We -- the users turned creators and distributors of content -- are TIME's Person of the Year 2006, and AdAge's Advertising Agency of the Year 2007. We form a new Generation C. We have MySpace, YouTube, and OurMedia; we run social software, and drive the development of Web 2.0. But beyond the hype, what's really going on? In this groundbreaking exploration of our developing participatory online culture, Axel Bruns establishes the core principles which drive the rise of collaborative content creation in environments, from open source through blogs and Wikipedia to Second Life. This book shows that what's emerging here is no longer just a new form of content production, but a new process for the continuous creation and extension of knowledge and art by collaborative communities: produsage. The implications of the gradual shift from production to produsage are profound, and will affect the very core of our culture, economy, society, and democracy.

This fully revised edition provides a practical introduction to research methods for anyone conducting and critically reading technical communication research. The first section discusses the role of research in technical communication and explains in plain language how to conduct and report such research. It covers both quantitative and qualitative methods, as well as surveys, usability studies, and literature reviews. The second section presents a collection of research articles that serve as exemplars of these major types of research projects, each followed by commentary breaking down how it corresponds to the information on that research type. In addition to five new chapters of exemplars and commentaries, this second edition contains a new chapter on usability studies. This book is an essential introduction to research methods for students of technical communication and for industry professionals who need to conduct and engage with research on the job.

Engagement is trendy. Although paired most often with community, diverse invocations of engagement have gained cache, capturing longstanding shifts toward new practices of knowledge making that both reflect and facilitate multiple ways of being an academic. Engagement functions as a gloss for these shifts-addressing more expansive understandings of where, how, and with whom we research, teach, and partner. This book examines these shifts, locating them within socio-economic trends within and beyond the higher educational landscape, with particular focus on how they have been enacted within the diverse subfields of writing studies. In so doing, this book provides concrete models for enacting these new responsive practices, thereby encouraging scholars to examine how they can facilitate writing for social action through taking positions, building relationships, and crossing boundaries.

Discover what every new and aspiring author needs to know about the publishing industry and how to navigate all the complicated feelings that come with writing a book in this no-nonsense guide from literary agent, author, and creator of the popular newsletter Agents & Books Kate McKean.

Writers all want the secret to getting published: the magic formula for a query letter, the list of agents who will instantly say yes, and the perfect marketing campaign to hit “The List.” But writing is about so much more than the intellectual act of putting pen to paper—writers also deserve reassurance that the emotional highs and lows of writing is a normal, valid part of the process. And it might seem easier to focus on the nuts and bolts of writing books—word counts, query letters, and author platforms—than the messy feelings that accompany writing like doubt, fear, and hope, but the two things are inextricably linked.

Write Through It is a candid, actionable guide to navigating the rollercoaster ride of writing and publishing, both on and off the page. Literary agent and author Kate McKean has been educating authors and demystifying publishing for years in her popular newsletter Agents & Books, and now, in these pages, she walks writers of all genres through every stage of the writing and publishing process and its accompanying emotional moments. From the uncertainty of knowing when you should stop fiddling with your book and start pitching to agents to how to deal with the sting of rejection and the elation (and fear) of getting a book deal, Write Through It covers it all.

Drawing from her own extensive experience, McKean goes beyond the practicalities of writing and publishing to address the less-talked-about emotional side of the journey. This book is a must-read for any writer looking to understand the full spectrum of the writing life.

The definitive research paper guide, Writing Research Papers combines a traditional and practical approach to the research process with the latest information on electronic research and presentation. This market-leading text provides students with step-by-step guidance through the research writing process, from selecting and narrowing a topic to formatting the finished document. Writing Research Papers backs up its instruction with the most complete array of samples of any writing guide of this nature. The text continues its extremely thorough and accurate coverage of citation styles for a wide variety of disciplines. The fourteenth edition maintains Lester's successful approach while bringing new writing and documentation updates to assist the student researcher in keeping pace with electronic sources.

This handbook brings together scholars from around the globe who here contribute to our understanding of how digital rhetoric is changing the landscape of writing. Increasingly, all of us must navigate networks of information, compose not just with computers but an array of mobile devices, increase our technological literacy, and understand the changing dynamics of authoring, writing, reading, and publishing in a world of rich and complex texts. Given such changes, and given the diverse ways in which younger generations of college students are writing, communicating, and designing texts in multimediated, electronic environments, we need to consider how the very act of writing itself is undergoing potentially fundamental changes. These changes are being addressed increasingly by the emerging field of digital rhetoric, a field that attempts to understand the rhetorical possibilities and affordances of writing, broadly defined, in a wide array of digital environments. Of interest to both researchers and students, this volume provides insights about the fields of rhetoric, writing, composition, digital media, literature, and multimodal studies.

"Punctuation Matters" gives straight answers the queries raised most frequently by practitioners in computing, engineering, medicine and science as they grapple with day-to-day tasks in writing and editing. The advice it offers is based on John Kirkman's long experience of providing courses on writing and editing in academic centers, large companies, research organizations, and government departments, in the UK, Europe and in the USA. Sample material discussed in the book comes from real documents from computing, engineering and scientific contexts, giving the guidelines an immediately recognizable, "true to life" relevance, which is both down-to-earth and up-to-date.
The book is clearly set out in three parts:
- Part 1 states a policy for clear and reliable punctuation
- Part 2 gives a series of alphabetically arranged guidelines, to be "dipped into" for guidance on how to use the main punctuation marks in English
- Part 3 contains appendices on paragraphing, word-division, and how conventions of punctuation differ from country to country.
Punctuation Matters is the essential guide for technical writers, editors and communicators, with clear explanations on punctuation, what it does and how to use it.

The Rosetta Stone of Science is a useful and practical guide to presenting scientific research in the English language. It is written specifically for scientists who would like to improve the effectiveness with which they use the English language and improve their communicative skills in order to become published and develop more confidence in presenting their work at international conferences.

Part 1 of the book covers the style preferred by today's leading journals, discusses how to prepare models for writing research papers, and provides advice for writing abstracts, proposals, and editing. Examples of cover letters are also given. Part 2 discusses the various arts and techniques used by successful presenters at scientific conferences.

The content of the book is presented in a light, simple and informative manner making The Rosetta Stone of Science an entertaining and instructive read. This book will prove invaluable to all scientists, research fellows, post-docs, and graduate students whose first language is not English.

Concise Guide to APA Style, Seventh Edition is the official APA Style resource for students. Designed specifically for undergraduate writing, this easy-to-use pocket guide is adapted from the seventh edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. It provides complete guidance for new writers on effective, clear, and inclusive scholarly communication and the essentials of formatting papers and other course assignments. New to This Edition: full color throughout content relevant to a range of majors and courses, including psychology, social work, criminal justice, communications, composition, education, business, engineering, and more a new chapter focused on student papers a sample student title page, paper, and annotated bibliography streamlined APA Style headings and in-text citations a new chapter on writing style and grammar chapters on punctuation, lists, italics, spelling, capitalization, abbreviations, numbers, and statistics the latest bias-free language guidelines new sample tables and figures guidance on avoiding plagiarism and self-plagiarism new reference templates and examples

Medical articles are one of the main vehicles of knowledge translation and evidence communication in the health sciences. Their correct structure and style alone are no longer enough to convey a clear understanding of the intended message. Readers must be able to understand the very essence of the article message. That is the purpose of this book. Writing, Reading, and Understanding in Modern Health Sciences: Medical Articles and Other Forms of Communication will help the authors of medical articles communicate more effectively in today's practice and health research environment. It explores the most effective practices for communicating using three main medical literature formats: through scientific articles, articles where the subject is not based on the practice of the scientific method, and business reports. Describing how to think beyond the prevailing IMRAD article format, this book focuses on the nature, content, domains of thought, and meanings of medical articles. The ideas and underlying propositions in this book are complementary to specific requirements appropriate for each type of medical journal. After reading this book you will better understand: How to write what is considered the most important type of medical article, the research-based medical article How to write an evidence-based argumentative medical article The challenges of clinical case reporting The general framework of medical and research ethics Classification of medical articles and their underlying studies from the causal standpoint Supplying you with the understanding required to write more effective medical articles, the book includes details about essay-type articles, research-based articles, thesis as introduction sections, definitions as part of the material and methods sections, modern argumentation and critical thinking underlying results and their discussion and conclusions about them. It also examines qualitative research and case study methodologies from other domains. A must-read for all writers, readers, and users of medical articles, this book supplies the tools you need to write compelling medical reports that can help to improve the practice, research, and quality of healthcare at all levels.

This book draws on the perspectives of authors, supervisors, reviewers and editors to present a rich, nuanced picture of the practices and challenges involved in writing for scholarly publication. Organized into four sections, it brings together international experts and junior scholars from a variety of disciplines to examine both publishing experiences and current research in the field. In doing so, it challenges the view that Native English speakers have a relatively easy ride in this process and that it is only English as an Additional Language (EAL) scholars who experience difficulties. The volume highlights central themes of writing for publication, including mentoring and collaborative writing, the writing experience, text mediation, the review process, journal practices and editorial decision-making, and makes a strong case for taking a more inclusive approach to research in this domain. This edited collection will appeal to students and scholars of applied linguistics, English for academic purposes, academic writing, and second language writing.

*WINNER OF THE BUSINESS BOOK AWARDS 2020!* If you're a coach, consultant, or speaker who makes a living from your expertise, this is for you. It's the guide you need to help you plan, write, and promote the book that elevates your authority, increases your visibility, and gets more clients saying 'yes'. Because creating such a book is a challenge. Where do you start? How do you keep going until the end? And what do you do when you've finished? Don't let your book stay in your head - allow it to come to life and make a positive difference to both you and your readers by following the guidance you'll find in here. * Section 1: Plan. Learn how to create a strategic plan and outline for your book, so it both supports your business and helps the people you want to reach. * Section 2: Write. Master the art of crafting your work so it engages, inspires, and educates your readers. * Section 3: Promote. Discover how to market your book so it sells to a ready-made audience. This is the final step in building a reputation as the go-to expert in your field.

You know the authors' names. You recognize the title. You've probably used this book yourself. This is The Elements of Style, the classic style manual, now in a fourth edition. The revisions to the new edition are purposely kept minimal in order to retain the book's unique tone, wit, and charm. A new Glossary of the grammatical terms used in the book provides a convenient reference for readers. The discussion of pronoun use is revised to reflect the contemporary concern with sexist language. In addition, there are numerous slight revisions in the book itself which implement this advice. A new Foreword by Roger Angell reminds readers that the advice of Strunk & White is as valuable today as when it was first offered. This book has conveyed the principles of English style to millions of readers. Use the fourth edition of "the little book" to make a big impact with writing.

This introductory text covers all aspects of scientific and medical documentation from the regulatory domain to the advertising arena. Effectively presenting and communicating information for any medical document is paramount. It is essential that medical information is presented clearly and accurately so that it can be interpreted, validated and used safely. The Complete Guide to Medical Writing will help you do this in detail. It covers fundamental principles of good writing techniques and provides tips on how to write different kinds of document. Sections include: *Medical writing essentials *Reviews and reports *Medical journalism and mass media *Medical writing in education *Medical writing for medical professionals *Medical publishing The Complete Guide to Medical Writing is an invaluable reference source for medical professionals and students wishing to effectively communicate scientific and medical information.

Writing centers in universities and colleges aim to help student writers develop practices that will make them better writers in the long term and that will improve their draft papers in the short term. The tutors who work in writing centers accomplish such goals through one-to-one talk about writing. This book analyzes the aboutness of writing center talk-what tutors and student writers talk about when they come together to talk about writing. By combining corpus-driven analysis to provide a quantitative, microlevel view of the subject matter and sociocultural discourse analysis to provide a qualitative macrolevel view of tutor-student writer interactions, it further establishes how these two research methods operate together to produce a robust and rigorous analysis of spoken discourse.

A World Elsewhere is Steven Berkoff's bold attempt to describe his multifarious theatrical works. Berkoff outlines the methods that he uses, first of all as an actor, secondly as a playwright and thirdly as theatre director, as well as those subtle connections in between, when one discipline melds effortlessly into another. He examines the early impulses that generated his works and what drove him to give them form, as well as the challenges he faced when adapting the work of other authors. Berkoff discusses some of his most difficult, successful and unique creations, journeying through his long and varied career to examine how they were shaped by him, and how he was shaped by them. The sheer scale of this book offers a rare experience of an accomplished artist, combined with the honesty and insight of an autobiography, making this text a singular tool for teaching, inspiration and personal exploration. Suitable for anyone with an interest in Steven Berkoff and his illustrious career, A World Elsewhere is the part analysis and part confession of an artist whose work has been performed all over the world.

Poetry is increasingly democratic in its use of different formats, but it can be difficult to know how to navigate the range of options available. In a competitive field, this information is not always easy to access, and many poets make mistakes. This handbook is here to help. How do you make the finances work? Should you release a pamphlet or a full collection? Which promoters should you work with? How can you get your work reviewed? How do you maintain a public profile if performance isn't for you? What mentoring and publication options are open for mid-career poets? The Poetry Writers' Handbook will answer all these questions and more. It provides: - practical advice on managing income and funding a career - detailed information on printing and distribution, marketing and publicity, and submission to editors, reviewers and prizes - up-to-date contacts for funding organisations, prizes, publishers and magazines for poets and their work. It gives a clear and up-to-date picture of what poets should focus on at different stages in their career.

If you feel like you've got the wrong tone of voice, don't understand the ins-and-outs of grammar, or just don't feel confident writing about yourself without sounding like an idiot, read this book. Copywriter Tait Ischia is brief and to the point in an interesting and engaging way. Which is exactly what you want the words on your website/marketing stuff/professional bio to be too, right? Feel confident in what you say and how you say it when you put fingers to the keyboard. Waffling on should really be reserved for weekend breakfast.

Across disciplinary borders, clarity is taken for granted as a cardinal virtue of communication in contemporary academia. But what is clarity, how is it practised in writing across disciplinary borders and how does it affect our ways of researching and thinking? This book explores such questions by scrutinising the ideal of clarity beyond its apparently self-evident value. Through a multi-methodological empirical analysis of the ideal of clarity, the author offers a sketch of what is termed 'the poetics of clarity', which is unfolded as a field of tension with important implications for sentence formation, authorial positioning and textual organisation. By way of a series of reflections on the possible consequences of this for thinking, this volume also explores the parts of knowledge production that may be marginalised, especially poetic language use, biases, interests and contexts, multi-dimensional arguments and errors. Revealing a positivist bias and a regime of high-speed consumption that characterise what, in certain regards, might be considered a productive space for knowledge production, Writing and Thinking in Contemporary Academia will appeal to scholars with interests in the sociology of knowledge, continental philosophy, the philosophy of science and academic writing.

These are exciting times for creative writing. In a digital age, the ability to move between types of writing and technologies - often at speed - is increasingly essential for writers. Yet, such flexibility can be difficult to achieve, and, how to develop it remains a pressing challenge. The Multimodal Writer combines theory, practitioner case studies and insightful writing exercises to support writers tackling the challenges and embracing the opportunities that come with new media technologies. Including interviews with a selection of internationally acclaimed authors, such as Simon Armitage, Robert Coover and Rhianna Pratchett, this book equips writers with the tools to not just survive but, rather, thrive in an era characterised by fast-paced change. With its focus on writing across genres, modes and media, this book is ideal for students of creative writing, professional writing, media writing and journalism.

Originally published in 2005, To Be A Playwright is an insightful and detailed guide to the craft of playwriting. Part memoir and part how-to guide, this useful book outlines the tools and techniques necessary to the aspiring playwright. Comprised of a collection of memoirs and lectures which blend seamlessly to deliver a practical hands-on guide to playwriting, this book illuminates the elusive challenges confronting creators of dynamic expression and offers a roadmap to craft of playwrighting.

Technically-minded people can struggle with business writing and many businesses get it wrong, losing their readers in avalanches of acronyms and jungles of technical jargon. It doesn't have to be that way. In this book you'll discover how to give your communication skills an upgrade, exploring the tips and tricks that will enable you to write effectively and persuasively for any audience. You'll discover how to write for maximum impact and how to make your enthusiasm even more infectious.

Technical writing is about communicating key information to the people who need it. It might be a manual for an application, a guide to using heavy machinery, or a diagnostic aide for medical practitioners. It needs to be clear and it needs to be precise. This book shows you how to achieve this and more. Whatever the content or context, in this book you'll discover the essential tools and resources that you need to create technical writing that works for everyone.