Commonly or Interesting Questions Asked - Quora (December 2020)

While scrolling through Quora.com I found some questions about writing and english subject in general that I see asked a lot or just held my interest. So, I decided to compile a list of the questions along with how I answered them. I'm not some type of english genius and some of the questions had subjective answers, so some might disagree with my answers. That's cool! (I'm right tho...im just playing... or am I?) If you disagree with my answer I encourage you to let me know how you would've answered the question. I love seeing different perspectives. So, here are some of the most commonly or interesting asked questions on Quora.com in December 2020:

How do you get a "B" on an essay?

When I was in high school I would shoot for an "A" grade and luckily was able to achieve this goal. One of my biggest tips to getting better grades on writing assignments is to get feedback on your writing. This can be as easy as just asking a friend or a family member to look over your writing and tell you what they think. If you actually know somebody that writes that’s even better! I, to this day, have my grandma look over almost everything I write. I will say she does a lot of writing herself. Also, plenty of people online will look over your writing. Though you might have to do a little digging to find someone that will check out your writing for free. Keep working hard and striving to be the best.

What is an essay on the advantages and disadvantages of social media giving your position in it?

First, you have to decide what your position is when it comes to social media. You can do this by answering a couple of questions for yourself:

Do you use social media frequently?
Do you enjoy social media? If yes, what makes it so enjoyable? If no, what makes it so that it doesn’t appeal to you?
What is your biggest pet peeve about social media? Why?
In current times, do you feel social media is necessary for people to have?

Based on your answers to those questions, you should have a good idea of your social media stance. If you answered no to the first, second, and fourth questions, you most likely see many of the disadvantages of social media. If you answered yes to the first, second, and fourth questions, you see more social media advantages. For the third question, if many answers popped into your mind, you most likely are leaning towards disadvantages. If you struggled to come up with an answer or very few came to mind, you would most likely lean towards advantages. Now that you know whether you see social media positively or negatively, it’s time to figure out what advantages and disadvantages there are. Here are some ideas for advantages:

Social media allows people to connect that they otherwise might not have been able to or gives you a place to develop new relationships
Social media gives people a platform to express themselves
Social media can give you a better understanding of what’s going on in the world around you
Social media makes it possible to see multiple opinions on an issue/topic so you can get a better and informed understanding of said issue/topic
You can learn new things on social media every single day
In a time where we have to social distance and can’t visit friends or family as much or at all, social media keeps us together, communicating, and up-to-date with what is happening in the lives of the people we are closest to
Social media is an excellent and almost necessary way for new businesses and even more successful ones to build a follower base and advertise their product, service, or content

Here are some ideas for disadvantages:

Social media can enable bullying without repercussions (cyberbullying)
Social media is a great place that easily allows the spread of misinformation
Anyone can use social media, and it can be tough to tell who can be trusted and who can’t
Social media can be a vital playground for hackers and scammers
Social media can lack an emotional connection
Too much social media use can cause face-to-face interactions harder for some
For some, social media is the reason they develop anxiety or depression due to things like the fear of missing out (FOMO), feeling like you’re not good enough because you didn’t get a lot of likes, continually seeing people doing subjectively better than you, lowered self-esteem, etc.
Social media can help those you need help, usually mentally or emotionally, hide behind a screen and use social media as a security blanket

After figuring out what advantages and disadvantages you want to talk about, all you have to do is form your essay. Make sure to expand on each point you make. You might even have to do a little research to strengthen those points so that you’re not making baseless claims, and honestly, researching can help you get more information, which can significantly help your word count (if you have one). In your introduction, talk about how social media has both advantages and disadvantages, as well as state your position on the topic. In your conclusion, make sure to state your position again (reword it, though). End your essay with confidence, and don’t forget to cite your sources if you do end up researching more information. I hoped this helped. Good luck with your essay, and I hope that you get the best grade possible!

Is it best to write chapters individually or write the entire book in one sitting?

My advice is to write chapters individually because writing the entire book is a difficult task and chances are high that you will get burnt out mentally before you finish it. Writing can be a long progress, but it can be rewarding. When you write your chapters individually, you also give yourself a chance to plan out how you want things to go in your book and it allows for the creative process to flow. Now, if you want to write the entire book in one sitting make sure to give yourself mental breaks. I find that writing a lot of content in one sitting can lead to writer’s block because you tend to write faster than you can develop content and ideas. If you do plan to write the book in one sitting I suggest planning/brainstorming each chapter before you begin the actual writing process. Good luck with your book!

If I'm writing a slasher, which is a better setting: real or fictional?

From personal observation, I have noticed that people, in general, find things scarier if they believe it can actually happen. For example, I believe the scariest of movies are ones that start off by saying they are based on a true story. Making the setting real makes your story feel just as real. Readers won’t be able to get the thought that what you wrote can actually happen. I’m not saying that there shouldn’t be fictional things in your writing, but the more real it feels the better. Readers will become enthralled with your story because the setting just sucks them and some readers might even be able to relate to the setting. If they can relate it makes your slasher feel even more real than you maybe intended. I would even go as far as to suggest that you do a little research and base your slasher on a true story then add the fictional aspects to add your own touch/flavor. You can also go down a more fictional route and try to make feel as real as you possibly can. Though doing this is much easier said than done. I wish you luck with your slasher!

How can I differentiate between a article and a blog post?

There are quite a few differences between an article and a blog post. Here are a few:

Blog posts are almost always posted in a way that you see the most recent post first while articles are usually not in any specific order, but have a timestamp given on their publication date
Most blog posts you see will be shorter than an article. Blog posts can be as short as 250 words while the average article will at least be 2000 words
Blog posts are usually written in a way that you can see the writers opinion and they allow the writer's personality to shine through while articles are written in an unbiased fashion
A blog post can be written using informal language while articles use formal language
Articles will have much more facts and statistics than blog posts, but keep in mind blog posts do still include facts and statistics just not to the extent of an article
Blog posts are written in a way that tries to hold the reader's attention as much as possible while articles are more focused on getting the facts on the page
You’ll notice that in blog posts they will give links to articles, but articles do not give links to blogs.

Hope this helped!

Can somebody be described as an inspiration or inspirational?

Of course! If somebody left a positive, lasting impact on you that made you want to take action or change then you can say that person inspired you. Therefore, they are an inspiration to you. They are an inspirational figure. Keep in mind that not everyone will agree with your determination of who is an inspiration. Who is and is not a inspiration is definitely subjective. For example, Martin Luther King Jr. inspired many people to rise up and take action against systematic racism and to fight for their civil rights. He did this peacefully by speaking, boycotting, and marching. He is an inspirational person and this is widely agreed-upon. His “I Have a Dream…” speech is one of the most inspirational recognized speeches out there. Despite all the good he did, there are plenty of people who hate him and would never in their describe him as inspirational. So, like I said it’s subjective, but people can 100% be described as inspiration or inspirational.

What makes a character good?

First of depends on what you mean by a character being “good”, so I’m going to answer this question in multiple ways. Before I do that, I will say that how someone feels about a character or how you make a character act is completely subjective. I would keep that in mind when deciding whether or not a character is good.

If by good you mean that the character is a high-quality character that is written well then a good character is one that your readers can easily get attached to. You want to write the character in such a way that your readers will develop a soft spot for them without even noticing it. If readers truly like and become attached to a character then you can safely say that your character is good or well written.

If by good you mean that your character would be defined as a good person then making them do stereotypical “good deeds” can make your readers know that you are trying to display that character as good. It makes it very obvious this character is good.

Overall, whether a character is good or not is completely subjective.

How do you write an apology letter to your teacher for not attending the midterm examination and to pursue him why he should allow you to sit for a makeup midterm examination?

Every teacher is different in how they deal with appeals, but here is an example of a general letter you can use to apologize. Keep in mind that your reason for missing the exam should be a valid reason and you can prove that your reason is true otherwise there's no point in even writing the letter.

Dear Professor/Mr. *teachers name*,

I sincerely apologize for being absent from the midterm examination on *date of exam*. It was not my intention to miss the exam, but I had an emergency arise that prevented me from being at the exam. *insert valid reason*. I also have *insert proof* to confirm that *insert reason* was why I missed the exam. I write this to ask if it would be possible for me to take a makeup exam? I would be very grateful for this opportunity. Please get back to me soon.

Thank you,

*insert name*

Hope this helps and I hope your teacher allows you to retake your exam.

These questions really made me think and I'm thinking of adding a page on the website specifically dedicated to good/interesting Quora.com questions because there are so many of them out there and I want to share them. Also, I suggest you go answer some questions for yourself.