Writing Center | USF Tampa Libraries

Weekly Resource Roundup: Citing Social Media and Email

Claire Stephens — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:51:16 +0000

*Photo “Social Media apps on iPhone” by Jason Howie

As digital discourse becomes more prevalent, it also becomes more relevant to our writing. Citation style guides have, historically, been slow to produce standard citation forms for these emerging resources. This week, we want to share the best resources we’ve found for appropriately incorporating and citing emails, tweets, Facebook posts, and other forms of digital writing.

Teachbyte’s handy-dandy chart shows how to cite a blog post, YouTube video, Tweet, Facebook post, and email in both APA and MLA.
APA’s blog is always a great resource for citation information that may not have made it into the printed style guide yet. This post on Facebook and Twitter offers both examples and explanations.
The Clever Researcher has also collected links to resources on citing social media in MLA, APA, and Chicago.

Have you found useful resources of your own for citing digital writing? Share them with us in the comments!

Top 3 APA Resources

Claire Stephens — Thu, 23 May 2013 15:03:47 +0000

Though it’s hard to believe, we’re nearly half way through Summer A. In fact, some of you are already composing term papers and may have some pressing questions about APA. If you don’t have time to make it to the Writing Center, here are 3 places on the web that can provide some of the answers you need:

The Writing Center’s APA Handout: Our APA handout aims to provide a quick reference of the key features of APA style and provides examples of the most common resources you may need cite.
The APA website’s Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page: Because it’s updated more often than the style guide itself, this page offers the most up-to-date information about citation practices and APA style in general. This page also contains a set of easy-to-navigate examples of common references and includes information about citing Twitter, Facebook, and websites, even websites without authors.
The OWL @ Purdue’s APA Style Guide: Need a thorough explanation of all things APA? Then this is your best bet. The OWL provides information about and examples of everything from title pages to in-text citations to reference pages.

Congratulations to Our Graduates!

Alnaggar Enaam — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:55:48 +0000

Writing Center Graduates

Roni Browdy, MA, English

Jason Carabelli, MA, English

Kristen Gay, MA, English

Micah Jenkins, MA, World Languages

Gloria Munoz, MFA, English

Melissa Nye, MA, World Languages

Kate Pantelides, PhD, English

Claire Stephens, MFA, English

Katie Waddell, MA, English

Kimberly Karalius, MFA, English

Graduate Dissertation Forum

Paul Trusik — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 17:02:37 +0000

Feb. 14, 8:30AM-4:30PM in Grace Allen Room, 4th Floor USF Tampa Library

CLICK HERE FOR FORUM SCHEDULE

For Valentine’s Day this year, why not devote the day to yourself: work on the dissertation you love (or love to hate), alleviate stress, develop a concrete plan, and let us help you prepare for success.

This workshop is designed for graduate students actively developing and writing their dissertations (ie. drafting the proposal or chapters). Research and writing professionals from across the university, including librarians, writing consultants, graduate school administrators, psychologists and disciplinary specialists, will help you move forward in your writing process.

Southeastern Writing Center Association Conference

Paul Trusik — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 16:47:30 +0000

The Work We Do

February 21-23, 2013

Registration Open. More information »

Click the image above to download or print a pdf version of this flyer.

Fall 2012 Writing Workshops!

Laura Hennessey — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 21:54:49 +0000

The Writing Center is offering a wide variety of workshops this fall. From finding great research to writing that awesome resume, come by and join us! No registration is required.

Check out our schedule: Study Smart Workshops fall 12

Writing Center Student Art Contest

Laura Hennessey — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 18:57:09 +0000

USF Writing Center Student Art Competition

When you think of writing, what images come to mind?

How can written words inspire visual art?
What concepts, ideas, and people generally inspire positive writing experiences?

The purpose of this competition is to provide an opportunity for students to create artistic interpretations of what they believe writing is really about. Winners’ submissions will be displayed as décor in the Writing Center Gallery, located on the first floor of the main library.

When you think of writing, what images come to mind? How can written words inspire visual art? What concepts, ideas, and people generally inspire positive writing experiences? The purpose of this competition is to provide an opportunity for students to create artistic interpretations of what they believe writing is really about. Ten winning entries will be displayed as décor in the Writing Center Gallery, located on the first floor of the main library.

Contest Rules and Information

Eligibility
The contest is open to any currently enrolled USF undergraduate or graduate student.

Submission of Entries
The following information about your entry must be submitted via e-mail to the Writing Center by October 31, 2012 at writingcenterusf@gmail.com:

Entrant’s name
Email address
Telephone number
Title of work
Dimensions and materials used
Attached image file of the work being submitted1

Duration of Contest
The winners will be notified on November 13, 2012.

Guidelines

The maximum dimensions of the work are as follows:

2 x 3 feet minimum and 5 x 6 feet maximum

Art work should be appropriate and practical for a small, public space that is frequently used by USF students, faculty, and staff.

Selection
The winning art work will be selected by a committee of Writing Center coordinators and consultants.

Notes:

1. Image entry must be JPEG digital files and must be PC and Mac compatible. Review will be by digital image only. JPEGs should be no larger than 300 dpi at approximately 4 by 6 inches. All digital files must include the artist’s name and title of the submission (e.g. smithpainting5.jpg)

Writing a Personal Statement

Laura Hennessey — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 22:23:48 +0000

Whether you’re applying to graduate school, medical school, or that awesome scholarship, chances are you’ll have to develop a personal statement to submit with your application. Personal statements go by many names – statements, letters of intent, statements of research – and is often considered to be one of the most difficult genres of writing.
Why is a personal statement so difficult to write?
Ina personal statement, you’re being asked to tell someone something about yourself. It should be something they should (or need) to know about you, that speaks to why you’re interested in this career, scholarship, or opportunity, and it should be something that isn’t seen anywhere else in your application. That includes a lot, and it leaves out a lot. Making the decision of what to add and what to omit is a daunting task.

How do I start?
Before you jump into your first draft, take some time to pre-write. If you generate lots of ideas before you begin writing the essay itself, the actual writing process may be easier, and if you get stuck, you have a whole pool of resources to take from. Here are some questions to get you started: What unique experiences have helped you decide to pursue this degree? What makes you interesting, special? How has your academic career so far prepared you for this next step?
Ok, I have some ideas, now what?
Use the skills you use to write an essay or paper for class. Consider who is reading this and what he or she may be expecting (clear grammar, developed ideas, a controlling thought or thesis, etc.). Now write. Strong personal statements undergo a lot of revision and drafting. Don’t let that discourage you! You want to make a strong first impression, so put the time and effort in to show your best.

What are some tips for writing my personal statement?

There are two things you do not want to do in a personal statement: don’t sound arrogant and don’t sound self-deprecating.
Show the admissions committee who YOU are and what YOU will bring to their school or organization.
Put yourself in the committee’s shoes and think about who you would want coming to your school or receiving your scholarship.
Finally, follow the word or character count carefully. You don’t want to lose that awesome closing sentence because you didn’t check your word count. Many online applications will cut off the essay once it hits the limit and the committee won’t see what was lost.

Even the strongest writers find personal statements difficult. Don’t let that get you down. Talk it through, brainstorm, and write write write.

Dissertation Library Guide

Laura Hennessey — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 21:23:54 +0000

The 2012 Dissertation Forum was a great success! Thank you to all who joined us. It was a great time for networking, sharing ideas and learning how to make it through the dissertation process. Many of our presenters offered to share their materials with us. If you weren’t able to join us, or would like a refresher on the materials, please check out the Dissertation Workshop Library Guide!

Dissertation Writing Forum

Laura Hennessey — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 17:50:13 +0000

Calling all doctoral students!

July 18th and 19th, 2012

The Writing Center, in conjunction with the USF Tampa Library and the USF Graduate School will be hosting a dissertation forum on July 18th and 19th, 2012. Please register and join us for two days of dedicated dissertation work. You’ll meet with librarians, IRB representatives and writing consultants and leave with some serious progress made on your work!