Feeling like your academic writing is stuck in a never ending loop? All that jargon, those endless citations, the constant fear of sounding unprofessional along with maintaining creativity throughout. We will learn the ultimate guide of do’s and don’t of academic writing— your trick to transforming your academic writing from a boring dissertation into a brilliant masterpiece. 

What is academic writing?

When it comes to writing in an academic setting, it's important to follow a formal format that's accurate and well-organized. But what does that mean exactly? Well, it means that you need to approach your writing with a sense of objectivity. Unlike other types of writing, academic writing is all about presenting the facts without getting too caught up in drama or emotions.

If you're new to the field of research, don't worry! The first thing you should do is make sure you understand what your professor expects from you and what they want you to achieve with your writing assignment. Each assignment may have specific requirements and objectives, so it's important to be fully aware of them.

Writing a paper in a formal and disciplined manner, while maintaining a tone of formality and impartiality, can be a bit of a challenge.

It's all about expertise and having a well-defined knowledge base. The more you learn about your discipline and its specific rules and guidelines, the better equipped you'll be to write in a way that meets those expectations.

Remember, academic writing is all about effective communication. So, understanding the rules and expectations of your field of study is key to getting your message across to your intended audience.

What are the ‘do’s’ of Academic Writing?

Understand Your Audience:

First thing first, writing academically requires careful consideration of your reader. Adjust your terms, tone, and writing style to meet the needs of your audience.For example, use technical language and use a higher degree of knowledge if you're writing a research paper for a scientific journal. On the other hand, use simpler language to describe complicated ideas if you're writing an essay for a general audience.

Tips to follow-

• Research about your target audience like their age, education, background, interest.
• Know about your readers expectations through surveys, interviews or analyse previous data.
• Use easy ways in your writings by avoiding jargon or complex words.
• Try to seek feedback from your audience by sharing a small portion of your writings.

Example:

Terms like "neutron star mergers" and "stellar nucleosynthesis" would be appropriate in a research article written for an audience of astrophysics professionals. It would be preferable to describe these ideas in more straightforward terms in a blog post intended for a larger audience, such as "the process by which stars create elements" and "when two neutron stars collide."

Do your Research Thoroughly:

A strong research foundation is necessary for academic writing. To support your claims and give credibility to your work, collect and analyse relevant information from reliable sources. But also make sure to properly credit your sources using the relevant citation style (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).

Some added tips- 

• Always consult reliable and credible sources before get your study started.
• To present an in-depth perspective on your subject, try to include a wide variety of sources.
• It's better to check the credibility of the sources like the publication's reputation, the author's experience, and the existence of peer review.
• Think about using citation management programmes like Mendeley, EndNote, or Zotero. 

Example:

When writing a history essay on the American Civil War, it is important to refer to original materials, such as letters, diaries, and official papers from that era. These sources offer firsthand experiences and real proof to support your claims.

Do Structure Your Writing:

Your academic writing should be logically and coherently organised. To organise your ideas and keep an ordered flow of thought, use paragraphs. Your thesis statement should be presented in the introduction, then your body paragraphs should support your primary ideas, and finally your essay should end with a summary or a thought-provoking closing sentence.

 Simply follow this tips- 

• Before you start writing, always make an outline of  the major ideas and format of your paper.
• To keep your ideas logical and clear, divide them into paragraphs.
• Clearly define the topic of your paper or the major point in the introduction.
•  In your conclusion, summarize your main points and rephrase your thesis statement.

Example:

One paragraph for each of the main advantages of renewable energy, such as lower carbon emissions, the availability of sustainable resources, and possible cost savings, will help you organise your writing in an argumentative essay about these benefits. This format improves the flow of your writing and makes it easier for readers to follow your points of discussion.

Don'ts of Academic Writing:

Don't Plagiarize:

Plagiarism is a big NO-NO. In academic writing, plagiarism is a serious violation. Do not replicate another person's work without giving due credit. Instead, becoming competent at paraphrasing and properly citing your sources. Not only can plagiarism damage your reputation, but it also reduces the originality of your thoughts.

Tips to be followed- 

• Learn about what plagiarism is and the penalties related to it.
• When you are doing research make thorough notes and document all the information you need about your sources.
• when you use someone’s words, enclose them in quote marks to indicate that you are directly quoting from someone else.
• Use plagiarism detection software like Turnitin or Grammarly's plagiarism checker before submitting your work. 

Example:

Rephrase the information from a source in your own terms and provide a citation to give credit to the original author when using their work. If you don't, you can be accused of copying.

Don't Use Informal Language:

A formal vocabulary and tone are necessary for academic writing. Stay clear of extremely informal language, slang, and colloquial idioms. Throughout your writing, stay impartial and professional.

Necessary tips-

• Make thoughtful word choices and stick to formal vocabulary. Stay clear of slang, colloquialisms, and informal language.
• write "do not" instead of "don't," "cannot" instead of "can't," and "is not" instead of "isn't."
• Avoid using personal pronouns like "I," "you," or "we" in academic writing, particularly in formal papers.
• Stay clear of using too many  superlatives, intensifiers, or emotionally charged language. 

Example:

When writing an academic paper about the psychological effects of social media, stay away from terms like "stuff," "totally," and "super addicted." Use more official language instead, like "effects," "completely," or "highly dependent."

Don't Overcomplicate Your Sentences:

In academic writing, clarity is essential. Stay clear of too complex sentences, jargon, and phrase structures that are too complicated. Strive for clear, brief language that communicates your views clearly.

Few tips to be followed-

• Avoid unnecessarily long and complex sentence structures that can confuse readers.
• To effectively express your ideas, choose language that is clear and uncomplicated. 
• Spend some time editing and revising your work for clarity when you've finished it.

Example:

Instead of writing, "The utilization of excessively intricate and convoluted sentence structures leads to a significant impediment in the comprehension and interpretation of the ideas being conveyed," just write, "Complex sentence structures make it difficult to understand."

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