Types of Writing
In This Section
Academic
Essay Writing
The Parts of an Essay
- Introduction: introduces the topic and gives a broad summary of the discussion topic.
- Introductory/Topic statement: different from the thesis. It introduces the topic in a general way and provides a transition into your thesis statement.
- Thesis statement: states the purpose/stance of the essay; usually comes in the middle or the end of the essay and clearly states the “what” and the “why” of an argument.
- Body: is where the details and the “meat” of the essay goes. Is typically broken up into one to three paragraphs for simple essays but can be longer for topics that are more involved and require more explanation.
- Detail Analysis: show the evidence of your thesis by providing realistic and relevant facts, figures, and situations.
- Conclusion: summarizes the topic and puts an end to the essay.
- The Big Idea: in one sentence, express the biggest takeaway point of the essay. In other words, restate the thesis.
- Introduction: introduces the topic and gives a broad summary of the discussion topic.
» Crafting an Unforgettable College Essay, Princeton Review
» 8 Tips for Crafting Your Best College Essay, BigFuture
» 35+ Best College Essay Tips from College Application Experts, College Essay Guy
» Essay Writing Lesson for Kids, Study.com
» Fact Monster Homework Center: Writing
» Guide to Writing a Basic Essay, LK Livingston
» How to Teach Your Students to Write an Essay, Busy Teacher
» Step By Step Guide to Writing an Essay, Time4Writing
» 46 Essay Prompts for Elementary School Kids, Journal Buddies
Artisitic
Creative Writing
Types of Poetry
- Sonnet: a 14-lined poem that rhymes
- Limerick: A 5-lined power with a rhythm and a rhyme scheme of A-A-B-B-A
- Haiku: an Ancient Japanese three-lined poem with 17 syllables total, with five syllables in line one, 7 syllables in line two, and 5 syllables in line three.
- Narrative: a poem that tells a story or event
- Epic: a long poem about adventure with a hero
- Couplet: two lines of a poem that can be alone or apart of a larger poem.
- Free Verse: a poem with no rules
- Acrostic: a poem where one word or phrase serves as a theme and each letter of the word or phrase begins in each line of the poem.
Resources
» Duotrope (Paid), assists in finding publishing services
» How to Write a Poem for Beginners – VIDEO
» “How to Write a Poem: 8 Fundamentals for Writing Poetry That’s Meaningful” – Self-Publishing School
» Poet.org, features information on Academy of American Poets, National Poetry Month, American Poets Magazine
» Poets & Writers Online, poetry and creative writing
» Poetry Foundation
» Poetry Machine, poetry templates (great for the classroom)
» Poetry Out Loud, poetry contests & other poetry writing resources
» “Poetry Writing Hacks: 10 Tips on How to Write a Poem” – Jerz’s Literacy Weblog
» Rhyme Zone, a rhyme search engine (great for the classroom)
» Split This Rock
What Makes a Short Story?
- Traditional Short Story: 1,500 – 5,000 words
- Flash Fiction: 500-1,000 words
- Micro Fiction: 300 or less
- Can be read in a short period of time
- Has one main character and a few other characters
- Contains one main plot that is introduced early in the story and solved quickly
The Different Types of Short Stories (via Masterclass)
- Anecdote: A brief account of something interesting and often humorous whose purpose is to support a point. They function much like parables: short narratives with a core moral lesson.
- Drabble: A short story of about 100 words whose main purpose is to test the author’s skill, both in prose and in successfully getting a meaningful point across in so few words.
- Feghoot: A funny short story that ends in a pun.
- Fable: A short story featuring anthropomorphic creatures, usually animals, whose narrative reveals some kind of a moral point at the end. (Note: while a parable serves the same function, it does not use animals to make its point, while a fable almost always does. Aesop’s Fables are a great example.)
- Flash fiction or micro-fiction: Flash fiction or micro-fiction refers to stories shorter than 1,000 words. One of the most famous examples of the form is the following short story, often attributed to Ernest Hemingway: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”
- Sketch: A piece of writing that doesn’t typically contain a plot. Instead, the point of a sketch is to illuminate a particular character, setting, or location.
- Vignette: A brief scene which can be part of a larger body of work. The point of a vignette is to capture a single moment or detail about an element in the story, such as a character, idea, or object.
Publish your Short Stories
» The Atlantic, email fiction@theatlantic.com
» Daily Science Fiction
» Fireside Magazine, pays 12.5 cents per word (up to 5,000 words)
» The New Yorker, email fiction@newyorker.com or by mail.
» One Story, submissions are only accepted at certain times of the year. Authors who are selected will be paid $500.
List of genres & categories
- Action & Adventure
- Classics
- Comic Books/Graphic Novels
- Mystery
- Fantasy
- Horror
- Fiction
- Historical
- Literary
- Sci-Fi
- Women’s
- Romance
- Thrillers
- Biographies & Autobiographies
- Memoir (focuses on key aspects of ones’ life)
- Essays
- History
- Self-Help
Story Development Resources
» Develop Your Story Idea in Eleven Simple Steps, Well-Storied
» How to Develop a Fictional Character: 6 Tips for Writing Great Characters, Masterclass
» How to Develop a Story: 10 Steps to a Winning Plot, Now Novel
» Plot Development Writing Exercises, Reedsy
» The Ultimate List of Story Development Questions, Screen Craft
» 8 Character Development Exercises to Help You Nail Your Character, Reedsy
» 30 Scene Ideas for Plot Development, Eadverell
Elements of a Comic Book (via Masterclass)
- Panel. A panel is one illustration on a page usually surrounded by a border. A comic book page is made up of one or more panels. Each panel moves the story along, by depicting an action with figures and speech bubbles.
- Gutter. This is the space between the panels. These spaces can be large or small, impacting how easy it is to read the pages.
- Tier. A single row of panels.
- Splash. A full-page illustration which often is used at the beginning of the comic book to introduce the story and establish setting and mood.
- Spread. An illustration that is spread out over more than one page.
- Caption. A box that is separate from the rest of the panel usually used to provide context for what’s happening through the voice of a narrator.
- Speech bubble/balloon. These contain the dialogue of the characters and inside the panel. Each balloon has a “tail,” which points to who is speaking the dialogue.
How To’s (Guide Book Recommendations)
» “Advice” page on MakingComics.com
» The Everything Guide to Writing Graphic Novels: From superheroes to manga―all you need to start creating your own graphic works ($14.95 on Amazon)
» “45 Essential Books for Comics”, Jason Thibault
Software to Use
» Clip Studio Paint Pro ($59.99)
» Clip Studio Paint EX ($219)
» ComiPo! ($49.99)
» Comic Creator Studio ($39)
» Comic Draw (Free, iOS app)
» Comic Life ($29.99 – $44.99)
Writing Comics
» Big Red Hair, free guide to comic book writing + other resources for comic book creators
» “How to Get Noticed as a Comic Book Writer”, Chron
» “How to Write a Comic Book Script and Other More Important Things”, Chris Oatley
» Making Comics, information on the comic book process from start to finish»
» “Resources: How To Break Into Comics and Survive Once You’re There”, Comics Beat
» “Write Comics – How to Write Your Own Comic”, Comics for Beginners
» “Writing and Publishing Graphic Novels from Start to Finish”, Writer’s Digest
Illustrating Comics
» Best Books on Drawing and Making Comics, Concept Art Empire
» “Creating a Comic Sketch”, Local Wisdom»
» “10 Lessons from Comic Book Illustration Legends”, Tuts Plus
» “20 brilliant tips for drawing comics”, Digital Arts
Types of Children’s Books (Link)
Board books (up to 4 years old)
- 0 -100 words
- Simple language & sentence structure
- No clear plot
Picture books (3 to 8 years old)
- About 500-700 words or up to 1000 words
- Fairly simple language
- Basic characters, conflict, and resolution.
Picture Story books (5 to 8 years old)
- About 500-1000 words
- Fairly simple language
- Slightly more complex characters and plot
Early Readers (5 to 7 years old)
- About 200 – 3,500 words
- Simple language; should reflect the grade levels
- Light, educational themes
Chapter Books (6 to 10 years old)
- 5,000 – 35,000 words
- simple language; should reflect grade levels
- Plots and characters this group can relate to
Middle Grade novels (8 to 12 years old)
- 30,000 – 45,000
- Slightly more complex language, but still age appropriate
- Introduction to complex characters and plot themes
YA novels (13 to 16 years old)
- 50,000 – 70,000+
- No limits to complexity of language
- Complex characters, storylines
*Illustration
How to Become a Working Illustrator
- Get a degree or certified; you have a better chance of being hired or contracted if you have the proper qualifications. Look into graphic design or illustration programs or classes you can take. There are free courses and classes you can audit at little or no extra cost available online as well:
» Coursera
» Skillshare
» Udemy
- Invest in the proper hardware and software; plan to spend some money on quality technology and tools so your work can be the best that it can be.
- Develop a portfolio; create an online space where you will showcase your best, published works. If you haven’t been contracted to do any work, display your best works.
- Promote yourself on social media; create social media accounts for yourself and show off your work. Use hashtags to organize and filter your work.
- Network and join organizations; networking really does open doors for you. Attend events and join clubs and organizations that promote and celebrate design. Learn from those who are successful in your lane and apply what you’ve learned.
» Association of Illustrators (AOI)
» Graphic Arts Guild
» Society of Illustrators
» Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators
Software to Use
» Adobe Photoshop
» Adobe Illustrator
» Adobe FreeHand
» CorelDraw Graphics Suite
» DrawPad
» GIMP (free)
» Painter Essentials
» PaintShop Pro 2020
Hire an Illustrator
» ChildrensIllustrators.com
» Etsy
» Facebook Groups*
» Fiverr
» Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators
» Upwork
Professional
Communications Writing
Resources & Must-Haves
» AP Style, Writing Explained
» The Associated Press Style Book ($15)
» FactCheck.org
» Feritte, voice memo app (iOS only)
» Handbook of Independent Journalism, by Deborah Potter
» Journalism Ethics: A Casebook for News Media ($16)
» Journalist’s Toolbox
» Paperr; online writing tool
» SPJ’s Code of Ethics (Download PDF)
» Storytelling Canvas by Journalism Tools (PowerPoint)
» “20 tools and resources every journalist should experiment with”, Journalism.co.uk
Online Workshops & Courses
» Ap Style Quizzes, ($)
» DataJournalism Courses (FREE)
» Poytner News University
Industry Trends and Media to Follow
» American Journalism Review
» Columbia Journalism Review
» Journalism.org
» Journalist’s Resource
» Poynter
» Quill
Organizations to Join
» American Society of Journalists & Authors
» First Draft News
» National Association of Black Journalists
» National Press Photographer’s Association
» Radio and Television Digital News Association
» The Society of Professional Journalists
Resources & Must Haves
» Adobe Scanner, export a hard copy to a digital copy; great for work on the road.
» Cision, database of journalists that provides distribution, tracking, and analyzing features.
» CoSchedule Headline Analyzer, write headlines that drive traffic, shares and search results
» Feedly, a news aggregator
» Flock, online chatroom for company team members
» Hubspot, provides tools for social media marketing, content management, web analytics and search engine optimization (SEO)
» Lumen5, A.I. powered creation platform that turns blog posts into engaging videos
» Muck Rack, tool for discovering journalists
» PRWeb, create, distribute, and track press releases
» Repost App, can share social media posts relevant to clients
» Slack, “replaces emails”; instant messenger for companies
» Trello, task management app
Online Classes & Workshops
» Introduction to Public Relations (Free Certification), Alison
» PRSA Online Courses
» Public Relations, SkillShare
» Public Relations Courses, Coursera
» Public Relations Courses, Udemy
» Public Relations Training and Tutorials, LinkedIn Learning
Industry Trends & Media to Follow
» The Future of Public Relations: 10 PR Trends for 2019, Babel
» PR Trends to look out for in 2019, Entrepreneur
» Top 10 Public Relations Trends for Those Paying Attention (Plus, One Call to Action), PR NEWS
» Trends, PUBLIC RELATIONS TODAY
Organizations to Join
» The Association for Women in Communications
» Institute for Public Relations (IPR)
» International Association of Business Communicators (IABC)
» Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)
What is copywriting? “The art and science of writing copy (words used on web pages, ads, promotional materials, etc.) that sells your product or services and convinces prospective customers to take action.” – QuickSprout
Components of Copywriting
» A clear and concise message
» A striking headline
» A Call to Action
» Persuasive language
» Credibility
» Recognizes target audience’s problems and solves them
Resources
» Complete Guide to Copywriting, QuickSprout
» Copywriting 101: How to Craft Compelling Copy, Copyblogger
» How to Become a Copywriter, VIDEO
» How to Become a Copywriters (without any experience at all), Medium
» The Ultimate Guide to Copywriting, Neil Patel
» 10 Steps to Effective Copywriting, Entreprenuer
Courses
» Learning to Write Marketing Copy, LinkedIn Learning
» Skillshare, Copywriting Courses
» Udemy, Content Marketing Courses
Organizations to Join
» American Association of Advertising Agencies
» American Marketing Association
» Association of National Advertisers
Get to Work
Resume & Cover Letter Writing
Types of Resumes & Their Purposes
- Chronological Resume; work and education experience is listed in order beginning with the most current position. Is best used when there is a consistent employment history.
- Functional Resume; focuses on skill sets instead of experience. Is best used for new graduates, people with little experience, or major employment gaps.
- Combination Resume; combines structure of chronological and functional resumes and emphasizes both skills and experiences.
- Targeted Resume; used when applying for a very specific type of job. It’s recommended not to apply to varying positions with the same resume. Using targeted resumes helps put focus on relavant experience and skills that the hiring manager will be able to pinpoint easily and more directly.
Formatting Your Resume
- Stick to one page
- Choose a layout that is conducive to the content and structures the content well.
- Separate your sections using clear headings
- Use clear and concise bullet points
Resume Writing Tips
- Use past tense for past positions and present tense for current positions
- Use active verbs and voice to describe job duties and accomplishments
- Tailor your resume to the job you are applying for; only include what’s relevant and necessary to showcase your skillset and experience.
- When describing your job duties, include your accomplishments (ex: increased customer engagement by 70% by improving user-friendliness of website and
- Do not use I, You, We, Us, etc.
- Always keep it updated; once you get a new position, update your resume using the job posting as a guide.
Other Resources
» Tutoring a Resume, Purdue OWL
Types of Cover Letters & Their Purposes
- Application Cover Letter; the most typical cover letter; accompanies a resume when applying for a position and is the most formal.
- Referral Cover Letter; similar to the application letter, it accompanies a resume, but it also mentions a referral – the person who suggested you apply for the job. Referrals fare well with getting attention from recruiters and hiring managers.
- Prospecting Cover Letter; typically used for a general inquiry of open positions; use this approach when you have a “dream” company you want to work with and want to know any and all opportunities they are providing.
- Networking Letter; this approach is only used when a job seeker is currently looking for a job and is requesting leads from his or her network. This the least formal type of letter.
Standard writing structure of a cover letter:
» Should be one page.
» Use 12 pt. font size.
» Use an easy-to-read font type (Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri) that matches your resume.
» The text should be justified (text is spaced evenly from left to right).
- Your Contact Information (name, address, phone number, a professional email address).
- Employer Contact information (name of hiring officer if you know it (optional, but try to find this information), address, email. Note: if you are applying to a position online, this information is not necessary. You should still include a salutation, such as “To whom it may concern”, or “To the Hiring Manager”, etc. if you cannot find the name of the person you would be working under.
- The first paragraph should answer the “why” are you applying for the job. Here, you can explain where you found out about the position (word of mouth, job board, or an online posting) and to keep them reading, mention some position-specific strengths that you can bring to the job. It won’t hurt to weave in some interesting facts about the company that prove that you did your research.
- The second paragraph is where you should explain how you are the best for the job. Here, you should showcase your previous and relevant experience that makes you confident in being able to fulfill the needs of your new position. You can take phrases from your resume and expand on them with examples, facts, and figures that you contributed to developing. You can discuss some skills that you’d bring to the position that aren’t being asked of you, to show that you are an asset to the company and that they need YOU.
- The third paragraph can cover more of how you well you can do the job, but also how well you will fit in the company culture. You can show more of your knowledge of the company by stating some commonalities between your goals and the organization goals, or passions you share with the company. Prove to the employer that you are not only the best for the job, but that you won’t be a nightmare to work with.
- The last paragraph is a closing. Briefly reiterate why you should be hired. Express your appreciation for the reader’s time and that you will look forward to hearing from them. Sign off formally with “Sincerely”, “Best Regards”, “Yours Truly”, etc.