Information Portal for Graduate Students

All students and professors need to write, and many struggle to finish their stalled dissertations, journal articles, book chapters, or grant proposals. Writing is hard work and can be difficult to wedge into a frenetic academic schedule. In this practical. light-hearted, and encouraging book, Paul Silvia explains that writing productively does not require innate skills or special traits but specific tactics and actions.

Stressing the importance of style, this introduction uses theory (especially genre theory) to elucidate the particular techniques of academic writing. Chapters concentrate on issues like citation and summary, arrangements for reader and speakers, audience, scholarly styles, and readability and objectivity. Numerous examples illustrate various kinds of academic writing, and exercises help students refine their skills. Giltrow teaches English at the University of British Columbia.

This best-selling series takes the mystery out of the composition process as it helps college-bound and college-level ESL students quickly improve their ability to write effectively in English. Addressing organization, rhetoric, grammar and mechanics, and sentence structure, these texts offer clear steps, numerous models, and many opportunities for writing practice. Features include: -- Extensive practice in prewriting, drafting, revising, and editing. -- Clear, step-by-step approach to the conventions of paragraph and essay organization and rhetorical expression. -- Rigorous development of sentence structure, grammar, and mechanical skills. -- Extensive appendices with relevant reference materials for students and teachers. Teaches basic composition skills through paragraph writing. A systematic treatment of simple, compound, and complex sentence structure addresses common trouble spots for students. Extensive models and writing practice are included.

Seasoned journalist Roscoe C. Born, who has worked for the Wall Street Journal and the National Observer, among other publications, turned out a series of memos analyzing poor writing while working as a consultant for the Detroit News. This book is basically a compilation of those memos, peppered with copious examples of common grammatical mistakes excerpted from newspapers around the country. Among the chapters he offers are "The That/Which Matter,'' "Adverbs Amuck,'' and "The Suspended Sentence'' (on how to avoid blocking sentence flow). Born's workmanlike approach is particularly effective at showing how to correct errors and how to practice clear, concise writing. More suitable for browsing than straight reading, this book should have special appeal for journalism students.