Description
Book SynopsisStyle & Substance demystifies academic conversations by breaking down the underlying concepts behind good scholarship and the skills involved in research, writing, and presenting.
The author guides undergraduates through the trials of academic writing, from how to form fruitful research questions, to gathering and using the appropriate evidence, and finally to crafting polished, thoughtful responses to the questions that we pose ourselves in good research. Throughout, the author demonstrates how engaging in each step of this process thoughtfully and deliberately is how one joins the academic conversations at the heart of college education.
Trade Review“Style & Substance is an innovative and engaging guide to modern academic writing. Reading it feels like joining a very well-run academic writing class, one with meaningful and lively discussions about the fundamentals of writing, the goals of scholarly work, the skills required for research using both digital and non-digital sources, and, most refreshingly, advice about turning the resulting writing into academic presentations. Students across the disciplines will find themselves inspired by this exceptional little book. It’s the classroom resource I’ve been looking for: a highly practical and entertaining text that makes academic writing understandable, relevant, and even exciting.” — Jan Duerden, Thompson Rivers University
“I cannot think of another book that offers such advice on academic writing, and with clarity and brevity. This will be my go-to recommendation for all of my students in the future—it’s a treasure.” — Daniel Willingham, Professor of Psychology, University of Virginia and author of Outsmart Your Brain
“Style & Substance … does a particularly good job of using examples to illustrate the concepts being covered. I would have found this book both thought-provoking and practical when I was a student.” — Ryan Skinnell, San José State University
“This book provides a substantive yet concise look at the research, writing, and sharing processes for any student new to academic genres. John Lambersky offers good examples and touches on pitfalls to avoid, all in a voice that is pitch perfect for our era of misinformation and in a style needed for our overburdened students.” — Matthew Boedy, University of North Georgia
Table of Contents
- This Whole Book Shrunk to Fit on Two Pages
- Chapter 1: Join the Academic Conversation with Grace
- Chapter 2: It Begins with Listening
- Chapter 3: Quotation Integration
- Chapter 4: Basic Source Evaluation—Argument, Reasoning, Evidence
- Chapter 5: Putting Ideas in Conversation—with Generosity
- Chapter 6: Topics and Research Questions
- Chapter 7: A Spectrum of Sources
- Chapter 8: Finding the Best Evidence
- Chapter 9: Establishing the Credibility of a Source
- Chapter 10: Evidence—Kinds of Studies
- Chapter 11: Gathering and Organizing Evidence
- Chapter 12: The Development of Your Argument
- Chapter 13: The Structure of the Paper
- Chapter 14: Using Evidence Well
- Chapter 15: Making Our First Draft Better—Follow the Basic Rules of English
- Chapter 16: Advanced Style Maneuvers
- Chapter 17: Sharing with an Audience
- Chapter 18: Slide Design
- Chapter 19: Defending Ideas
- Chapter 20: Conversations about Research, Writing, and Presenting
- Appendix A: Important Writers on Style
- Appendix B: An Editing Checklist
- Appendix C: Important Resources to Have at Hand
- References and Further Reading
- Index
