Mass media is a constant in our daily lives. If you ever watch TV, read a news feed, surf the Internet, watch or hear an advertisement, or listen to the radio, you’re consuming media. Given that most of us are experts when it comes to consuming media, we should...

When you’re reading for pleasure, you can take your time and enjoy it, much like watching a movie. You don’t have to think about deeper meanings, symbolism, or the characters unless you want to. But then there’s reading for school. When your teacher gives...

How many times have you received a software update notification? If you’re like me, you have a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship with these notifications. Too often, what you think will be a quick and easy process turns into an hour-long nightmare. Sound familiar?...

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Practice makes perfect.” And you know that this applies to almost anything you do in life: sports, music, debate, public speaking, dungeon master, whatever. Essay writing skills are just the same. You must practice to get...

It’s the middle of the night, and you’ve drifted off into a deep sleep. You’re dreaming of a magnificent summer day of relaxing on the beach or maybe hiking a mountain trail. Then your alarm goes off. You’re slapped back into reality. Your once-peaceful...

Has this ever happened to you? Professor: Where is your thesis statement? Student: … If so, don’t worry. You’re not the first person to struggle with writing a thesis statement, and you won’t be the last. This part of essay writing has vexed many college...

You’ve spent quite a bit of time in your English classes writing argumentative essays. You’ve even gotten pretty good at writing on the topics your instructor assigns. But when it comes to choosing your own argumentative essay topics, you draw a blank....

There are tons of scary stories—ones filled with ghosts or vampires or zombies. But in my opinion, there’s nothing scarier than the stories that show what the world could be like if left in the hands of the wrong people. One of the books that demonstrate this...

If literature isn’t your thing and you’ve been reading long, boring novels all semester, the chance to read and write about a short story might be just what you need to get interested in literature again. After all, everyone loves a good story, and a short...

Back in the day—when you were in elementary school—you learned about past tense, present tense, and future tense. You’ve gotten along all this time knowing these three basic tenses. But now your prof has thrown out the term “literary present tense,” and...

Ask any old person (that is, anyone over the age of 40) about what it was like researching and evaluating sources 20+ years ago. They’ll tell you about a strange process of going to the library to read books, take notes, and make copies—all without using a...

Ever been invited to a formal event, such as a party or dance, where the invitation specifically states “formal attire required”? We all know what formal means in a party invite. It means you can’t show up in your favorite hoodie or yoga pants. Writing a...

Ever watch one of those home decorating shows where the decorator asks, “What sort of theme do you want to go with?” The decorator is essentially asking about theme because he wants to know whether he should use elements of early modern, colonial, or maybe...

Great Depression-era novels typically have an element of… well… depression. To Kill a Mockingbird isn’t any different. What is different is the fact that [spoiler alert] it ends on a slightly uplifting note. The story is centered around Scout—the narrator—and...

Most of us have heard the arguments about the devastating effects of global warming. We’ve also heard the arguments that the entire idea of global warming is a hoax. While the topic continues to be debated, what’s not debatable is that you need to write an...

For years your teachers have told you that if you borrow someone else’s exact words, you need to put quotations marks around those words. They also told you that you need to use quotations (as well as paraphrases and summaries) to support your research essay....

If you hear the word “economy” and your only thought is that you need to get to your local warehouse store to buy another economy-size container of cheese puffs, it’s probably good that you’ve decided to read this post for a few ideas for your upcoming...

Do you love a good monster movie? Do you enjoy a gruesome fight between the hero of the story and the evil nemesis? If you do, I bet you’d love to read an epic poem translated from Old English about monsters and a hero, right? Okay, so epic poetry translated...

Beowulf is one of those stories that most teachers assign but few students really understand. It’s so old that no one even knows who wrote it. But within the verses lies a great, action-packed adventure filled with terrible monsters, a dashing hero, and terrible...

I get it. The grammar police can be annoying when they continually correct your grammar. But do you know what’s even more annoying? This: If you recognize the grammar error in this sign, good for you! The grammar police won’t be handing you a citation this...

Police brutality, unfortunately, has been all too prevalent in the news lately. With it being such a controversial topic, chances are you’ll be writing about it in at least one of your classes. The subject of police brutality isn’t exclusive to criminal justice...