First-Year Skills: Writing Tips

Grammarly is a resource that not only checks for spelling and grammar errors but also if words are being used in the wrong context. In addition, it provides individual feedback about common mistakes and how to make improvements. Another great feature about this tool is that it can be used on both desktops and mobile devices.

Whereas Grammarly, helps primarily with spelling and grammar, the Hemingway Editor on the other end helps to make writing more concise and coherent. It highlights sentences that are too long, complex and/or do not make any sense.

Grammar Girl provides a plethora of in-depth information about grammar and punctuation in a concise and easy to follow manner. Visitors can also access podcasts and archive issues.

"Successful writing in college and university courses isn’t only a matter of choosing a worthwhile topic and observing grammar and mechanics rules. It requires writers to follow a host of other written discourse conventions."

The Hume Center for Writing and Speaking at Stanford University has paraphrased a paper about undergraduate writing errors and "found that these errors are the most likely to attract readers’ negative attention"