Writing is really, really hard. One of the hardest things that you will ever learn to do is to discipline your language and thinking to make it coherent and organized, in a style that other people can easily understand. It is, however, possibly the most important skill we teach in the humanities, and the one that employers ask for again and again, regardless of the profession: companies are in desperate need of engineers, doctors, chemists, accountants, adverstising directors, and more who are capable of expressing themselves clearly and convincingly with the written and spoken word.


Like all language skills, however, writing cannot be learned in a week or two, and there is not an even, constant progression in which every week you write better than the last—you wouldn't expect this if you were learning a musical instrument, either. It can be frustrating, but don't give up. The rewards arrive eventually (sometimes later, sometimes sooner), and one day, you'll have a clear argument in your head before you even sit down, and paragraphs will come out, each of which reflects a single, clear idea. You'll still need to work on your writing, but it will be other, marger issues that preoccupy you.


There are tons of resources for undergraduate writing on campus, broadly organized under the Center for Writing Studies. You will probably be interested in the Writers Workshop, which holds regular hours at the Undergraduate Library and several other locations around campus.


I also have my own set of pages here. The cultural references get dated over time, but several students have found them helpful over the years:



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