English grammar is fickle. There are far too many rules and even more changes to those rules for a human mind to register and apply at all times. Add on, the burden of the weighty academic word usage and you will find yourself drowning to the bottom of the sea when you decide to write your thesis. This probably is the reason behind most researchers procrastinating or delaying their writing, because staring at a blank paper or Microsoft word document is their most honest moment. A moment when they realize that although the words flying around in their head or the professional jargons they have noted down about their study makes perfect sense to them, but will these words and jargons convey their thoughts as articulately as they wish it to? Most academic writing advice will give you a lot of information about how you should write a good research paper. But, in this post, you will find what you shouldn’t do when you are writing your paper. Actually, the list runs pretty long, but let us try and cover the main DON’TS. These are a few edits that professional academic editing and proofreading services swear by. Don’t use lengthy sentences: We use words such as and, but, or, for, yet, nor, so, and which to join two clauses. The two clauses might be independent or a combination of dependent and independent clauses. What most writers do is attach a lot of important information on both sides of these words. What they should do is give each piece of important information its due credit and their reader’s time to absorb. Example: After performing Test A in a quarantine room, we evaluated the test scores of both the groups and found that a low score indicated to a slower prognosis in group A. After performing Test A in a quarantine room, we evaluated the test scores of both the groups. We found that a low score indicated to a slower prognosis in group A. Don’t use loose words or phrases: Today’s readers have very low tolerance and patience for loose writing. They want their information quick and simple. So, don’t waste your and the audience’s time with weak words and phrases that make your writing wordy. Examples: You are going to have to proofread your paper. You must proofread your paper. Due to the fact that Bombay is a metropolis, there is overcrowding. Bombay is overcrowded because it is a metropolis. Don’t overuse prepositions: Prepositions are a double-edged sword. They can be an academic writer’s best friend or worst enemy, all depending on how he uses it. It is recommended that one preposition should be used for every 10–15 words. Examples: The quality of the image was poor. The image quality was poor. The efficacy of the drug was evaluated without any delay. The drug efficacy was evaluated immediately. Don’t use weak or feeble words and phrases: Using words with low impact will only yield weak results. Academic writing needs you to be firm, disciplined, and precise. There is no penalty for stating your opinion loud and clear, so don’t beat around the bush with words that only do that. Examples: The prognosis was not that great. The prognosis was poor. The weather was really bad. The weather was terrible. Don’t use the passive voice: There are instances when many editors or reviewers prefer the passive voice. But, trust me, those instances are rare. Passive voice not only takes away the impact of your statement, but also makes your statement wordy. Example: The vaccination drive was organized by a hospital. A hospital organized the vaccination drive. Don’t use vague pronouns: Pronouns substitute nouns. But, when you have too many nouns flying around in the conversation, using pronouns mostly only cause confusion because the reader doesn’t know which noun you have substituted. Example: The government issued laws against tobacco use; it was ignored by the public. Don’t use noun strings: Noun strings are literally what they are called. A long list of nouns, which are inserted in your text for conciseness but take away the clarity of your text. Example: The NSAID dosage efficacy was determined. The NSAID’s dosage efficacy was determined. OR The dosage efficacy of the NSAID was determined. Don’t leave sentence fragments: English language requires a subject, verb, and object for any sentence to be complete. Incomplete sentences do not exist in a world where comprehension or understanding exists. Example: The hormone levels were. Don’t misuse tenses: Academic writing mostly involves past and present tenses. The future tense is used only to describe future events and the present perfect tense is used to refer to multiple previous studies. Examples: We had been analyzing the data using SPSS. We analyzed the data using SPSS. Li et al. had observed increased testosterone levels. Li et al. observed increased testosterone levels. There are many academic and proofreading service providers who will rectify these mistakes in your text. So, if you found this post a tad bit overwhelming then you must hire a professional manuscript academic and proofreading services ASAP.
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