African American Literature

Literary Analysis: The Basics is an insightful introduction to analysing a wide range of literary forms. Providing a clear outline of the methodologies employed in twenty-first century literary analysis, it introduces readers to the genres, canons, terms, issues, critical approaches, and contexts that affect the analysis of any text. It addresses such questions as: What counts as literature? Is analysis a dissection? How do gender, race, class and culture affect the meaning of a text? Why is the social and historical context of a text important? Can digital media be analysed in the same way as a poem? With examples from ancient myths to young adult fiction, a glossary of key terms, and suggestions for further reading, Literary Analysis: The Basics is essential reading for anyone wishing to improve their analytical reading skills.

In his essential writing guide, This Year You Write Your Novel, Walter Mosley supplied aspiring writers with the basic tools to write a novel in one year. In this com-plementary follow up, Mosley guides the writer through the elements of not just any fiction writing, but the kind of writing that transcends convention and truly stands out. How does one approach the genius of writers like Melville, Dickens, or Twain? In The Elements of Fiction, Walter Mosley contemplates the answer. In a series of instructive and conversational chapters, Mosley demonstrates how to master fiction's most essential elements: character and char-acter development, plot and story, voice and narrative, context and description, and more. The result is a vivid depiction of the writing process, from the blank page to the first draft to rewriting, and rewriting again. Throughout, The Elements of Fiction is enriched by brilliant demonstrative examples that Mosley himself has written here for the first time. Inspiring, accessible, and told in a voice both trustworthy and wise, The Elements of Fiction writing will intrigue and encourage writers and readers alike.

How does an actor bring a script to life? The actor must know how to read a script, break it down, and mine all of its clues in order to make the most effective choices. The Anatomy of a Choice: An Actor's Guide to Text Analysis offers the actor a concrete method for approaching a script. This guide details a simple process to discover and define a character's scene and super-objective, obstacle, beats, and tactics. It includes practical information on how to build a character how best to use rehearsal time, and what to do when nothing is working. Book jacket.

If you are looking for a quick nuts-and-bolts overview, turn to Schaum's Easy Outlines! Schaum's Easy Outline of Writing and Grammar is a pared-down, simplified, and tightly focused review of the topic. With an emphasis on clarity and brevity, it features a streamlined and updated format and the absolute essence of the subject, presented in a concise and readily understandable form. Graphic elements such as sidebars, reader-alert icons, and boxed highlights stress selected points from the text, illuminate keys to learning, and give you quick pointers to the essentials. New online diagnostic test provides an appealing, interactive way to assess your test-readiness and identify areas requiring more study.

Writing Well in the 21st Century: The Five Essentials provides students, career-builders, and professional writers with the basic elements needed for writing in the 21st century. The book fully explains--and links--the five essentials of good writing: punctuation, grammar, fact-checking, style, and voice. Throughout history technology has changed both language and writing. Today in the digital age, language and writing are changing at a phenomenal pace. Students, career-builders, and professional writers need this guide that reviews those changes and connects the essentials for creating good writing in the digital age. Writing Well in the 21st Century: The Five Essentials gives writers the tools needed today. Among other essentials, the book: Resolves comma issues by explaining the Open and Close Punctuation systems. Writers select which system to use in their writing. Clarifies active and passive voice verbs and advocates using strong, specific verbs in writing. Provides guidelines for choosing credible online websites when searching for resources. Examines attributes of essentials that contribute to a writing style and urges a critical review of verbs. Connects elements that combine to create a voice in a written piece.

Write to the Point is the best available guide to effective writing of non-fiction. "Have something to say, and say what you mean to say as simply as you can." Those are Bill Stott's most important points, and for all those readers who know that this simple advice may be difficult to follow, he offers encouragement on such topics as: how to find something to say; the basics of organization, how to avoid sexist language; how much is enough; plagiarism; and basic grammar.

The Norton Sampler is a rhetorically arranged short-essay reader that provides models and guidelines for writing description, narration, and all the other modes of discourse. The readings are brief, reflecting the length of the essays students are required to write. From classic texts by writers such as Annie Dillard and E. B. White, to contemporary texts from writers like Barack Obama and Marjorie Agosín, The Norton Sampler includes a range of readings that will delight teachers and engage students. Texts from a range of everyday media--from billboards to coffee mugs--demonstrate that the rhetorical modes play an important role in all the writing and reading that we do. Now with enough writing instruction that students will not need a separate rhetoric.