms: Brief Definitions (Washington State University)
A dictionary of drama terms.
How to Review a Play (University of Wisconsin – Madison, The Writing Center)
Here are some tips to help you before you begin writing a play review. This page offers advice on what you can do to prepare before the play and what types of questions you should be asking yourself during the play.
Montclair State University Databases: Theatre & Dance (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
HUMANITIES > FILM
How to Write About Film: The Movie Review, The Theoretical Essay, and The Critical Essay (University of Colorado, The Writing Center) (PDF)
A guide to thinking critically about film using Timothy Corrigan’s three major genres.
Lights, Camera, Brainstorming: Writing About Film (Agnes Scott College, Center for Writing and Speaking) (PDF)
This handout provides suggestions for what to do before, during, and after watching the film.
Montclair State University Databases: Film Studies (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
The McGraw-Hill Film Viewer’s Guide (McGraw-Hill) (PDF)
This PDF discusses the conventions of writing about film and includes sample student papers.
Writing About Film (Simon Fraser University Library)
“This guide has been designed as a starting point for research into writing about films.”
Writing About Film (Duke University, Thompson Writing Program) (PDF)
“This handout discusses ways to approach film as a visual medium. It offers suggestions for focus, prewriting tips, and guidance on how to think critically about a medium many of us think of as popular entertainment. It does not include a comprehensive list of technical film terminology, although it does provide links to several sources that do. This handout deals with decoding film as a viewer, considering how film appears rather than how it was made.”
HUMANITIES > JOURNALISM
Basics of News Writing (Write Right: A Student Audio Podcast, Texas A&M University, University Writing Center)
An interview with Dale Rice, Director of Journalism Studies, about how to write a news story.
Feature News vs. Hard News(Write Right: A Student Audio Podcast, Texas A&M University, University Writing Center)
An interview with “Dale Rice, Director of Journalism Studies here at Texas A&M, about the difference in hard news and feature news writing.”
Lives: Columns – The New York Times (The New York Times)
“Since 1996, The Times Magazine has published the Lives column, a series of incisive, 800-word essays or as-told-to accounts that highlight small moments in real people’s lives. While a number of well-known writers have contributed to this column — including Nora Ephron, Michael Pollan, Karen Russell and others — some of the best submissions have been from nonprofessional writers, people who felt that they had a really good story to tell.”
How to Interview Sensitive Sources With Tips (Masterclass)
“In the course of reporting, an investigative journalist may need to interview sensitive sources or anonymous sources to glean the most accurate information.”
Writing on Deadlines (Alaska Press Club)
“Deadlines are the bane and lifeblood of reporting. New York Times reporter Sarah Mervosh has created several routines and checklists to help.”
HUMANITIES > LITERATURE
Book Reviews (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout will help you write a book review, a report or essay that offers a critical perspective on a text. It offers a process and suggests some strategies for writing book reviews.”
Fiction Terms: 35 Brief Definitions (Washington State University)
A dictionary of poetry terms.
Guidelines for Writing a Literature Review (Helen Mongan-Rallis, University of Minnesota Duluth)
Mongan-Rallis uses Galvin’s Writing Literature Reviews: A Guide for Students of the Behavioral Sciences, 3rd ed., to reiterate and expand upon a step-by-step approach to writing a literature review. She mentions technology that is useful in composing/organizing a literature review and includes links to additional resources.
Introduction to Modern Literary Theory (Kristi Siegel, Mount Mary College)
Siegel explains 18 literary theories and includes suggestions for further reading.
Literary Theory and Schools of Criticism (Purdue OWL)
“This resource will help you begin the process of understanding literary theory and schools of criticism and how they are used in the academy.” The sections on this handout include:
- Critical Disability Studies
- Critical Race Theory
- Ecocriticism
- Feminist Criticism
- Formalism
- Gender Studies and Queer Theory
- Marxist Criticism
- Moral Criticism, Dramatic Construction
- New Historicism, Cultural Studies
- Post-Colonial Criticism
- Postmodern Criticism
- Psychoanalytic Criticism
- Reader-Response Criticism
- Structuralism and Semiotics
Literature (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout describes some steps for planning and writing papers about fiction texts.”
Literature Reviews (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout will explain what a literature review is and offer insights into the form and construction of a literature review in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.”
Montclair State University Databases: Literature (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing About Fiction (Purdue OWL)
“This handout covers major topics relating to writing about fiction. This covers prewriting, close reading, thesis development, drafting, and common pitfalls to avoid.”
- Close Reading a Text and Avoiding Pitfalls
- Developing a Thesis
- Pre-writing Activities and Drafting Your Essay
Writing About Literature (Purdue OWL)
“This handout provides examples and description about writing papers in literature. It discusses research topics, how to begin to research, how to use information, and formatting.”
Writing in Literature Overview (Purdue OWL)
“These sections describe in detail the assignments students may complete when writing about literature.”
HUMANITIES > MUSIC
Montclair State University Databases: Music (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing about Music – Calgary (The University of Calgary, Robert M. Seiler)
Dr. Seiler offers “hints on how to help the reader appreciate the complexities of the performance you plan to write about” focusing on “(a) getting ready to write and (b) writing the piece.”
Writing about Music – UNC (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout features common types of music assignments and offers strategies and resources for writing them.”
HUMANITIES > PHILOSOPHY
A Brief Guide to Writing the Philosophy Paper (Harvard College Writing Center)
An introduction to writing a philosophy paper, which includes useful examples.
How to Write a Philosophy Paper (David Clowney, Rowan University)
Begins with general tips on writing a paper and then offers suggestions for writing interpretive, analytic, and exploratory papers.
Montclair State University Databases: Philosophy (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Philosophy (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout discusses common types of philosophy assignments and strategies and resources that will help you write your philosophy papers.”
Tips on Writing a Philosophy Paper (Douglas W. Portmore, Arizona State University) (PDF)
This thorough handout discusses thesis statements, structure, content, rhetorical considerations, documentation, and style for a philosophy paper.
HUMANITIES > POETRY
Glossary of Poetic Terms (Poetry Foundation)
A complete glossary of poetry terms. You can search for terms alphabetically or filter them by “Forms & Types,” “Rhythm & Meter,” “Schools & Periods,” “Techniques & Figures of Speech,” and “Theory & Criticism.”
How to Read a Poem (University of Wisconsin – Madison, The Writing Center)
This source provides questions to help you identify a poem’s subject, context, form and language.
Image in Poetry (Purdue OWL)
“This section covers images as they appear in poetry and covers related terminology, definitions and origins of images, uses of images, and several exercises.”
Poetry Explications (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“A poetry explication is a relatively short analysis which describes the possible meanings and relationships of the words, images, and other small units that make up a poem. Writing an explication is an effective way for a reader to connect a poem’s plot and conflicts with its structural features. This handout reviews some of the important techniques of approaching and writing a poetry explication, and includes parts of two sample explications.”
Poetry Terms: Brief Definitions (Washington State University)
A dictionary of poetry terms.
Writing About Poetry (Purdue OWL)
“Writing about poetry can be one of the most demanding tasks that many students face in a literature class. Poetry, by its very nature, makes demands on a writer who attempts to analyze it that other forms of literature do not. So how can you write a clear, confident, well-supported essay about poetry? This handout offers answers to some common questions about writing about poetry.”
HUMANITIES > RELIGION
Montclair State University Databases: Jewish Studies (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Montclair State University Databases: Religion (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Religious Studies (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout will help you to write research papers in religious studies.”
HUMANITIES > RHETORICAL TASKS
In academic writing, one can be asked to do many different types of writing. Some papers have you conducting research, while others require you to formulate an argument or write a critique, and some often have you do a combination of research and argument. This section includes resources on the following specific types of academic writing: analysis, argument and persuasion, cause and effect, classification, comparison and contrast, definition, description, and narrative. See Conducting Research for resources on writing research papers.
Analysis
How to Write a Literary Analysis Essay (Bucks County Community College) (PDF)
Breaks down the “elements of a solid essay” to guide readers in their own literary analyses.
Literary Analysis Guide (Goshen College English Dept.)
Includes strategies and principles for analyzing a text, along with sample analysis paragraphs.
Argument and Persuasion
Argument (Writing@CSU)
An online writing guide to “help writers better understand how to plan, organize, develop, support and revise a written argument.” Sections of the guide address the parts of an argument, the Toulmin Method and adapting the argument to the audience.
Argumentative Essays (Purdue OWL)
An introduction to writing an argumentative essay.
Developing an Argument Handouts(UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
These handouts support writers in developing an argument.
- Taking Inventory
- Checklist for Analyzing Research Material
- Evidence Analysis
- Thesis Analysis
- Focus Checklist
- Audience Analysis
- Revision Checklist
Developing Strong Thesis Statements (Purdue OWL)
Tips for making your thesis statement debatable and narrow enough. It also includes definitions/examples of the four categories of thesis statements.
Montclair State University Databases: Research and Writing (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Writing Tips: Thesis Statements (Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Center for Writing Studies) Definition of thesis statements including what questions to ask when formulating thesis statements and model examples of thesis statements.
Cause and Effect
Writing Cause and Effect Papers (Butte College, Center for Academic Success)
This is a tip sheet on examining “the reasons for and the outcomes of situations.”
Classification
Writing a Classification Paper (Butte College, Center for Academic Success)
This is a tip sheet on prewriting, developing a thesis, organizing and using effective language in a classification essay.
Comparison and Contrast
Compare and Contrast (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center) (VIDEO)
“Learn strategies for comparing and contrasting ideas—strategies that can also help you generate ideas for other types of writing.”
Comparing and Contrasting (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout will help you first to determine whether a particular assignment is asking for comparison/contrast and then to generate a list of similarities and differences, decide which similarities and differences to focus on, and organize your paper so that it will be clear and effective. It will also explain how you can (and why you should) develop a thesis that goes beyond ‘Thing A and Thing B are similar in many ways but different in others’.”
How to Write a Comparative Analysis (Harvard College Writing Center)
“To write a good compare-and-contrast paper, you must take your raw data–the similarities and differences you’ve observed–and make them cohere into a meaningful argument. Here are the five elements required.”
Description
Things to Consider as You Write Your Descriptive Essay (Masterclass)
Considerations and conventions for writing a descriptive essay.
Narrative
Narrative Essays (Purdue OWL)
Outlines the conventions of a narrative essay.
SOCIAL SCIENCES
A Brief Guide to Writing the History Paper (Harvard College Writing Center)
“A concise introduction to some of the basic conventions of writing in history. Intended for an undergraduate audience.”
Anthropology (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout briefly situates anthropology as a discipline of study within the social sciences. It provides an introduction to the kinds of writing that you might encounter in your anthropology courses, describes some of the expectations that your instructors may have, and suggests some ways to approach your assignments. It also includes links to information on citation practices in anthropology and resources for writing anthropological research papers.”
History (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout was written with several goals in mind: to explain what historians do and how they approach the writing process; to encourage you to think about your history instructor’s expectations of you; and to offer some strategies to help you write effectively in history courses.”
Montclair State University Databases: Anthropology (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Montclair State University Databases: Political Science (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Montclair State University Databases: Sociology (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Sociology (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout introduces you to the wonderful world of writing sociology. Before you can write a clear and coherent sociology paper, you need a firm understanding of the assumptions and expectations of the discipline. You need to know your audience, the way they view the world and how they order and evaluate information. So, without further ado, let’s figure out just what sociology is, and how one goes about writing it.”
Writing in Political Science (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“This handout will help you to recognize and to follow writing practices and standards in political science. The first step toward accomplishing this goal is to develop a basic understanding of political science and the kind of work political scientists do.”
Writing in Political Science: An Introduction (Dave Roberts, University of Richmond Writing Center)
A guide that dissects what is involved in writing in the field of political science.
SCIENCES
A Brief Guide to Writing in Chemistry (Kenyon College)
“This document is a guide to assist students in chemistry courses with writing and formatting laboratory reports and research reports.”
Chemistry Lab Resources (Purdue University Libraries and School of Information Studies)
“Here you can find tips about organizing your lab notebook, how to effectively create graphs and table for lab reports, places to locate protocols and property information, and how to properly cite resources.”
Laboratory Report Instructions (Reed College, Doyle Online Writing Lab)
A manual to writing each section of a lab report. The site also includes examples of well-written and poorly written lab reports.
Montclair State University Databases: Biology (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Montclair State University Databases: Chemistry (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
Montclair State University Databases: Physics and Astronomy(Montclair State University, University Libraries)
“Right your Writing: How to sharpen your writing and make your manuscripts more engaging” (Bob Grant with contributor Judith Swan, The Scientist Magazine)
Free subscription required for access. Offers “ways to improve your writing practices and tips on how to align your writing to your readers’ expectations.”
Sciences (UNC Chapel Hill, The Writing Center)
“Every element of style that is accepted and encouraged in general academic writing is also considered good practice in scientific writing. The major difference between science writing and writing in other academic fields is the relative importance placed on certain stylistic elements. This handout details the most critical aspects of scientific writing and provides some strategies for evaluating and improving your scientific prose.”
Scientific Writing Resource (Duke University) This resource covers lessons including: “Subjects and Actions”, “Cohesion, Coherence, and Emphasis”, and “Concision and Simplicity” with a focus on effective communication.
Writing Biology Lab Reports (University of Richmond Writing Center)
A guide for writing biology lab reports with sections on writing the abstract, the introduction, materials and methods, results, discussion and citing sources.
Writing in the Sciences (Writing@CSU)
An online writing guide that addresses the challenges and issues involved in scientific writing. Sections include Writing the Scientific-Format Paper and Achieving the Scientific-Voice.
Writing the Scientific Paper (Writing@CSU) A comprehensive guide to writing scientific papers. Be sure to click “Continue” on the bottom right of the screen to access all of the information.
MATHEMATICS
AMS Author Handbook (American Mathematical Society)
This is the most widely recognized handbook for writing in mathematics.
AMS Author Resource Center (American Mathematical Society)
Provides links and tools to assist in writing, editing, illustrating and publishing mathematical works.
Guide to AMS Editor’s Package (American Mathematical Society)
This link from the AMS website covers formatting for papers/monographs using LaTeX software, a common program for setting math type used here at Montclair State. It also provides templates to create title pages, bibliographies, etc. for LaTeX users.
Montclair State University Databases: Math (Montclair State University, University Libraries)
MRef (American Mathematical Society)
This is a citation generator for standard references that include links to the MathSciNet database.
Overview of AMS-LaTeX Software (American Mathematical Society)
This is an overview of the AMS-LaTeX software.