Make sure your noun and verb agree in number. Make sure your pronoun and its referent agree in number. In formal writing, avoid contractions. Instead of saying, The author includes a quote from another scholar. The author quotes another scholar.
Convention dictates the use of present tense when discussing an author's work.
This convention holds even if the author is dead. If you are asked to format your paper in MLA style, double-space everything . That means one blank line between each line of writing, including between your title and the first line of your paper, and within and between entries in your Works Cited list. That is one of the few simple rules in MLA style, yet it is commonly disregarded. Consult the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers , 5th ed.