Academic Writing: A Guide to Research Papers

Academic writing is highly formalized. Unlike creative writing or blogging, your goal is not to entertain. Your goal is to logically argue a specific thesis using peer-reviewed evidence while adhering to strict structural and formatting guidelines.

1. The Formal Tone

Academic essays must remain completely objective. This means eliminating all personal bias and conversational quirks from your writing.

• No First Person: Never write "I think..." or "In my opinion...". The facts should speak for themselves. Simply state the argument.
• No Contractions: Write "do not" instead of "don't." Write "cannot" instead of "can't."
• No Emotional Language: Replace "incredible," "horrible," or "amazing" with objective qualifiers like "significant," "detrimental," or "profound."

2. Researching and Sourcing

An academic paper is only as strong as its weakest source. Do not cite Wikipedia. Do not cite random blogs. You must use peer-reviewed journal articles, primary historical documents, or published books from academic presses.

As you gather your research, use a scratchpad (like our local notepad) to quickly copy and paste quotes alongside their page numbers and source URLs so you do not lose them when it comes time to build your bibliography.

3. The Art of Paraphrasing

Your research paper should not just be a Frankenstein monster of block quotes stitched together. You must paraphrase.

Paraphrasing means reading the source material, closing the book, and rewriting the author's idea in your own words while still providing a citation. Direct quotes should be used sparingly—only when the original author's exact phrasing is so poetic or precise that re-writing it would ruin its impact.

4. Citation Styles (APA vs. MLA)

Plagiarism will get you expelled. Always cite your sources both in-text and in a final bibliography. Understand which format your professor requires:

• MLA (Modern Language Association): Used primarily in the humanities (Literature, History, Arts). Focuses heavily on the author and page number.
• APA (American Psychological Association): Used in social sciences and sciences. Focuses heavily on the author and the date of publication, prioritizing timely research.

Use our Sort Lines tool to instantly alphabetize your massive 'Works Cited' page before turning in your paper.