Rules for Writers

by Hacker, Diana; Sommers, Nancy

• ISBN13: 9781319244255
• ISBN10: 1319244254
• Edition: 10th
• Format: Spiral Bound
• Copyright: 2021-10-11
• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's

About This Book

Rules for Writers, 10th Edition

ISBN: 9781319244255

Rules for Writers is a comprehensive guide designed to support students from a wide range of backgrounds. This 10th edition, authored by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers, offers accessible explanations, step-by-step advice, and class-tested examples to help students master the art of writing.

Who Uses It?

Primarily, this book is used by students in various writing courses at the college and university levels. It is also a valuable resource for instructors looking to provide their students with practical writing advice and for anyone interested in improving their writing skills.

History and Editions

The 10th edition of Rules for Writers has been updated to address user feedback, incorporating the latest research and discussions on writing principles. This edition includes detailed updates on clarity, accuracy, and effective communication, making it a go-to resource for students and educators alike.

Author and Other Works

Diana Hacker is renowned for her clear and concise writing style, which has made her textbooks essential in many educational settings. Nancy Sommers brings her expertise in teaching writing to the text, ensuring that it remains current and relevant. Both authors have written extensively on writing guides and resources, making their contributions invaluable to the field of educational writing.

Key Features

• Accessible Explanations: The book provides clear and concise explanations of various writing concepts, making it easy for students to understand and apply.
• Step-by-Step Advice: Detailed step-by-step advice helps students navigate through different types of writing assignments.
• Class-Tested Examples: The inclusion of class-tested examples ensures that the advice given is practical and effective.
• Spiral-Bound Format: The spiral-bound format allows students to keep their book open while writing, making it a convenient resource for note-taking and highlighting.

Detailed Information

ISBNs and Formats

• Spiral-Bound: ISBN-13: 9781319244255
• eTextbook: Available with eBook Trial Access (ISBN: 9781319392895)
• Bound Text: ISBN-13: 9781319443900
• Package Deals: Includes Achieve and Paperback (ISBN: 9781319521677)
• Rental Options: Available for rent from various retailers, including eCampus.com and TextbookRush.com.

Publication Details

• Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's
• Publication Date: October 11, 2021
• Number of Pages: 624 pages
• Language: English
• Item Weight: 1.25 pounds
• Dimensions: 8.06" x 0.84" x 5.34"

Other Editions and Formats

• 9th Edition: Available through Bedford/St. Martin's and other retailers
• eTextbook with iClicker Student: ISBN-13: 9781319392949
• Related ISBNs:
• 9781319392895
• 9781319443900
• 9781319521677

This detailed information section provides a quick reference for all the available formats and sources for Rules for Writers, 10th Edition, making it easier to find and access the book in the preferred format.

Table of Contents

A Process for Writing

1 Exploring, planning, and drafting

a Assess the writing situation.
b Explore your subject.
c Draft and revise a working thesis statement.
d Draft a plan.
e Draft an introduction.
f Draft the body.
g Draft a conclusion.

2 Writing paragraphs

a Focus on a main point.
b Develop the main point.
c Make paragraphs coherent.
d If necessary, adjust paragraph length.
e Choose a suitable strategy for developing paragraphs.

3 Revising, editing, and reflecting

a Use peer review: Give constructive comments.
b Learn from peer review: Revise with comments.
c One student’s peer review process
d Approach global revision in cycles.
e Revise globally by making a reverse outline.
f Revise and edit sentences.
g Proofread and format the final manuscript.
h Sample student revision: Literacy narrative
i Reflect on your writing; prepare a portfolio.

Academic Reading and Writing

4 Reading and writing critically

a Read actively.
b Outline a text to identify main ideas.
c Summarize to deepen your understanding.
d Analyze to demonstrate your critical reading.
e Sample student writing: Analysis of an article

5 Reading and writing about multimodal texts

a Read a multimodal text actively.
b Summarize a multimodal text to deepen your understanding.
c Analyze a multimodal text to demonstrate your critical reading.
d Sample student writing: Analysis of an advertisement

6 Reading arguments

a Read with an open mind and a critical eye.
b Evaluate ethical, logical, and emotional appeals as a reader.
c Evaluate the evidence behind an argument.
d Identify underlying assumptions.
e Evaluate how fairly a writer handles opposing views.

7 Writing arguments

a Identify your purpose and context.
b View your audience as a panel of jurors.
c Build common ground with your audience.
d In your introduction, establish credibility and state your position.
e Back up your thesis with persuasive lines of argument.
f Support your thesis with specific evidence.
g Anticipate objections; counter opposing arguments.
h Sample student writing: Argument

Clarity

8 Prefer active verbs.

a Active versus passive verbs
b Active versus be verbs
c Subject that names the actor

9 Balance parallel ideas.

a Parallel ideas in a series
b Parallel ideas presented as pairs
c Repetition of function words

10 Add needed words.

a In compound structures
b that
c In comparisons
d a, an, and the

11 Untangle mixed constructions.

a Mixed grammar
b Illogical connections
c is when, is where, and reason . . . is because

12 Repair misplaced and dangling modifiers.

a Limiting modifiers
b Misplaced phrases and clauses
c Awkwardly placed modifiers
d Split infinitives
e Dangling modifiers

13 Eliminate distracting shifts.

a Point of view (person, number)
b Verb tense
c Verb mood, voice
d Indirect to direct questions or quotations

14 Emphasize key ideas.

a Coordination and subordination
b Choppy sentences
c Ineffective or excessive coordination
d Ineffective subordination
e Excessive subordination
f Other techniques

15 Provide some variety.

a Sentence openings
b Sentence structures
c Inverted order

16 Tighten wordy sentences.

a Redundancies
b Unnecessary repetition
c Empty or inflated phrases
d Simplifying the structure
e Reducing clauses to phrases, phrases to single words

17 Choose appropriate language.

a Levels of formality
b Jargon
c Euphemisms and “doublespeak”
d Slang
e Sexist and noninclusive language
f Biased language

18 Find the exact words.

a Connotations
b Specific, concrete nouns
c Standard idioms
d Clichés
e Figures of speech
f Glossary of usage

Grammar

19 Repair sentence fragments.

a Subordinate clauses
b Phrases
c Other fragmented word groups
d Acceptable fragments

20 Revise run-on sentences.

a Revision with coordinating conjunction
b Revision with semicolon, colon, or dash
c Revision by separating sentences
d Revision by restructuring

21 Make subjects and verbs agree.

a Standard subject-verb combinations
b Words between subject and verb
c Subjects joined with and
d Subjects joined with or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor
e Indefinite pronouns
f Collective nouns
g Subject following verb
h Subject, not subject complement
i who, which, and that
j Words with plural form, singular meaning
k Titles of works, company names, words mentioned as words, gerund phrases

22 Make pronouns and antecedents agree.

a Indefinite pronouns, generic nouns
b Collective nouns
c Compound antecedents

23 Make pronoun references clear.

a Ambiguous or remote reference
b Broad reference with this, that, which, and it
c Implied antecedents
d Indefinite use of they, it, and you
e who for persons, which or that for things

24 Distinguish between pronouns such as I and me.

a Subjective case for subjects and subject complements
b Objective case for objects
c Appositives
d Pronoun following than or as
e Subjects and objects of infinitives
f Pronoun modifying a gerund

25 Distinguish between who and whom.

a In subordinate clauses
b In questions
c As subjects or objects of infinitives

26 Choose adjectives and adverbs with care.

a Adjectives to modify nouns
b Adverbs to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs
c good and well, bad and badly
d Comparatives and superlatives
e Double negatives

27 Choose appropriate verb forms, tenses, and moods.

a Irregular verbs
b lie and lay
c -s (or -es) endings
d -ed endings
e Omitted verbs
f Verb tense
g Subjunctive mood

Multilingual Writers and ESL Topics

28 Verbs

a Appropriate form and tense
b Passive voice
c Base form after a modal
d Negative verb forms
e Verbs in conditional sentences
f Verbs followed by gerunds or infinitives

29 Articles (a, an, the)

a Articles and other noun markers
b When to use the
c When to use a or an
d When not to use a or an
e No articles with general nouns
f Articles with proper nouns

30 Sentence structure

a Linking verb between a subject and its complement
b A subject in every sentence
c Repeated nouns or pronouns with the same grammatical function
d Repeated subjects, objects, and adverbs in adjective clauses
e Placement of adverbs
f Present participles and past participles as adjectives
g Order of cumulative adjectives

31 Prepositions and idiomatic expressions

a Prepositions showing time and place
b Noun (including -ing form) after a preposition
c Common adjective + preposition combinations
d Common verb + preposition combinations

32 Paraphrasing sources effectively

a Avoiding synonyms
b Determining a source’s meaning
c Presenting meaning in your own words

Punctuation

33 The comma

a Independent clauses joined with and, but, etc.
b Introductory elements
c Items in a series
d Coordinate adjectives
e Nonrestrictive and restrictive elements
f Transitional expressions and other word groups
g Direct address, yes and no, interrogative tags, interjections
h he said etc.
i Dates, addresses, titles, numbers

34 Unnecessary commas

a Between two words, phrases, or subordinate clauses
b Between a verb and its subject or object
c Before the first or after the last item in a series
d Between cumulative adjectives, an adjective and a noun, or an adverb and an adjective
e Before and after restrictive or parenthetical elements
f Before essential concluding adverbial elements
g After a phrase beginning an inverted sentence
h Other misuses

35 The semicolon

a Between independent clauses not joined with a coordinating conjunction
b Between independent clauses linked with a transitional expression
c In a series containing internal punctuation
d Misuses

36 The colon

a Before a list, an appositive, or a quotation
b Conventional uses
c Misuses

37 The apostrophe

a Possessive nouns
b Possessive indefinite pronouns
c Contractions
d Not for plural numbers, letters, abbreviations, words as words
e Misuses

38 Quotation marks

a Direct quotations
b Quotation within a quotation
c Titles of short works
d Words as words
e With other punctuation marks
f Misuses

39 End punctuation

a The period
b The question mark
c The exclamation point

40 Other punctuation marks

a The dash
b Parentheses
c Brackets
d The ellipsis mark
e The slash

Mechanics

41 Abbreviations

a Titles with proper names
b Familiar abbreviations
c Conventional abbreviations
d Units of measurement
e Latin abbreviations
f Plural of abbreviations

42 Numbers

a Spelling out
b Using numerals

43 Italics

a Titles of works
b Non-English words
c Words as words, letters as letters, numbers as numbers

44 Spelling

a Spelling rules
b Words that sound alike

45 Hyphenation

a Compound words
b Hyphenated adjectives
c Fractions and compound numbers
d With certain prefixes and suffixes
e To avoid ambiguity or to separate awkward double or triple letters
f Word division

46 Capitalization

a Proper vs. common nouns
b Titles with proper names
c Titles and subtitles of works
d First word of a sentence
e First word of a quoted sentence
f First word after a colon

Grammar Basics

47 Parts of speech

a Nouns
b Pronouns
c Verbs
d Adjectives
e Adverbs
f Prepositions
g Conjunctions
h Interjections

48 Sentence patterns

a Subjects
b Verbs, objects, and complements

49 Subordinate word groups

a Prepositional phrases
b Verbal phrases
c Appositive phrases
d Absolute phrases
e Subordinate clauses

50 Sentence types

a Sentence structures
b Sentence purposes

Research

51 Thinking like a researcher; gathering sources

a Manage the project.
b Pose questions worth exploring.
c Map out a search strategy.
d Search efficiently; master a few shortcuts to finding good sources.
e Write a research proposal.
f Conduct field research, if appropriate.

52 Managing information; taking notes responsibly<