Why Essays Fail #2

You Started at the Beginning This seems like a ridiculous proposition; of course you start at the beginning, right? Well, not exactly. As a TA, I marked hundreds of essays and the vast majority had an excellent introduction. After that, things tumbled downhill quickly. If you start with your introduction, you'll edit it over and …

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Why Essays Fail #1

You didn’t understand the assignment. Before starting an essay, make absolutely sure you understand the assignment and the type of essay required. If you are not completely certain, ask your instructor or TA. If your school has a writing centre, go to them. At the very least, ask your classmates or friends, just be wary …

The Efficient Essay is HERE!

Available on Amazon and only $18.95 for the hardcover and $9.95 for the Kindle version. Stop worrying about getting your essay done on time. This book takes you through the entire process from choosing a topic, through researching, writing, and finally editing an essay. It provides a formula for success and keeps you on track …

Part one: stormy skies

I am editing and reposting our 2014 vacation stories from Antigua, W. I. It has been updated with three times the angst!https://paulpanchyshyn.com/part-one-stormy-skies/

English Basics: verb tenses for gin lovers

There are so many tenses in English, it gives people tension, and what better way to ease tension than drinking a lovely gin and tonic, martini, or gin smash. Many of us use tenses without really knowing what they are or how to use them properly. Whenever we use the PERFECT tense we must use …

English Basics: much, many, little, and few

As an ESL teacher, it is always troubling when students presented examples of poor English usage by native English speakers. One of the most common examples of misused English grammar is the word "much." For instance, I frequently hear there is "much" cars on the road, and "much" cases of COVID-19. Unfortunately this is incorrect, …

Six Days, Seven Nights (or thereabouts) on Kauai, pt. 6

Time to end the suspense, and bring to a close one of our favourite travel experiences. Kauai solidified the path for all of our future travel; we discovered that independent travel resonated with us far more than the All-Inclusive route. Travel became an adventure, about exploring and finding those out-of-the-way places that few others visit. …

Six Days, Seven Nights (or thereabouts) on Kauai, pt. 2

The second part of our magical trip to Kauai in 2000. As I have stated earlier, the true joy of travel writing is reliving these stories over and over again, even 20 years later. https://paulpanchyshyn.com/six-days-seven-nights-or-thereabouts-on-kauai-pt-2/

The Hikers’ Credo: Six hours in the Honolulu highlands

The Manoa Falls hike started at Ala Moana Mall. We boarded the number 5 bus and were transported through one of Honolulu’s swankiest subdivisions. Behind the cubic “Hawaii 5-O” era homes, grey clouds hung low, creeping across deep green hills, shrouding them in heavy mist, the air humid and stagnant, but perfumed with tropical flowers. …

5. Intangible benefits of travel writing

In the previous four entries of this blog, I focused on activating non-visual senses while writing, on stories instead of places and things, on using writing as a means of committing a trip to memory, and on discussing reliving those memories over and over again, especially when we are quarantined inside during a global pandemic. …