writing

Last Name 1

Student’s full name

English 101: Section (i.e., EL or V3)

Instructor: Suzanne Boswell

Date turned in (i.e., 03 February 2016)

Paper # (Rough/Final Draft): Paper Title

This is the formatting you are required to use for all the papers you write for this class.

Papers must be typed, and should be double spaced throughout. Your document should have 1-

inch margins on all sides. You should be using 12-point Times New Roman font only.

The top of your document should contain your identifying information: your first and last

name, the title of the course, my name, and the date on which the paper will be turned in (left-

aligned, in that order). Your paper should also have a title, centered just below your identifying

information, in 12-point font. The rest of the essay should be left-aligned. Each paragraph must

be indented a half-inch (just press “tab” once). Make sure there is no extra spacing between

paragraphs. Go to “Format,” and then click “Paragraph” to be sure that there is 0pt spacing

“before” and “after” after each paragraph. Note how the spacing between my paragraphs is the

same as the spacing between the rest of my lines!

Every page should have a header that includes your last name and the page number. This

can be created by selecting “Header and Footer” from the “View” menu in Microsoft Word.

First, click the “Align Right” icon. Next, type your last name and a space. Then, click the “Insert

Page Number” icon and click “Close.” Papers should be stapled in the upper left-hand corner.

Citations should follow MLA style as outlined in Keys for Writers. A piece of quoted text

should be followed by a parenthetical citation of the page number on which it appears. For

example, Boswell writes, “Don't use Comic Sans as the font for your paper” (3). If you do not

mention the name of the author before the quotation, your parenthetical citation should also

Last Name 2

include the author's name. For example, one instructor asks that you “please staple your papers –

don't do the weird corner-folding thing” (Boswell 12). Quotations that exceed four lines (called

“block quotations”) should be indented one inch (and should be avoided at all costs in your first

few essays). The writing program thinks formatting is important for two reasons:

“First, it shows your ability to follow directions. Second, and most

importantly, it ensures that everyone is writing the same number of pages.

If Ahmed wrote five pages following the exact instructions, but Eva used a

font that added an extra half-page, then added an extra space between

paragraphs and changed the margin size, Ahmed's done a lot more work –

and should be graded accordingly” (Boswell 1).

If you want to cut words out of a quotation to avoid block quoting use an ellipses to indicate

where you have taken out words. For example, Boswell writes that she “once read about a trick

in which you change all the periods in your paper to 16pt font to add space... she doesn't think

this technique... is a great idea” (15). You can find more information about MLA citations in

Keys for Writers (chapter 3) or on the Purdue OWL website. Finally, please make sure that there

is a Works Cited page (MLA style) at the end of your essay. Good luck!