XobaWrite Formatting guides, without the runaround
Free, plain-English guides to formatting the documents you actually have to write.
Academic
Essays, referencing and the formatting rules tutors actually check.
How to format an essay in APA style
Margins, title page, headings, in-text citations and the reference list for an APA 7th edition student paper.
How to format an essay in MLA style
The MLA 9th edition header, spacing, in-text citations and Works Cited page, with examples you can copy.
Harvard referencing without the confusion
Why Harvard looks different at every university, what stays the same, and how to build a reference list that passes.
How to structure an essay
What an introduction actually has to do, how to build a paragraph that argues rather than describes, and why the conclusion is not a summary.
Chicago and Turabian style, explained
The two Chicago systems, when each is used, and how to write footnotes and a bibliography without checking the manual every time.
How to quote, paraphrase and cite without plagiarising
The difference between quoting and paraphrasing, what counts as common knowledge, and why patchwriting still fails even when you cite it.
How to write a personal statement
The three UCAS questions for 2026 entry onwards, what admissions tutors are reading for, and the openings to avoid because everybody uses them.
Work
Applications, and the documents that decide whether anyone reads them.
How to structure a CV that gets read
What goes in each section, what order to put them in, how long it should be, and the formatting that survives applicant tracking systems.
How to lay out a formal letter
Where the addresses go, how to open and close, and the British and American conventions that differ.
How to write a cover letter
A four-paragraph structure that works for most applications, with what to put in each one and the mistakes that sink an otherwise good letter.