About

Preparing you for writing success in all of your courses

No matter what your major is, you will need strong critical thinking, close reading, research, and writing skills. An Insider’s Guide to Academic Writing prepares you for the full range of disciplines you will enter in college, with strategies that can transfer from one writing situation to another.

Affordable e-textbook option available!

Take notes, add highlights, and download our mobile-friendly e-textbook. Compatible with iOS or Android devices, Mac, PC, Kindle Fire, or Chromebook.

Digital Options

E-book

Read online (or offline) with all the highlighting and notetaking tools you need to be successful in this course.

Learn More

Achieve

Achieve is a single, easy-to-use platform proven to engage students for better course outcomes

Learn More

New selections are indicated with an asterisk (*).

PART ONE. A Guide to College and College Writing
Chapter 1. An Introduction to Academic Writing
Your Goals and Your School’s Mission
Writing within Academic Disciplines
Entering Academic Conversations
Learning to Write in New Contexts
Writing Project: Profile of a Writer
Insider Example: Student Profile of a Business Professional
Chapter 1 Tip Sheet

Chapter 2. Writing: Process and Reflection
Developing Your Writing Process

Flexible Strategies
Multiple Drafts

Giving and Acting on Feedback

Giving Productive Peer Review Feedback: A Sample Draft with Comments
Responding to Peer Review Feedback

Reflection and Writing

          Reflecting throughout the Writing Process
          Reflecting on Your Story as a Writer
          Characteristics of a Literacy Narrative

Writing Project: Literacy Narrative
Insider Example: Student Literacy Narrative
Chapter 2 Tip Sheet

Chapter 3. Reading and Writing Rhetorically
Understanding Rhetorical Context
Understanding Genres
Writing Rhetorically
Reading Rhetorically

Questions for Rhetorical Reading
Reading Visuals

Analyzing the Rhetorical Context: A Sample Annotated Text
Writing Project: Rhetorical Analysis
*Insider Example: Student Rhetorical Analysis
Chapter 3 Tip Sheet

Chapter 4. Developing Arguments
Understanding Proofs and Appeals
Making Claims

          Thesis Statements
          Thesis versus Hypothesis
          Developing Reasons

Supporting Reasons with Evidence
Understanding Assumptions
Anticipating Counterarguments
Analyzing an Argument: A Sample Annotated Text
Writing Project: Rhetorical Analysis of an Argument
Insider Example: Student Analysis of an Argument
Chapter 4 Tip Sheet

Chapter 5. Academic Research
Developing a Research Question
Choosing Your Sources

Primary Sources
Secondary Sources

Searching for Sources

Search Terms and Search Engines
Journal Databases

Evaluating Sources: Scholarly versus Popular Works
Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Quoting from Sources

          Summarizing
          Paraphrasing
          Quoting

Avoiding Plagiarism
Understanding Documentation Systems

          Modern Language Association (MLA)
          American Psychological Association (APA)
          Council of Science Editors (CSE)
          Annotated Bibliographies

Writing Project: Annotated Bibliography
*Insider Example: Student Annotated Bibliography
Writing Project: A Supported Argument on a Controversial Issue
Insider Example: Student Argument on a Controversial Issue
Chapter 5 Tip Sheet

PART TWO. Inside Academic Writing
Chapter 6. Reading and Writing in Academic Disciplines
Using Rhetorical Context to Analyze Academic Writing

Analyzing Academic Writing: A Sample Annotated Text

Recognizing Academic Genres
Using Structure, Language, and Reference (SLR) to Analyze Genre Conventions

Defining SLR
Analyzing Genre Conventions: A Sample Annotated Text

Writing Project: Genre Analysis
*Insider Example: Student Comparative Genre Analysis
Writing Project: Translating a Scholarly Article for a Public Audience
Insider Example: Student Translation of a Scholarly Article
Chapter 6 Tip Sheet

Chapter 7. Reading and Writing in the Humanities
Research in the Humanities

          Observation and Interpretation
          The Role of Theory in the Humanities
          Engaging with Theory: A Sample Annotated Text

Strategies for Close Reading

          Notetaking Steps
          Close Reading: Sample Annotations and Content/Form-Response Grids
          Close Reading Practice: Analyzing a Short Story

Structural Conventions in the Humanities

          Using Research Questions to Develop a Thesis
          Developing Effective Thesis Statements
          Thesis-Driven Structural Templates

Language Conventions in the Humanities

          Descriptive and Rhetorical Language
          Active Voice
          Hedging

Reference Conventions in the Humanities

Values Reflected in Citations
Documentation Styles: MLA and CMS

Genres: Textual Interpretation

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Writing a Textual Interpretation
          Writing Project: Textual Interpretation/Analysis
          Insider Example, Student Interpretation of a Literary Text

Chapter 7 Tip Sheet

Chapter 8. Reading and Writing in the Social Sciences
Research in the Social Sciences

          The Role of Theory in the Social Sciences
          Research Questions and Hypotheses
          Methods
          The IRB Process and Use of Human Subjects

Structural Conventions in the Social Sciences

IMRaD Format
Abstracts and Other Structural Conventions

Language Conventions in the Social Sciences

Active and Passive Voice
Hedging

Reference Conventions in the Social Sciences
Genres: Literature Review

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Writing a Literature Review
          Writing Project: Literature Review
          Insider Example: Student Literature Review

Genres: Theory Response Essay

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Writing a Theory Response Essay
          Writing Project: Theory Response Essay
          Insider Example: Student Theory Response Paper

Genres: Poster Presentation

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Composing a Poster Presentation
          Writing Project: Poster Presentation
          *Insider Example: Professional Poster Presentation

Chapter 8 Tip Sheet

Chapter 9. Reading and Writing in the Natural Sciences
Research in the Natural Sciences

          Observation and Description
          From Description to Speculation
          From Speculation to Research Questions and Hypothesis
          Research Study Design
          The IRB Process and Use of Human Subjects

Values Underlying Writing in the Natural Sciences

          Objectivity
          Replicability
          Recency
          Cooperation and Collaboration

Structural Conventions in the Natural Sciences

IMRaD Format
Other Structural Conventions

Language Conventions in the Natural Sciences

          Jargon
          Numbers and Other Details
          Active and Passive Voice

Reference Conventions in the Natural Sciences
Genres: Observation Logbook

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Working with an Observation Logbook
          Writing Project: Observation Logbook
          Insider Example: Student Observation Logbook

Genres: Research Proposal

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Writing a Research Proposal
          Writing Project: Research Proposal
          Insider Example: Professional Research Proposal

Genres: Lab Report

          What Is the Rhetorical Context for This Genre?
          Strategies for Composing a Lab Report
          Writing Project: Lab Report
          Insider Example: Student Lab Report

Chapter 9 Tip Sheet

Chapter 10. Reading and Writing in the Applied Fields
Rhetoric and the Applied Fields
Health Fields

Insider Example: Discharge Instructions

Education

Insider Example: Student Lesson Plan

Business

Insider Example: Student Memorandum

Criminal Justice and Law

Insider Example: E-Mail Correspondence from Attorney

Engineering

*Insider Example: PowerPoint Slides

Information Technology

Insider Example: Student Summary of Shift Operations

Writing Project: Genre Analysis of Writing in an Applied Field
*Insider Example: Student Genre Analysis of Electrical and Computer Engineering Standards
Chapter 10 Tip Sheet

PART THREE. Entering Academic Conversations: Readings and Case Studies
Chapter 11. Constructing Identity: Writing, Language, and the Self
Jimmy Santiago Baca, Coming into Language
*Jia Tolentino, The I in Internet
*Robin Dembroff and Daniel Wodak, If Someone Wants to Be Called “They” and Not “He” or “She,” Why Say No?

Academic Case Study • The Scholarship of Writing
Humanities
* Mary Goldschmidt, Writing in the Disciplines: Student Perspectives on Learning Genre

Social Sciences
*Steven M. Toepfer, Kelly Cichy, and Patti Peters, Letters of Gratitude: Further Evidence for Author Benefits

Natural Sciences
*J. S. H. Taylor, Matthew H. Davis, and Kathleen Rastle, Mapping Visual Symbols onto Spoken Language Along the Ventral Visual Stream

Applied Fields
Gavin Fairbairn and Alex Carson, Writing about Nursing Research: A Storytelling Approach
Writing Project: Contribution to a Scholarly Conversation

Chapter 12. Love Matters: Examining Our Closest Bonds
*Ellen Byron, How the Definition of an American Family Has Changed
*Julie Lythcott-Haims, Kids of Helicopter Parents Are Sputtering Out
*Vikram Zutshi, What “Indian Matchmaking” Tells Us about Love

Academic Case Study • Perspectives on Love
Humanities
Warren E. Milteer Jr., The Strategies of Forbidden Love: Family across Racial Boundaries in Nineteenth-Century North Carolina

Social Sciences
*Jada E. Brooks and Darren D. Moore, African American Young Adult Women’s Stories about Love: What I Want in a Long-Term Partner

Natural Sciences
Donatella Marazziti and Domenico Canale, Hormonal Changes When Falling in Love

Applied Fields
*Kristine Johnson, M. Olguta Vilceanu, and Manuel C. Pontes, Use of Online Dating Websites and Dating Apps: Findings and Implications for LGB Populations
Writing Project: Comparative Analysis of Research Methodologies

Chapter 13. Mindful Eating: Food as Culture and Commodity
Michael Pollan, Why Cook?
Gustavo Arellano, Taco USA: How Mexican Food Became More American Than Apple Pie
*Nneka Okona, Sunday Dinners Are Sacred for African Americans

Academic Case Study • Genetically Modified Food
Humanities
*Francis Dizon, Sarah Costa, Cheryl Rock, Amanda Harris, Cierra Husk, and Jenny Mei, Genetically Modified (GM) Foods and Ethical Eating

Social Sciences
*Gregory Colson and Wallace E. Huffman, Consumers’ Willingness to Pay for Genetically Modified Foods with Product-Enhancing Nutritional Attributes

Natural Sciences
Aziz Aris and Samuel Leblanc, Maternal and Fetal Exposure to Pesticides Associated to Genetically Modified Foods in Eastern Townships of Quebec, Canada

Applied Fields
*Grant Alexander Wilson and David Di Zhang, The Marketing of Genetically Modified Food with Direct and Indirect Consumer Benefits: An Analysis of Willingness to Pay
Writing Project: Persuasive Narrative

Chapter 14. Crime and Punishment: Investigating American Justice
Inimai Chettiar, The Many Causes of America’s Decline in Crime
*Nicki Lisa Cole, Understanding the School-to-Prison Pipeline
*Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Paranoid Style of American Policing

Academic Case Study • Capital Punishment
Humanities
*Christopher Collins, Final Meals: The Theatre of Capital Punishment

Social Sciences
Benedikt Till and Peter Vitouch, Capital Punishment in Films: The Impact of Death Penalty Portrayals on Viewers’ Mood and Attitude toward Capital Punishment

Natural Sciences
Teresa A. Zimmers, Jonathan Sheldon, David A. Lubarsky, Francisco López-Muñoz, Linda Waterman, Richard Weisman, and Leonidas G. Koniaris, Lethal Injection for Execution: Chemical Asphyxiation?

Applied Fields
*Adam Trahan and Kaleigh Laird, The Nexus between Attribution Theory and Racial Attitudes: A Test of Racial Attribution and Public Opinion of Capital Punishment
Writing Project: Evaluative Rhetorical Analysis

Appendix: Introduction to Documentation Styles
Glossary
Index

Authors

Susan Miller-Cochran

Susan Miller-Cochran is the Executive Director of General Education at the University of Arizona, where she is also a Professor of English. Her research focuses on higher education administration and academic labor (especially in writing programs), instructional technology, curricular design, and multilingual writing. She formerly served as Director of the Writing Program at UA (2015-2019), Director of First-Year Writing at North Carolina State University (2007-2015), and a faculty member in English/ESL at Mesa Community College (AZ, 2000-2006). She has also served as a past president of the Council of Writing Program Administrators and a member of the Executive Committee of the Conference on College Composition and Communication. Her work has appeared in over 40 journal articles and book chapters, and she is a co-editor of Composition, Rhetoric, and Disciplinarity (Utah State, 2018); Rhetorically Rethinking Usability (Hampton, 2009); and Strategies for Teaching First-Year Composition (NCTE, 2002).

Roy Stamper

Roy Stamper is a Senior Lecturer in English and Associate Director of the First-Year Writing Program in the Department of English at North Carolina State University, where he teaches courses in composition and rhetoric. He is also academic advisor to the department’s Language, Writing, and Rhetoric majors. He has been recognized as an Outstanding Lecturer as well as an Outstanding Faculty Advisor in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and is a recipient of NC States New Advisor Award. Prior to his current appointment, he worked as a high school English teacher. He has presented papers at a number of local, regional, and national conferences, including the Conference of the Council of Writing Program Administrators and the Conference on College Composition and Communication.

Stacey Cochran

Stacey Cochran is an Assistant Professor researching innovative teaching practices centered on writing and well-being at the University of Arizona, with dual appointments in English and the office of Student Success and Retention Innovation. He has also served as the Coordinator of Student Success and Wellness in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. His bestselling novel Eddie & Sunny was adapted as a major motion picture in 2021 by Paradox Studios US and Iervolino Entertainment. He was a finalist for the 1998 Dell Magazines Award, a finalist for the 2004 St. Martins Press/PWA Best First Private Eye Novel Contest, and finalist for the 2011 James Hurst Prize for fiction.

Prepare students for writing in any discipline.