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Writing Spaces Open Textbook Chapters

Each of these titles is available under a Creative Commons license (consult the individual text for the license specifics). Click on the title to view the chapter abstract and a downloadable PDF of the chapter. Click on any of the keywords to see a listing of chapters tagged with that keyword.

On the main information pages for each volume, you can also download full versions of Volume 1 or Volume 2.

Titlesort icon Author Series Edition Keywords
A Student’s Guide to Collaborative Writing Technologies Barton, Matt and Karl Klint Vol. 2 collaboration, collaboration technology, Doodle, drafting, editing, Etherpad, Facebook, Google Docs, Google Scholar, instant messaging, Mindomo, news reader, prewriting, research paper, RSS, social media, Twitter, Zotero
Annoying Ways People Use Sources Stedman, Kyle D. Vol. 2 attribution, citation, paraphrasing, patchwriting, quoting, research writing, source integration, summarizing, works cited
Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis Carroll, Laura Bolin Vol. 1 advertisement analysis, argumentation, audience, Bitzer, constraint, contextual, emotion, ethos, exigence, first day, genre, guidelines, implication, logos, media, pathos, persuasive, questioning, rhetorical analysis, situational, social, tone, triangle
Beyond Black on White: Document Design and Formatting in the Writing Classroom Klein, Michael J. and Kristi L. Shackelford Vol. 2 alignment, APA, contrast, design elements, document design, documentation style, font, formatting, graphics, headings, illustrations, images, margins, MLA, proximity, repetition, resume, typography, visual design, white space
Collaborating Online: Digital Strategies for Group Work Atkins, Anthony Vol. 1 collaboration, digital, dysfunctional, Google Docs, group, member role, oral presentation, productivity, task evaluation, teamwork, technology, wiki, Wikipedia
Composing the Anthology: An Exercise in Patchwriting Leary, Christopher Vol. 1 anthology writing, arrangement, assignment, cut-up, editing, found poetry, memoir writing, patchwriting, peer evaluation, plagiarism, poetry writing, student opinion, student publishing, table of contents, teacher story
Composition as a Write of Passage Singh-Corcoran, Nathalie Vol. 2 academic, argument, assessment, composition studies, FYW, knowledge transfer, professional writing, research, rhetoric, rhetorical analysis, WAC, workplace
Critical Thinking in College Writing: From the Personal to the Academic Dasbender, Gitanjali Vol. 2 academic, analysis, critical reading, critical thinking, engagement, evaluation, FYW, main idea, primary sources, problem solving, reflection, summarizing
Everything Changes, or Why MLA Isn’t (Always) Right Walker, Janice Vol. 2 academic, AP, APA, attribution, citation, credibility, documentation style, information literacy, intellectual property, MLA, new media, plagiarism, quoting, rhetoric, source critique, WID
Finding the Good Argument OR Why Bother With Logic? Jones, Rebecca Vol. 1 argumentation, Aristotle, burden of proof, classical rhetoric, closure, complexity, deductive, duality, ethical, ethos, freedom of speech, implicit, inductive, jargon, logical, logos, nonadversarial, pathos, Plato, pragma dialectical, premise, Quintilian, reasoning, relevance, standpoint, Stephen Toulmin, topoi, validity
Finding Your Way In: Invention as Inquiry Based Learning in First Year Writing Lessner, Steven and Collin Craig Vol. 1 Anzaldua, audience, bullets, composing, creativity, critical freewriting, exercise, focused freewriting, freewriting, FYW, graphic organizer, inquiry based, invention, outlining, peer evaluation, reader strategy, rhetorical, sample
From Topic to Presentation: Making Choices to Develop Your Writing Hewett, Beth L. Vol. 1 author story, brainstorming, composing, drafting, essay writing, peer evaluation, projector, revising, teacher as writer, topic, writer choice
Googlepedia: Turning Information Behaviors into Research Skills McClure, Randall Vol. 2 annotated bibliography, focus, Google, Google Scholar, information literacy, Internet research, library databases, preliminary research, research, research paper, source critique, thesis, Wikipedia
How to Read Like a Writer Bunn, Mike Vol. 2 active reading, audience, context, critical reading, genre convention, purpose, read like a writer, reading, reading questions, reading to write, writing process
I Need You to Say “I”: Why First Person is Important in College Writing McKinney Maddalena, Kate Vol. 1 academic, discourse analysis, exigence, expertise, first person, guidelines, insider, integrity, objectivity, ownership, scholarly, science writing, situational, sophistication, style, viewpoint
Introduction to Primary Research: Observations, Surveys, and Interviews Driscoll, Dana Lynn Vol. 2 data collection, ethics, hypothesis, interview, observation, primary research, primary sources, research ethics, research question, researcher bias, sampling, survey
Introduction: Open Source Composition Texts Arrive for College Writers Cummings, Robert E. Vol. 1 introduction to the volume, open source, open textbook
Looking for Trouble: Finding Your Way Into a Writing Assignment Savini, Catherine Vol. 2 academic, argument, critical thinking, deadline, discourse community, genre, problem solving, questioning, research, success, WAC, writing assignment analysis, writing process
Murder! (Rhetorically Speaking) Boyd, Janet Vol. 2 audience awareness, colloquial, connotation, context, denotation, ethos, eulogy, euphemism, genre, jargon, logic, logos, pathos, rhetoric, rhetorical appeals, rhetorical situation, tone
Navigating Genres Dirk, Kerry Vol. 1 arrangement, form content, genre, genre knowledge, popular music, purpose, rules, situational, thesis statement
On the Other Hand: The Role of Antithetical Writing in First Year Composition Courses Krause, Steve Vol. 2 antithesis, argument, audience, debate, opposing arguments, position paper, research, research writing, thesis
Putting Ethnographic Writing in Context Kahn, Seth Vol. 2 analysis, authority, context, description, ethics, ethnography, evidence, fieldnotes, fieldwork, inductive reasoning, interview, participant-observation, primary research
Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources Rosenberg, Karen Vol. 2 academic, active reading, audience, critical reading, discourse, prior knowledge, reading, reading as joining a conversation, reading to write, rhetorical reading
Reflective Writing and the Revision Process: What Were You Thinking? Giles, Sandra Vol. 1 author story, case study, composing, letter to the reader, process, reflection, revising, sample, self-reflection, student-teacher memo, writer intention
Reinventing Invention: Discovery and Investment in Writing Trim, Michelle D. and Megan Lynn Isaac Vol. 1 activity, audience, brainstorming, creativity, discovery, genre, group, guidelines, implied reader, individual, interest, invention, needs analysis, problem solving, process, purpose, sample, topic
So You've Got a Writing Assignment. Now What? Hinton, Corrine E. Vol. 1 apprehension, argument, assignment, audience, directive verb, emotion, evidence, format, guidelines, interpretation, panic, procrastination, purpose, questioning, resources, sample, stylistic
Storytelling, Narration, and The Who I Am Story Ramsdell, Catherine Vol. 2 advertising, character, communication, creative nonfiction, grant writing, literacy narrative, memoir, narrative, narrative discourse, narrative structure, narrative theory, organization, professional writing, story, storytelling, who I am story, word choice
Taking Flight: Connecting Inner and Outer Realities during Invention Antlitz, Susan E. Vol. 1 apprehension, composing, compound topics, connection, content, creativity, digital, email, emotion, exercise, graphic organizer, growth, heuristic, ideas, invention, journal writing, meditation, messaging, personal, play, PowerPoint, prayer, private public, procrastination, random words, sample, social, writing ritual
Ten Ways To Think About Writing: Metaphoric Musings for College Writing Students Reid, E. Shelley Vol. 2 argument, audience, description, detail, invention, metaphor, purpose, show vs. tell, story, style, writer's block
The Complexity of Simplicity: Invention Potentials for Writing Students Charlton, Colin Vol. 2 audience, creativity, critical thinking, draft, feedback, focus, FYW, invention, invention activities, invention questions, inventiveness, rhetoric, writing assignment analysis
The Inspired Writer vs. the Real Writer Allen, Sarah Vol. 1 academic, alienation, author story, authoring, Bizzell, composing, inspiration, jargon, motivation, myth, quality, real life, teacher as writer, writer strategy
The Sixth Paragraph: A Re-vision of the Essay Lynch, Paul Vol. 2 argument, clarity, concise, essay, interpretation, introduction, Montaigne, personal essay, reflection, thesis, use of I, writing as exploration, writing to learn
Walk, Talk, Cook, Eat: A Guide to Using Sources Haller, Cynthia R. Vol. 2 assignment analysis, Burkean parlor, Google, Internet research, library databases, research, research paper, research strategies, source critique, sources, Wikipedia, writing process
What is Academic Writing? Irvin, L. Lennie Vol. 1 academic, analysis, argumentation, assignment, audience, closed assignment, communication, complexity, controlled, critical, definition, first person, genius, genre, grammar, interpretation, myth, open assignment, purpose, researching, semi-open assignment, situational
Why Blog? Searching for Writing on the Web Reid, Alex Vol. 2 argument, audience, description, essay exam, freewriting, metaphor, paragraph, primary audience, purpose, read like a writer, reader perception, repetition, rhetoric, secondary audience, show vs. tell, weblog, writer's block
Why Visit Your Campus Writing Center? Rafoth, Ben Vol. 1 audience, collaboration, conferencing, confidence, motivation, needs analysis, student opinion, tutoring, writing center
Wikipedia Is Good for You!? Purdy, James P. Vol. 1 accuracy, changeability, collaboration, dialogic, guidelines, interactive, internet, invention, resources, review writing, revision, term paper, Wikipedia
Writing “Eyeball To Eyeball”: Building A Successful Collaboration Ingalls, Rebecca Vol. 2 affinity diagram, collaboration, communication, conflict resolution, creativity, ethics, group theory, innovation, invention, professional writing, project management, reflection, teamwork, WAC, writing process

A special thanks to Richard Haswell for helping us to apply CompPile's tagging system.



by Dr. Radut.