MICA Writing Studio / Dan Gutstein
Basic Writing Suggestions
1. Write Actively
For active sentence writing, keep subject and verb close together—right next to each other if possible. Avoid weak verbs such as “use”, “have”, “be”, and at that, especially “be” and its other forms (were, was, is, been, being, etc.)
Examples:
I reflected upon several monumental landscape paintings when conceiving of this sculpture.
I drew several mock-ups before assembling materials.
I built my sculpture from metal, wood, sand, and fiberglass.
The piece duplicates the soaring lines of trees and mountains.
It rocks.
2. Add Transitional Language
You can’t start every sentence the same exact way. To avoid “sameness” in sentence construction, one can add transitional words or phrases, such as: “moreover”; “in addition”; “a day later”; “furthermore”; “in the end”; and “then”. You can insert a transition at the beginning of a sentence or even in the middle.
Example:
I reflected upon several monumental landscape paintings when conceiving of this sculpture. I drew several mockups, a day later, before assembling materials. Then, I built my sculpture from metal, wood, sand, and fiberglass. In the end, the piece duplicates the soaring lines of trees and mountains. It rocks.
3. Include Specific Detail
These would include items like the appearance of your piece; the cultural references and inspirations that led you to create it; the materials; the techniques of assembly; your aims in conceiving of it; the tools you employed; the concepts you developed in the process; and so forth.
4. Logistical Matters
Try to write a paper in two “sittings.” Write the whole thing on the first try, and then, on the second try, give it a good revision. Or, write half of it on the first try and another half on the second try. Decide on a topic early and don’t switch. If nothing else, put effort into your writing. Showing that you care about the topic goes a long way, even if the sentence-writing needs work.
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