Writing Resource Library
In addition to ERC Writing Assistance appointments and drop-ins (4-5PM on weekdays in 100 Bay State Road #101), regular writing workshops and the ERC’s Graduate Writing Support offerings, there are other resources available to you!
Check out other BU writing support options, stop by the ERC for one of our writing handouts, or check out the recommended resources below!
Mindset
Goal Setting
- ERC Handout: SMART Goals
- ERC Handout: Individual Development Plan for Doctoral Students
- Template: Weekly Writing Sessions
- Template: Individual Development Plans
Project + Time Management
- ERC Handout: Time Management for Graduate Students
- ERC Handout: 24 Hour Grid
- ERC Template: Dissertation Timeline
- ERC Template: Prospectus Planning
- Template: Term Planning
- Template: Time Task Tracking
- Template: Weekly Calendar & To-Do List
- App: Be Focused
- App: Cold Turkey
- App: Forest
- App: Notion
- App: TomatoTimer
- App: Trello
Resilience
- ERC Handout: Positive Writing Affirmations
- ERC Handout: How To Become a Successful Graduate Writer
- Online Resource: Resiliency Quiz
- Online Resource: Assessing Your Writing Base
- Online Resource: Solutions to Common Academic Writing Obstacles
- Online Resource: Writing Anxiety
- Online Resource: Imposter Stress & Perfectionism
- Book Resource: Atomic Habits
- Book Resource: Presumed Incompetent: The Intersections of Race and Class for Women in Academia
Writing Tips & Tricks
Databases
- ERC Spreadsheet: Dissertation Norms at BU by Department
- Online Resource: Academic Phrasebank
- Online Resource: UNC Writing Center
- Online Resource: UNC Writing Tips & Tools
- Online Resource: Penn State Graduate Writing Center
- Online Resource: UNC, Journal Article Publication Letters
- Online Resource: George Mason University, Writing Center
- Online Resource: Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
- Online Resource: Purdue OWL, “Incorporating Feedback on Scholarly Writing”
- Online Resource: Purdue OWL, “Writing is Discipline”
- Online Resource: Hamilton College Writing Resources
- Online Resource: Harvard College Writing Resources
- Online Resource: USC Writing Center
- Online Resource: Medium, Writing for Research
- Online Resource: Academic Writing Guide
- Online Resource: MIT CommKit
- Online Resource: “Patter” blog
- Online Resource: Sarnecka Lab Blog
- Online Resource: University of Wisconsin Academic and Professional Writing
- Online Resource: Yale Writing Center
- Online Resource: Class Central Free Online Courses
- Online Resource: University of Michigan Writing Guides
- Online Resource: Thou Shalt Not Commit Logical Fallacies
Feedback & Supervision
- ERC Handout: Tips & Tricks for Peer Writing Workshops
- ERC Spreadsheet: Revision Feedback Organizer
- Online Resource: On Being an Advisee
Revising & Editing
- App: Grammarly
- App: Hemingway Editor
- App: ProWritingAid
- App: Read & Write GOLD
- Online Resource: Texas A&M Tips on Revising and Editing
- Online Resource: University of Waterloo, “Receiving and Giving Effective Feedback”
- Online Resource: Revising Drafts & Reorganizing Drafts (University of North Carolina)
- Online Resource: The Craft of Editing (Grover’s English)
- Online Resource: Wordiness List
- Book: Vernacular Eloquence: What Speech Can Bring to Writing
- Book: Liberating Scholarly Writing: The Power of Personal Narrative
- Podcast: Grammar Girl
STEM Writing
- Online Resource: The Structure, Format, Content, and Style of a Journal-Style Scientific Paper
- Online Resource: Duke Graduate School, Lessons & Tips for STEM Writing
- Online Resource: The Science of Scientific Writing
- Book: From Research to Manuscript: A Guide to Scientific Writing
Undergraduate Writing Resources
- Online Resource: Application Essays (University of North Carolina)
- Online Resource: Creative Writing 101 (Daily Writing Tips)
- Online Resource: BU Core Curriculum Writing FAQs
- Online Resource: Creating a Thesis Statement & Developing a Thesis Statement (Hamilton College)
- Online Resource: Research & Evidence
- Online Resource: Writing a Research Paper (Ohio State University)
- Online Resource: Introductions, Body Paragraphs & Conclusions (University of North Carolina)
Graduate Writing Genres
- Online Resource: On Abstracts
- Online Resource: Completing Your Dissertation Without Tears
- Online Resource: A Guide to Writing Literature Reviews
- Online Resource: “CARS” Model of Research Introductions
- Online Resource: Teaching Graduate Students How to Write Clearly
- Online Resource: Thriving as a Graduate Writer
- Book: The Productive Graduate Student Writer: How to Manage Your Time, Process, and Energy to Write Your Research Proposal, Thesis, and Dissertation and Get Published
- Book: Re-Imagining Doctoral Writing
- Book: Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish Your Thesis, Book, or Article
- Book: Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day: A Guide to Starting, Revising, and Finishing Your Doctoral Thesis
- Book: An A to W of Academic Literacy: Key Concepts and Practices for Graduate Students
- Book: The Elements of Academic Style: Writing for the Humanities
- Book: Write No Matter What: Advice for Academics
- Book: Academic Writing for Graduate Students
- Book: Telling a Research Story: Writing a Literature Review
- Book: A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers
- Book: Destination Dissertation: The Traveler’s Guide to a Done Dissertation
Grammar
- Online Resource: University of Arizona, Grammar and Punctuation Guide
- Online Resource: Using English Quizzes
- Online Resource: Learning idioms functionally: a genre-based approach
- Online Resource: Quick and Dirty Tips: Writing (with Grammar Girl)
- Online Resource: Resources on Grammar (Purdue OWL)
- Online Resource: Kahn Academy on Grammar
- Online Resource: Guide to Grammar
- Online Resource: Glossary of Grammatical Terms
- Online Resource: Academic vs. Colloquial Voice (University of South Florida)
- Online Resource: Activities for ESL Students
- Online Resource: English Verb Tenses & Verb Tense Exercises
- Online Resource: English Grammar Guide (Education First)
- Online Resource: On Sentence Structure – Hook and Eye Writing
- Online Resource: On Sentence Structure – Smart Sentencing
- Book: Advanced Grammar In Use: A Self-Study Reference & Practice Guide for Advanced Learners of English (Martin Hewings)
- Book: English Grammar In Use: A Self-Study Reference & Practice Book for Intermediate Learners of English (Raymond Murphy)
- Book: The Only Grammar Book You’ll Ever Need (Susan Thurman)
- Book: Grammar for Academic Writing & Exercises
- Book: Online English Grammar Book
General Tools
- App: 750 Words
- App: LaTex
- App: Word
- App: Written Kitten
- Online Resource: Fifty Writing Tools
- External Editorial Services Resources
General Books on Writing
- Bird by Bird; Some Instructions on Writing and Life
- How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing
- The Elements of Style
- Stylish Academic Writing
- Style: The Basics of Clarity and Grace
- “Writing Short is Hard” recommended book list
- Why Aren’t You Writing? : Research, Real Talk, Strategies, and Shenanigans (Sage, 2021)
- The Well-Crafted Sentence (Nora Bacon)
- A Pocket Style Manual (Diana Hacker)
- They Say/I Say: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing (Gerald Graff & Cathy Birkenstein)
- Creating Meaning: Advanced Reading and Writing (Laurie Blass et. al.)
- Air Light Time & Space: How Successful Academic Writers Writer
- Being Well in Academia: Ways to Feel Stronger, Safer, and More Connected
- Becoming an Academic Writer: 50 Exercises for Paced, Productive, and Powerful Writing
- The Writing Workshop: Write More, Write Better, Be Happier in Academia
Multilingual Writing
- BU International Graduate Student Guide
- Online Resource: Faculty Panel on Writing as ELL
- Online Resource: University of Michigan Series in English for Academic & Professional Purposes
- Book: A Practical Guide to Academic Writing for International Students
- Book: Thesis and Dissertation Writing in a Second Language
- Book: A Writer’s Reference (With Resources for Multilingual Writers and ESL) (Diana Hacker & Nancy Sommers)
- Book: The Condensed ESL Writer’s Handbook (Janine Carlock et. al.)
-
References
Academic Integrity
- Boston University Academic Conduct Code
- Academic Integrity at Boston University
- Online Resource: How Not to Plagiarize (University of Toronto)
- Online Resource: What Is Plagiarism? + Identifying Plagiarism Tutorial (University of North Carolina)
- Online Resource: Plagiarism Overview (Purdue OWL)
- Online Resource: Plagiarism Resource Site (Bates College)
- Online Resource: WikiHow: Avoiding Plagiarism
Citations
- Online Resources: The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
- Online Resource: Standard Documentation Formats (University of Toronto)
- Online Resource: How & Why to Cite (University of Concordia)
- Online Resource: MLA Style Center
- Online Resource: MLA Documentation Guide (University of Wisconsin, Madison)
- Online Resource: APA Style & Grammar Guidelines
- Online Resource: Chicago Manual of Style + Example Citations
- Online Resource: Council of Science Editors (CSE) Style Guide (Dalhouse University)
- Online Resource: CSE Citation Guide (Colorado State University)
- Online Resource: American Chemical Society (ACS) Style Guide
- Online Resource: Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Reference Guide
- Online Resource: BU Library Bibliographic Management Tools
GenAI
- BU Tool: “Pause Before You Prompt” Tool (BU Libraries & ERC)
- Online Resource: Model of GenAI Disclosure Statement
Research & Note-Taking
- Book: The Craft of Research, 5th Edition
- App: Evernote
- App: Mendeley
- App: Zotero
- App: Research Rabbit
- App: Connected Papers
- App: NVIVO
- Online Resource: Directory of Open Access Journals
- Online Resource: On Note Taking – The Cornell Method
General Reference
- Online Resource: Dictionary.com
- Online Resource: Oxford English Dictionary (OED) (access via BU Libraries)
- Online Resource: Thesaurus.com
- Online Resource: Collins Dictionary: Thesaurus
- Online Resource: Word Reference (alternative to Google Translate)
- Online Resource: Online Oxford Collocation Dictionary of English
- Online Resource: OZDIC Collocation Dictionary
Professionalization
Conferences & Presentations
- ERC Handout: Elevator Pitches
- Online Resource: Designing Conference Posters
- Online Resource: How to Win at Academic Presentations
- Online Resource: Scientific Posters
- Online Resource: Rethinking Presentations in Engineering and Science
- Online Resource: Think Outside the Slide
- Online Resource: Giving Effective Presentations & Speeches (University of North Carolina)
- Online Resource: 18 Tips for Killer Presentations (LifeHack)
Finishing Dissertations
- BU Resource: BU Graduate Success (appointments)
- BU Resource: PDPA Badge Progression
- BU Resource: Vitamin PhD
- BU Resource: BU Graduate Education, compendium of resources
- BU Resource: BU Career preparation for Grad Students
- BU Resource: BU Guide for Thesis & Dissertation Writers
- BU Resource: GRS PhD Graduation Checklist
- Online Resource: University of Toronto Supervision Guidelines for Students
- Online Resource: Academic Aunties (for BIPOC, first-gen, and underrepresented students)
- Online Resource: Grad School Confidental
- Online Resource: Stanford, “Advice for Succeeding in Grad School”
- Online Resource: Inside Higher Ed Blog, preparing thesis defense
- Online Resource: Viva (Defense) Prep Tips
Funding
- BU Fellowships Office
- BU Office of Research
- Online Resource: Northwestern Fellowship Database
- Online Resource: Profellow
- Online Resource: University of Illinois Fellowship Database
- Online Resource: UNC Guide to Grant Proposals
- Book: Writing Successful Grant Proposals From the Top Down to the Bottom Up
- Online Resource: Insider Higher Ed: “Where Storytelling Meets Science”
- Online Resource: NSF GRP: Webinars on Applications
- Online Resource: Having Success with NSF: A Practical Guide
Publishing
- Online Resource: Chronicle of Higher Ed, “The Revise and Resubmit Series, Part 3: Techniques for Easier and Faster Revisions”
- Online Resource: “How to Write a Book Review”
- Online Resource: Inside Higher Ed, “From Dreaded to Amazing: how to use reviewers’ revise and resubmit comments most effectively”
- Online Resource: Reviews of Peer-Reviewed Journals
- Online Resource: “How to Read Peer-Reviewed Journals”
- Book: Writing Your Journal Article in Twelve Weeks: A Guide to Academic Publishing Success
- Book: A Scholar’s Guide to Getting Published in English: Critical Choices and Practical Strategies
- Book: From Dissertation to Book
- Book: Getting Published in Academic Journals
- Book: The Book Proposal Book
