This post is a tribute to Joe Moran's lovely book, First You Write a Sentence. It's part of my ongoing series of posts about issues in writing and books on writing. What I like so much about Moran's take on the subject is that he not only gives cogent advice for how to write better, … Continue reading Joe Moran: First You Write a Sentence, Pt. 1
Category: Academic writing
Wit, and the Art of Writing
They laughed when I told them I wanted to be a comedian. Well they’re not laughing now. Bob Monkhouse Wit is notoriously difficult to analyze, and any effort to do so is likely to turn out dry and witless. But two recent authors have done a remarkably effective job of trying to make sense … Continue reading Wit, and the Art of Writing
The Five-Paragraph Fetish
This is a piece I published in Aeon several years ago about the persistence of the five-paragraph essay, which has evolved into the five-chapter dissertation and the five-section journal article. Formalism reins supreme. Here’s the link to the original. The essay is included in my newish book, Being a Scholar: Reflections on Doctoral Study, Scholarly Writing, and Academic Life. … Continue reading The Five-Paragraph Fetish
Elizabeth Steere — Anatomy of an AI Essay
This post is an essay by Elizabeth Steere that was recently published in Inside Higher Ed. Here's a link to the original. For teachers worried about students who turn in AI produced essays, she provides an analysis of 50 some essays she generated using ChatGPT using prompts from past assignments she's deployed in her own teaching. … Continue reading Elizabeth Steere — Anatomy of an AI Essay
Elmore Leonard on the Art of Setting the Scene
I'm a big fan of Elmore Leonard. I wrote an earlier post about the deft way he leads you into a story and introduces a character on the very first page of a book. He never gives his readers fits the way we academic writers do ours, by making them plow through half a paper before … Continue reading Elmore Leonard on the Art of Setting the Scene
Adventures in Scholarship
This piece is an essay about my life in scholarship and some of the lessons I learned from it. It was written in mid career, after publishing The Trouble with Ed Schools. It now appears as a chapter in my newish book, Being a Scholar, published in 2023. The core insight is that research trajectories are … Continue reading Adventures in Scholarship
Steven Mintz — Getting Students to Write with Style, Flair, Force, and Impact
This post is an essay about academic writing by Steven Mintz, which was originally published in Inside Higher Ed. Here's a link to the original. It speaks for itself. January 23, 2024 Writing With Style, Force, Flair and Impact How to get your students to love language and take pleasure in writing. By Steven Mintz Hamlet … Continue reading Steven Mintz — Getting Students to Write with Style, Flair, Force, and Impact
Being a Scholar
This post is an overview of the book I published last spring. It’s available on Amazon both as an e-book and a paperback. The title is Being a Scholar: Reflections on Doctoral Study, Scholarly Writing, and Academic Life. Below is the book’s introduction, which provides the rationale for the book and summarizes the eleven pieces that you will … Continue reading Being a Scholar
Frank Bruni — The Best Sentences of 2023
This post is a Frank Bruni column from the Times -- a tribute to the best sentences in the press in 2023. Let us all aspire to be on the list next year. It reminds me of a quote I like that comes from the opening chapter of Stanley Fish's book, How to Write a … Continue reading Frank Bruni — The Best Sentences of 2023
How the King James Bible Shaped the English Language and How It Still Teaches Us How to Write Well
When you’re interested in improving your writing, it’s a good idea to have some models to work from. I’ve presented some of my favorite models in this blog. These have included a number of examples of good writing by both academics (Max Weber, E.P. Thompson, Jim March, and Mary Metz) and nonacademics (Frederick Douglass, Elmore Leonard). Today I want to … Continue reading How the King James Bible Shaped the English Language and How It Still Teaches Us How to Write Well