October 20th is the National Day on Writing and we are celebrating writing in all its forms by sharing books that teach and influence students to become better writers and understand the value of writing in everyday life.
The Writer’s Practice invites students and novice writers into an intellectually engaging, active learning process that prepares them for a wider range of academic and real-world writing and allows them to become invested and engaged in their own work.
Several Short Sentences About Writing
Several Short Sentences About Writing is a guide for those who want to write better, or have a clearer understanding of what it means for them to be writing. Verlyn Klinkenborg provides a gathering of starting points in a journey toward lively, lucid, satisfying self-expression.
A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a deep exploration not just of how great writing works but of how the mind itself works while reading, and of how the reading and writing of stories make genuine connection possible.
First You Write a Sentence uses minimal technical terms and sources ranging from the Bible to George Orwell, as well as scientific studies of what can best fire the reader’s mind, and shows how we can all write in a way that is clear, compelling and alive.
The Contemporary American Essay
The Contemporary American Essay is an anthology of essays by some of the best writers of the past quarter century—from Barry Lopez and Margo Jefferson to David Sedaris and Samantha Irby—selected by acclaimed essayist Phillip Lopate.
This book takes a thought-provoking journey inside the minds of the world’s most accomplished storytellers. It discusses what makes good prose, how to create it, and gives a lively account of the difficult lessons that even the greatest writers have had to learn.
Dreyer’s English offers lessons on punctuation, from the underloved semicolon to the enigmatic en dash. Benjamin Dreyer distills everything he has learned from the myriad books he has copyedited and overseen into a useful guide not just for writers but for everyone who wants to put their best prose foot forward.
With powerful entries from the students’ own diaries and a narrative text by Erin Gruwell, The Freedom Writers Diary is an uplifting, unforgettable example of how hard work, courage, and the spirit of determination changed the lives of a teacher and her students.
