Understanding the rules of writing isn’t just about following grammar conventions—it’s about clearly communicating your ideas, especially in scholarly and professional settings. In this five-part video series, Dr. Nina Beaman guides viewers through key concepts from The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White. Whether you’re returning to school, preparing for a capstone project, or looking to polish your writing for the workplace, this classic book provides timeless strategies that can elevate your communication.
We’ve summarized the highlights from each session below. Be sure to watch the full videos, embedded throughout the post, for in-depth explanations and examples.
Session 1 – Elementary Rules of Usage
The first session focuses on the foundations of proper sentence structure and punctuation. One important concept is possessives—used to indicate ownership. For example, “Dr. Beaman’s students” shows that the students belong to Dr. Beaman. However, personal possessive pronouns (his, hers, theirs, its, ours, yours) do not use apostrophes. A common mix-up is “it’s” (which means “it is”) versus “its” (which shows possession):
“It’s a wise dog who licks its own wounds.”
Next, the proper use of commas is emphasized. For instance, when listing three or more items, a comma is used before the final conjunction:
“Red, white, and blue.”
However, this rule may not apply to names of businesses, such as Little, Brown and Company.
Commas also help set off parenthetical expressions—phrases that add clarification but aren’t essential to the sentence. If the sentence still makes sense without the phrase, it’s parenthetical:
“The instructor, Dr. Beaman, required the assignment to be turned in by Monday.”
(Remove the name and the sentence still works: “The instructor required the assignment by Monday.”)
Other common comma rules include:
- In dates: April 12, 2025
- With titles: Dr. Nina Beaman, Ed.D., RN
- Before a conjunction joining independent clauses:
✅ “The assignment is due Friday, and it involves writing a three-page essay.”
❌ “The assignment is due on Friday, it involves writing a 3-page essay.” Without the conjunction “and” this becomes a run-on sentence.
❌ “The assignment is due on Friday; it involves writing a 3-page essay.” The semicolon is not needed.
❌ “The assignment is due on Friday. Writing a 3-page essay.” The second sentence is incomplete.
Note: Conjunctions are “and” and “but”. These join sentence parts, and they should not be used at the start of sentences.
Colons are another useful punctuation mark. They introduce lists, appositives (clarifying phrases), amplifications, and quotations. For example:
“These are the strengths of this student: thoroughness, communication, and collaboration.”
“The instructor said: ‘I will accept late work this week, due to the snow.’”
Dashes provide emphasis and highlight interruptions or summaries:
“The student was worried about success in the course—feeling very poorly prepared for the rigor of the advanced level—nonetheless, they persevered.”
“The negative effect of violence in gaming on teenage minds might be overstated, as recent studies show—perhaps videogames are simply the contemporary scapegoat for the moral panic that previously targeted movies, comic books, and novels.”
Grammatical agreement between subject and verb is also key. Consider:
“The students, each opening a notebook, were ready for class.”
Use singular verbs with pronouns like everyone, nobody, or someone:
“Everyone agrees to do the work.”
Use the proper case of the pronoun. The 7th edition of the APA style guide made a change to remove bias and avoid saying “he or she, his/her,” which is clumsy. When gender is not known, using they/them/their is correct and shows gender neutrality rather than plurality.
“The student did not want their work shown to others.”
Avoid using “us” unless there are multiple authors, or “I, me, my, mine” unless it is specifically a student reflection.
Finally, make sure participial phrases at the beginning of sentences refer to the correct subject:
✅ “Concerned about his grade, Cameron reached out to the teacher.”
❌ “Concerned about his grade, the librarian helped him.” (This incorrectly implies the librarian was concerned.)
Session 2 – Elementary Principles of Composition
Writing academically means understanding purpose and audience. Review your assignment’s rubric or template, and identify your readers—instructors, classmates, professionals?
Each paragraph should be a fully developed unit, typically with at least three sentences and a clear transition to the next. Use a strong topic sentence and stay focused.
Helpful guidelines:
- Prefer active voice (e.g., “The student completed the assignment” rather than “The assignment was completed”).
- Use positive, concrete language.
- Be objective—avoid unnecessary adjectives and adverbs.
- Eliminate fluff that doesn’t add meaning.
Watch for loose sentences—strings of simple clauses that lack structure—and avoid redundancy. Maintain consistency in tense, and place important words at the end of sentences for emphasis.
Before turning in your work, ask:
- Does it meet the requirements?
- Are paragraphs logically organized?
- Are sentences active, concise, and objective?
- Is the conclusion a strong, cohesive summary?
Here’s a previous blog post that covers paragraph structure in more detail!
Session 3 – A Few Matters of Form
This session focuses on formatting and clarity.
Avoid colloquialisms, especially abbreviations that could confuse the reader. For example:
- “VA” could mean Veterans Affairs or Virginia.
- “NP” could be Nurse Practitioner or National Park.
Use more formal alternatives:
- Instead of via, say through.
- Instead of as per, say according to.
Exclamation points rarely belong in scholarly work.
✅ “I really liked the course.”
❌ “I really liked the course!”
Hyphens are used to combine multiple words into adjectives (e.g., evidence-based), but APA style discourages unnecessary hyphenation, especially with prefixes like pre, post, and non.
APA Style guide for hyphenation
Use proper margins (1 inch on all sides), indent the first line of each paragraph, and apply APA-style headings for organization. Student papers don’t require a running header, but journal submissions might.
For numbers, write:
August 27, 1994
Not: August 27th, 1994
Parentheses should be punctuated outside:
(Glidewell & Bolgiano, 2025).
Quotations require proper punctuation and citation. For longer quotes, use block formatting.
For titles, remember:
- On the title page and in the body: Capitalize major words and italicize the title.
Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities - In references: Use sentence-style capitalization (only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized).
Session 4 – Words and Expressions Commonly Misused
Precision matters. Here are some commonly confused word pairs:
- Aggravate (to add to or make worse) vs. Irritate (to annoy)
- Allude (to refer indirectly) vs. Elude (to escape)
- Effect (noun: result) vs. Affect (verb: to influence)
- Further (abstract) vs. Farther (physical distance)
Grammar tip: That introduces a restrictive clause (essential to the sentence), while which introduces a non-restrictive clause (nonessential and set off by commas).
“The paper that was late received half credit.”
“The paper, which was late, received half credit.”
Be cautious with words like:
- Disinterested (impartial) vs. uninterested (not engaged)
- Nauseous (causing nausea) vs. nauseated (feeling sick)
Avoid redundant phrases like:
- “As yet” → just say “yet”
- “Currently” → often unnecessary
- “The fact that” → usually can be cut
Use specific, concrete language instead of vague or overused adjectives like interesting, meaningful, or nice. Academic writing should allow readers to form their own conclusions.
Session 5 – An Approach to Style
Writing well means writing with intention. Let the subject matter—not your personal opinions—take center stage.
- Write naturally, then revise for clarity and conciseness.
- Use transitions to guide the reader.
- Follow provided templates and rubrics carefully.
- Ensure subject-verb agreement.
Embrace the process: organize your thoughts, write a draft, revise thoroughly, and seek feedback.
Avoid unnecessary embellishments or “fluff.” Let your evidence speak clearly and your structure guide the reader. Scholarly writing is a craft—and like any skill, it improves with practice. By mastering the core lessons from The Elements of Style, you’ll gain confidence in your academic writing—and you’ll be better equipped to express your ideas clearly, concisely, and professionally.
Happy writing!
Source:
Strunk, W., & White, E. B. (2000). The Elements of Style (4th ed.). Pearson Education.
Dr. Nina Beaman is the Graduate Partnership Liaison at Aspen University, as well as the Dean Emerita of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Additional writing resources:
AU Scholarly Writing Webinar Series, also presented by Dr. Beaman
Transitioning to Academic Writing webinar presented by Aspen faculty member Negean Mohi