PAPER FORMAT GUIDELINES (Adapted from John Langan, Sentence Skills with Readings

I. Use full-sized theme or typewriter paper. 8 1/2 by 11 inches.

2. Leave wide margins (I to l/2 inches) all around the paper. In particular do not crowd the right hand or bottom margin. This white space makes your paper more readable; also, the instructor has room for comments.

3. If you write by hand: * Use a blue or black pen (not a pencil). * Be careful not to overlap letters and not to make decorative loops on letters. On narrow-ruled paper, write on every other line. * Make all your letters distinct. Pay special attention to a, e, i, a, and u †five letters that people sometimes write illegibly. * Keep your capital letters clearly distinct from your small letters. You may even want to print all capital letters.

4. Center the title of your paper on the first line of the first page. Do not put quotation marks around the title or underline the title. Capitalize all the major words in a title, including the first word. Short connecting words within a title, such as of for, the, in, and to, are not capitalized.

5. Skip a line between the title and the first line of your text. Indent the first line of each paragraph about five spaces (half an inch) from the left-hand margin.

6. Make commas, periods, and other punctuation marks firm and clear. Leave a slight space after each period. When you type, leave a double space after a period.

7. If you break a word at the end of a line, break only between syllables (see page 207). Do not break words of one syllable.

8. Put your name, date, and course number where your instructor asks for them.

Also keep in mind these important points about the title and the first sentence of your paper:

9. The title should be several words that tell what the paper is about. It should usually not be a complete sentence. For example, if you are writing a paper about your jealous sister, the title could simply be "My Jealous Sister."

10. Do not rely on the title to help explain the first sentence of your paper. The first sentence must be independent of the title. For instance, if the title of your paper is "My Jealous Sister," the first sentence should not be, "She has been this way as long as I can remember.'' Rather, the first sentence might be, "My sister has always been a jealous person."

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