Describes a seven-step approach for writing a strategic plan for a small business. (SR)

Reconsiders the modern classic "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" by Robert Pirsig. Discusses three issues from the book that speak to the technical writer in particular: finding the proper perspective, using metaphoric writing, and avoiding gumption traps. (SR)

Tips for writing more effective case studies are (1) writing them in the form of a story; (2) giving the characters names; (3) using dialogue and realistic details; (4) describing vividly; (5) making the flow easy to follow; and (6) giving all necessary information but leaving enough mystery to maintain interest. (SK)

Argues that a workable definition of transitions must take into account not only the word's meaning but also the writer's intentions and the way a transition changes depending on placement and function. Explores a group of transition words related to the idea of summary. (TB)

Letters of recommendation for students are never easy to write. All faculty feel charged with telling the truth, but they also feel compelled to go over the top far enough that the student won't seem damned with faint praise. And, as with grade point averages, the top gets higher every year. Is it possible to write too positive a letter anymore?…

The aim of this working paper is to identify research-supported strategies for reading and writing that can be integrated effectively to promote the development of biliterate academic literacy by English language learners (ELLs) in middle-school bilingual classrooms. The paper begins with a review of the theoretical foundations that highlight…

This paper focuses on the analysis of certain didactic resources that proliferated on the fringes of schooling during the second half of the nineteenth century in Mexico. The first of these is a method that, according to its author, made it possible to teach a pupil how to read in only six lessons, dated 1830; the second is a writing method from…

In this article, the author first explains what an authors gallery is and suggests additional uses and modifications. Next, readers are taken through a day-by-day description of creating the gallery while having the theory behind this pedagogical choice explained. The step-by-step discussion is supported with student examples and concepts drawn…

Teaching rhetorical production in a digital age calls for us to rethink our discipline's current distaste for writing mechanics. Yet, the digital mechanics of writing are much broader than grammatical concerns. They include production tools that allow for the invention and circulation of audio, visual, and Multigenre writing. (Contains 3 figures…

Provides step-by-step directions for various creative writing strategies for teachers to use with their students. Illustrates each strategy: the sneak attack; the poetry cafe; videotaping a poem; and choral reading and coloring meaning. (PA)

Offers a narrative in the form of five confessions the author's life. Contends that writing from memory can be pedagogic and political. Concludes that writing what was witnessed is to testify to what is remembered, so that it cannot be forgotten. (PM)

Offers a modest new taxonomy for rhetorical heuristics for arrangement, one of the five major divisions of classical rhetoric. Suggests schemes suitable for academic discourse, such as "obvious before remarkable,""literal before symbolic," and "explanation before complication." Supplies a limited theoretical context…

Argues for a theoretical distinction between the act of composing and the act of transcribing. Examines early writing sessions and note-making patterns of writers working with traditional and computer writing tools. Finds individual writers have distinctly different strategies when writing in different technological contexts. (KEH)

Discusses collaborative design in the context of developing a "Toolbook" hypertext intended to introduce graduate students to the fields of rhetoric and professional communication. Examines the new grammar and rhetoric of hypertext, discusses the importance of document planning within an emergent design, and argues for a functional aesthetic. (SR)

Discusses how to get started in hypermedia, offering a springboard for beginning hyperdocument developers. Argues that the key is to transfer the familiar to the unfamiliar by adapting paper-document writing processes and by applying the appropriate, familiar page-design principles. (SR)