LOUISIANA TECH UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT of HISTORY
ON-LINE WRITING CENTER
INTRODUCTION
The Department of History has provided this on-line writing center as a resource for Louisiana Tech students who wish to improve their research and writing skills.
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CONTENTS
GENERAL WRITING GUIDELINES AND HELPFUL WEBSITES
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
SOME HELPFUL BOOKS ON WRITING AND RESEARCH (with links to Amazon.com)
GENERAL WRITING GUIDELINES AND HELPFUL HISTORY WEBSITES
LA TECH’S ENGLISH DEPARTMENT’S ONLINE WRITING LAB (OWL)
PENNING THE PAST: ADVICE ON WRITING IN THE HISTORICAL DISCIPLINES
This website, written by Alyssa E. Lodewick of Brown University’s Department of History, provides excellent advice on writing a historical essay, from choosing a topic, formulating an argument, avoiding plagiarism, and using sources. It also includes a helpful bibliography of various writing guides. Highly recommended.
WRITING ESSAYS AND REPORTS
This website, created by the University of Victoria, contains several helpful “hints” along with links to other valuable websites that show how to avoid common writing errors and plagiarism, and how to write proper citations and footnotes. Highly recommended.
THE “DO HISTORY” WEBSITE
This site, created by Harvard University and George Mason University, uses a case study to “show…you how to piece together the past from the fragments that have survived.”
READING, WRITING, AND REASEARCHING FOR HISTORY: A GUIDE FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS
This is a helpful and comprehensive “set of guides” created by Patrick Rael of Bowdoin College
THE VIRGINIA CENTER FOR DIGITAL HISTORY
This website, created by the University of Virginia, “promotes the teaching and learning of history using digital technologies.”
WRITING RESOURCES - COMMAS
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FAQs
How do I use footnotes or endnotes properly?
The Chicago Manual of Style is the preferred method of citation for the Department of History at Louisiana Tech.
For a quick guide to writing proper footnotes, check
the Chicago Manual of Style Online’s “Chicago-Style Citation Quick Guide”
What is plagiarism?
For a definition of plagiarism and how to avoid it, consult “Avoiding Plagiarism” from Bemidji State University’ Writing Resource Center
For some other helpful websites, consult Indiana University’s “Understanding Plagiarism” and University of Toronto’s “How Not to Plagiarize”
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HELPFUL BOOKS ON WRITING AND RESEARCH (with links to Amazon.com)
STYLE GUIDES
1.
William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White, The Elements of Style, 4th ed., Longman Publishers, 2000
2.
Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations 6th rev. ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996
3.
Christopher Lasch with Stewart Weaver, ed., Plain Style: A Guide to Written English, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002
STUDENT GUIDES TO WRITING HISTORY
1.
Jules R. Benjamin, A Student’s Guide to History 9th ed., New York: St. Martin's, 2004 Most of this book can be found online, including a link on “How to Write a History Paper”
2.
Richard A. Marius, A Short Guide to Writing about History 4th ed., Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Longman, 2001
3.
Mary Lynn Rampolla, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History 4th ed., New York: St. Martin’s, 2004
4.
William Kelleher Storey, Writing History: A Guide for Students 2nd ed., New York: Oxford University Press, 2004
HISTORICAL WRITING AND RESEARCH
1.
Jacques Barzun and Henry F. Graff, The Modern Researcher 5th ed., Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2004
2.
Wayne C. Booth, The Craft of Research 2nd ed., Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003
3.
Norman F. Cantor and Richard I. Schneider, How to Study History, Arlington Heights, IL: Harlan Davidson, 1967, 1986
DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE WRITING TECHNIQUES—AND WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU’RE STUCK AND YOUR DUE DATE IS APPROACHING!
1.
William Zinsser, On Writing Well: An Informal Guide to Writing Nonfiction 5th ed., New York: Harper Perennial 1976, 1994
2.
Peter Elbow, Writing with Power: Techniques for Mastering the Writing Process New York: Oxford University Press, 1981
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