Writing Skills
an illustrated bibliography
Estelle M. Phillips and D.S. Pugh, How to get a Ph.D: a handbook for students and their supervisors, Buckinghamshire: Open University Press, third edn, 2000, pp.235, ISBN: 033520550X
Advice on how to get into the system, what to expect, and how to plan your workload, as well as dealing with your supervisor. Latest third edition includes information technology, publishing your work, and teaching and working towards a PhD in a practice-based discipline.
Full review HERE
David Pirie, How to Write Critical Essays: a guide for students of literature, London: Routledge, 1985, pp.139, ISBN 0415045339
David Pirie's sub-title here is 'a guide for students of literature' - but his advice will be useful for anybody in the arts or humanities. What he offers is to talk you through the process, from understanding the question to producing and submitting the final draft.
Full review HERE
Andrew Robinson, The Story of Writing, London: Thames & Hudson, 1995, pp.224, ISBN 0500016658
Illustrated coffee-table study of the graphical presentation of language. Covers pictographs, logograms, rebuses and 'proto-writing'. Also focuses on the decipherment and decoding of Cuneiform, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Linear B, and Mayan Glyphs. Something of a detective-story suspense in these accounts.
Full review HERE
Stylewriter is a software program which offers help with writing skills such as summarising, editing, and proof-reading your work. It also offers a selection of writing styles to choose from - academic writing, journalism, formal prose, and so on. Mistakes and suggestions for improvement are highlighted and implemented with a click of the button.
Heidi Schultz, The Elements of Electronic Communication, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 2000, pp.132, ISBN: 0205286461
Brief introduction to emailing protocols, newsgroups, and communication via the Web, with emphasis on writing for clarity in an electronic medium. Deals with privacy, legal, and ethical issues. Ends with the construction of web pages. Clear, hand-holding approach for beginners.
Full review HERE
Karen Scott, The Internet Writer's Handbook 2001/2,
London: Alison & Busby, 2001, pp.287, ISBN 0749004975
Reference guide to electronic publishing, with focus on e-zines
and e-books. Extensive listings of UK and US e-publishers, plus advice on submitting your work,
payments, writer's contracts, and notes on future possible trends and developments in publishing.
Full review HERE
John Seely, The Oxford Guide to Writing and Speaking, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000, pp.304, ISBN 0192801090.
Brisk guide to various forms of writing and verbal presentations - from academic work, via faxes and email, to research and dissertations. Plenty of examples and self-assessment exercises. Deals with business letters, CVs, faxes and email messages, interviews, organizing meetings, presentations, writing reports, and essays and dissertations.
Full review HERE
Mike Sharples, How We Write: Writing as Creative Design, London: Routledge, 1999, pp.224, ISBN 0415185874.
Academic study of the various processes of writing - from the origination of ideas, through their expression in words, to the physical production of text. Especially insightful on revision and the way in which the meaning of a text can change. Combines the approaches of psychology and literary theory to interesting effect.
Full review HERE
William Strunk and E.B. White, The Elements of Style, Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1979, pp.92, ISBN: 0205191584
Best-selling 'bare bones' guidance manual which cuts out everything except the essential answers to most common writing problems. Deals with spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Includes a list of twenty-one guidelines for clear and good writing. Extremely compact - and very popular.
Full review HERE
Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, (6th edn) 1987, pp.300, ISBN: 0226816273
Modern US classic guidance manual for academic writing - covers everything from abbreviations via bibliography and referencing, to page layout. This is a classic style manual, now in its sixth edition. Highly recommended.
Full review HERE
Richard Marggraf Turley, Writing Essays: A guide for students in English and the humanities, London: Routledge, 2000, pp.145, ISBN0415230136
Lively and comprehensive essay-writing manual. Talks you through the composition of an essay - from introduction to conclusion. This is done by a close examination of real examples, and it shows how writing can be improved by careful editing and re-drafting. All points of advice are well illustrated and the writing is quite funny.
Full review HERE
Victor J. Vitanza, Writing for the World Wide Web, Allyn and Bacon, 1998, pp.235, ISBN: 0205266932.
This is a guide for students who wish to convert their written work into web pages. It explains HTML coding in full, includes plenty of examples, and gives instructions for uploading the results. Designed for use in conjunction with writing classes.
Full review HERE
Keith Waterhouse, Waterhouse on Newspaper Style, London: Penguin, 1993, pp.250, ISBN: 0140118195
An amusing tour through the abuse of language by UK newspaper journalists - exposing bad writing and promoting the case for clarity and precision. Waterhouse is particularly good at exposing jargon and the linguistic obfuscation of special interest groups. This book goes in and out of print - but it is well worth tracking down. If you see a copy - grab it. In fact, if you find a copy and you're not satisfied, we will buy it from you!
Full review HERE
Gordon Wells, Writers' Questions and Answers, London: Allison & Busby, 2001, pp.143, ISBN 0749005319
Practical advice to writers who wish to publish their work commercially. Starts from point of what and how to write, then goes on to discuss contacting agents and publishers. Good on contracts, copyright, payments, and how to submit your work.
Full review HERE
Joseph Williams, Style: Ten Lessons in Clarity and Grace, New York: Addison Wesley, 6th edn, 1999, pp.309, ISBN: 0321024087
Advice for improving your writing. The lessons put their emphasis on editing for clarity, creating structure, and keeping the audience in mind. Very popular - and now in its sixth edition. Recommended - particularly for those interested in journalism or creative writing.
Full review HERE
Peter Woods, Successful Writing for Qualitative Researchers, London: Routledge, 1999, pp.158, ISBN: 0415188474
Guide to academic writing at post-graduate level - from the preparation of a project through to the completion of the finished work. Considers various approaches to writing, editing, and even collaborative writing. Ends with advice on preparing work for possible publication.
Full review HERE
William Zinsser, On Writing Well, New York: Harper Perennial, 1990, pp.308, ISBN: 0062735233
Reassuring guidance from an experienced journalist on writing more effectively, particularly good on editing and re-writing. Deals with a variety of non-fiction writing. Lots of examples examined in detail. Best-seller, now in its sixth edition. Recommended - particularly for those interested in journalism and creative writing.
Full review HERE
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