Feb+5+Mod+1+Les+7+(Descriptive+paragraph)

= home assignment = Reference book in Academic Writing. Pages 75-76. Punctuate the sentences.

=How to Write a Descriptive Essay or Paragraph=

A descriptive essay or paragraph is developed with a number of well-selected details that add up to a dominant, or general, impression of the subject or topic. Students often think that writing descriptively requires a lot of flowery language—adjectives and adverbs like glorious and fantastic and incredible. That's a mistake. Writing a descriptive essay or paragraph requires lots of solid nouns and verbs; and names of people, places, parts, and things. To begin, the writer must have in mind a general impression he or she wants to convey about the person, place, thing, or event being described. Though that general impression can be written as a topic sentence or thesis, the writer does not have to state that general impression; it will become clear if the writer selects details that create that impression.

The secret to successfully completing a descriptive essay lies in the inclusion of three elements: the dominant impression thesis, visceral details, and a spatial structure.
=Here are some guidelines for descriptive writing:= Take time to brainstorm If your instructor asks you to describe your favorite food, make sure that you jot down some ideas before you begin describing it. For instance, if you choose pizza, you might start by writing down a few words: sauce, cheese, crust, pepperoni, sausage, spices, hot, melted, etc. Once you have written down some words, you can begin by compiling descriptive lists for each one. Use clear and concise language. This means that words are chosen carefully, particularly for their relevancy in relation to that which you are intending to describe. Choose vivid language. Why use ‘horse’ when you can choose ‘stallion’? Why not use ‘tempestuous’ instead of ‘violent’? Or why not ‘miserly’ in place of ‘cheap’? Such choices form a firmer image in the mind of the reader and often times offer nuanced meanings that serve better one’s purpose. Use your senses! Remember, if you are describing something, you need to be appealing to the senses of the reader. Explain how the thing smelled, felt, sounded, tasted, or looked. Embellish the moment with senses. What were you thinking?! If you can describe emotions or feelings related to your topic, you will connect with the reader on a deeper level. Many have felt crushing loss in their lives, or ecstatic joy, or mild complacency. Tap into this emotional reservoir in order to achieve your full descriptive potential. Leave the reader with a clear impression. One of your goals is to evoke a strong sense of familiarity and appreciation in the reader. If your reader can walk away from the paragraph craving the very pizza you just described, you are on your way to writing effective descriptive paragraphs. Be organized! It is easy to fall into an incoherent rambling of emotions and senses when writing a descriptive paragraph. However, you must strive to present an organized and logical description if the reader is to come away from the paragraph with a cogent sense of what it is you are attempting to describe.

Sensory words http://efmswrites.pbworks.com/w/page/47433258/Descriptive%20Writing%3A%20Sensory%20Details