Writing Style: writing better English


Faculty Guides to writing assignments | Grammar and writing | Style guides for online writing | Web design style guides | Print resources in UTS Library


Introduction
The information on this page will assist you to improve your skills at writing in English, both in the printed medium and for the Web. It is aimed at both native and non-native English speakers.

More help is available through the ELSSA Centre, an academic unit which provides academic and professional English services to UTS students and staff.

More specific assistance with assignment writing can be found on the UTS BELL Program's Academic Writing Guide or the Library's Developing an Argument page. Information about referencing and referencing styles at UTS can be found on the BELL Program's UTS Referencing Guide and on the Library's Referencing Guide. For Postgraduates, the UTS STAR website has information about Scholarly writing.

If you would like to look at a printed UTS thesis, do a keyword search in the library catalogue, using the keywords University Technology Sydney Thesis , eg University Technology Thesis Education. Note down the call number of a thesis, and ask for it at the Library's Closed Reserve desk. Some online full text theses can be viewed via the Australasian Digital Theses Program. More information about finding theses in general is on the Library's Thesis Information web page.

UTS Faculty Guides to Writing Assignments

  1. Guide to Essay Writing / Faculty of Law
  2. Guide to Writing Assignments / Faculty of Business
  3. Undergraduate Survival Guide / Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Health
  4. Postgraduate Study Guide / Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Health

Grammar and writing
Unfortunately, there are very few web guides devoted to Australian English: the vast majority are based on American English. You will need particularly to watch out for spelling differences between American and Australian English, eg color/colour. Apart from such spelling differences, however, the American sites given below are generally excellent and full of advice which is still valid in an Australian context. For thoroughness, consult a printed guide in the Library, such as the Cambridge Australian English style guide.

For the beginner:

  • How to Write Better Documents (Brett Coster)

    • An Australian site, quite brief but easy to follow.

  • Guide to Grammar and Writing (Foothill College, California)

    • A very thorough site divided into chapters, with lots of exercises about improving writing skills. Especially useful for those with English language difficulties.

  • Punctuation Made Simple (Gary Olsen, University of South Florida)

    • A nice, very simple guide to the use of basic punctuation.

For the more confident:

The classics:
Don't be put off by the publication dates: these two general guides are still extremely useful. Fowler gives a British viewpoint, Strunk an American one. For the beginner, the print versions are probably easier to use than the online versions.

Style Guides for Online Writing
How to write better in the online medium.

Web Design Style Guides
How to design a better web page.

Print Resources in the UTS Library
The Library has many guides to writing skills. Try searching for material on the following subjects using the library catalogue:

Some examples of these guides (several others have been mentioned already):