The Second (International) Edition of WBE will be published in the Spring of 2021 by Equinox Publishing as part of its Writing Frameworks series edited by Martha Pennington:
https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/frameworks-for-writing/
Writing Better Essays: A Simple Rhetorical Guide to Process, Structure, and Coherence, now in its second edition, is an authoritative but accessible guide to writing successful argumentative essays that combines classical approaches with practical advice tailored to contemporary students. Designed to be effective either in the classroom or for independent learning, the book will appeal students of all ages and levels, ranging from advanced placement to post-graduate, its detailed explanations of key steps of its writing and editing process from conception through planning and execution ensuring that students will be able to create a coherent argumentative essay that features the classical circular and reiterative structure. The conversational style and tone of the book serves to give students much needed confidence as they approach their writing as does its extended explanation of the key skill of paragraphing and its commonsense advice on punctuation. Students should find its extensive use of exercises, its well-chosen examples of good practice and its emphasis on imitation makes it an ideal primary or secondary textbook for courses. Teachers of writing should appreciate the instructor’s guide at the beginning of the book as well as the consistent emphasis throughout on the need for students to commit themselves to practice and revision if they want to write effective argumentative essays.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: The Preparatory and Writing Stages: Creating Your First Drafts
Chapter 2: The Main Revision Stage: Paragraphs and Paragraphing
Chapter 3: The Weighty Stage: Revising Your Thesis Statements
Chapter 4: The Stylish Stage: Adding Final Introductory Paragraphs
Chapter 5: The Submission Stage: Reviewing Punctuation and Overused Words
Equinox blurb:
David L.Rogers, Emeritus Senior Fellow at Kingston University, London, is the founder & former director of the Kingston Writing School and Head of the School of Humanities at Kingston University. He has lectured in all aspects of writing, including essay writing and rhetorical practice to under-graduates and post-graduates both in the UK and in the USA. His innovative textbook Writing Better Essays is designed to be read and used by students and writers of all levels of ability. David’s engaging style will liberate and inspire students of all disciplines.
Sample Reviews from Students & Instructors:
David Rogers’ ‘Writing Better Essays’ provides easy-to-follow guidance and support on how to write to better essays. His section on paragraphs and the examples provided are particularly worthy of note. This book is student and lecturer/tutor-friendly, making it an invaluable guide for lecturers and students alike. Thank you David Rogers.
Returning to uni after 15 years was scary in a number of ways, and not least the idea of writing essays again. This book guided me through the process and gave me the confidence to start writing. The way in which it is formatted allows you to dip in and out to check specific details. Even though it was not specifically written with this in mind, the information was all perfectly applicable to the scientific writing required for my MSc.
This is a book I use to teach essay writing skills and I still turn to the advice on paragraphing and structuring for help with my own written work. The specific advice on drafting an argumentative essay has proved indispensable and I have seen many students visibly grow in confidence as they are introduced to it. Teachers and students who use this book are giving themselves a huge advantage.
Dr David Rogers 