How to Prepare for a Session

The KSU Writing Center helps you build on your strengths as a writer. Writing Assistants are students too, so they know what it’s like to tackle tough writing assignments. 

The KSU Writing Center can help you at ANY
point in the writing process.

• If you . . . 
  a Writing Assistant can . . .
• haven’t started
  help you understand your assignment, generate ideas for a topic, craft a working thesis, or begin drafting your essay.
• feel "stuck"
  work with you to develop your ideas; refine your thesis statement; or identify additional analysis, details, or examples.
• have a rough draft
  show you how to improve your essay’s organization and "flow," strengthen your argument, or integrate and cite research.
• want to take your paper to the next level
  teach you techniques for writing strong introductions and conclusions, editing for clarity, or proofreading your final draft.

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Before meeting with your Writing Assistant

1. Schedule your appointment and review the Center's session guidelines on our website.
2. Review your assignment guidelines, and bring them to your appointment along with any prewriting exercises, drafts, peer review notes, etc. relating to the assignment.
3. Consider the following questions and write 1-2 sentences describing what you want to work on with your Writing Assistant.

• • Do you have any questions or concerns about fulfilling the assignment guidelines?
  • What comments have [previous or current] instructors made about your writing? Is there a question about writing you've always wanted to ask someone?
  • Which [1-2] of the following aspects of your paper do you most want help with?

• • • Thesis or focus: Does the essay have a clear thesis?
      
      
    • Audience: Do you have a specific, appropriate audience in mind?
      
      
    • Purpose: Does your essay accomplish its purpose?
      
      
    • Organization: Does the essay progress in an organized, logical way?
      
      
    • Development: Are there places in the paper where more analysis, details, or examples are needed?
      
      
    • Punctuation, grammar, word choice, and/or spelling: Do frequent errors interfere with clarity and/or flow?