Sound Writing

All writing is driven by some kind of argument, be it a policy paper attempting to persuade the audience to adopt a certain stance, a lab report presenting the findings of an empirical study, or this sentence (which is arguing that all writing has an argument). As a writer, you have a purpose and an objective; why else would you write something at all? While writing and developing your ideas, it is therefore important to keep in mind why you are writing: to whom and for what purpose? Developing and articulating your argument is a necessary component of the writing process. While the transparency of your argument and the way it is presented may vary based on the discipline, class, professor, and even assignment, here are some basic tools you can use to develop and present your argument in an effective and logical way.