Writing Papers: Some Rules

• All papers must be TYPEWRITTEN. Handwriting is not acceptable. Do not attempt to stretch out your paper by choosing large font sizes or overly fancy font types. A reasonable font size should yield about 250-300 words per page.

• Use 8 1/2 X 11 white bond paper. Avoid erasable paper. Do not use folders, plastic covers, or title pages. Margins : One inch on all sides (right, left, top, and bottom margins). Spacing: use double-space throughout.

• Write your full name, course number, instructor and date on the upper left corner of the first page. Number all subsequent pages in the upper right corner (you can also add your last name preceding each number). Fasten your paper with a staple or paperclip in the upper left corner.

• All sources used must be cited in footnotes or a list of Works Cited at the end of the paper. A proper reference must include such information as author, title of text, title of book or journal where printed, edition, publisher, place of publication, date of publication, inclusive page numbers. Example: Racine, Jean, Phaedra, Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces, ed. Maynard Mack, Expanded Edition (New York: W. W. Norton, 1995), pp. 356-398.

• Titles of long works (novels, plays, magazines, journals, newspapers, films, paintings, etc.) are underlined or italicized. Example: The Great Gatsby, A Clockwork Orange, The Mona Lisa, The New York Times, Death of a Salesman, The Atlantic Monthly. Titles of shorter works (poems, short stories, articles, essays, songs, etc.) are enclosed within quotation marks. Examples: "The Snows of Kilimanjaro," "The Rocking-Horse Winner," "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening."

• Notice carefully the proper punctuation and spacing in the use of quotations and parentheses containing page references. Examples: Phaedra told Oenone, "I see a monster" (p. 155).

• Note the correct use of puctuation in a sentence containing quotation marks. All periods and commas are placed inside all quotation marks. All semicolons and colons are placed outside quotation marks. Examples: The teacher said, "place all periods inside quotation marks." But the student said, "Who cares?"; he did not write a good paper.