Writing Is Communicating

Author(s): Mary Wallen

Edition: 1

Copyright: 2025

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$45.00 USD

ISBN 9798385159826

Details Electronic Delivery EBOOK 180 days

This concise e-textbook offers clear, practical guidance for writing essays, with a focus on description, narration, exemplification, and argument. It includes a quick-reference review of common grammar errors, introduces multimodal assignment ideas, and provides a brief overview of MLA formatting. Designed to help students develop confidence, Writing Is Communicating: Composition, Grammar, Style encourages students to reflect on themselves as writers and to own their voice.

I Introduction 
Advice 
Voice 
Discovering Your Subjects 
Generating Ideas 


II Modes of Communication 

Chapter 1 Description and Drafting 
Paragraph Development 
Paragraph Structure 
       Figurative Language 
Suggestions for Descriptive Paragraphs 
       Student Sample 

Chapter 2 Narration 
Narrative Essay Structure 
       Other Considerations 
Suggestions for Narrative Writing 
       Other Considerations 

Chapter 3 Exemplification 
Exemplification Essay Structure 
       Introduction 
       Conclusion 
Suggestions for Exemplification Essay 

Chapter 4 Argument 
Essay Structure 
Introduction 
Body Paragraphs 
Conclusion 
Important Considerations 
       Avoid Logical Fallacies 


III Grammar, Mechanics, and Style

Chapter 5 Grammar 
Comma Splice and Run-On 
Fragment 
Pronoun-Antecedent 
Gendered Pronouns 
Pronoun: Subjective versus Objective 
       Subjective 
       Objective 
Verb Tenses 
Parallelism 
       Nonparallel 
       Parallel 
       Nonparallel 
       Parallel 
Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers 
Miscellaneous 
       To/too/two 
       Their/there/they’re 
       Its/It’s 

Chapter 6 Style 
Cloze 
6.1: Opening of To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) by Harper Lee 
6.2: Opening of Chapter Two, “The Vanishing Glass” in Harry Potter: The Sorcerer’s Stone (1998) by J. K. Rowling 
6.3: Opening of “Think Like a Mountain” (1943) by Aldo Leopold, conservationist and writer 
Copying Passages and Imitation 
Sentence Combining 
Punctuation: Making Your Mark 
       Colon 
       To Introduce a Series 
       To Introduce a Complete Sentence That Explains the Previous Sentence 
       To Introduce a Direct Quotation 
       To Introduce an Appositive (Restatement of Noun) 
       Dash 
Hyphen 
Building Vocabulary 

Chapter 7 Multimodal Projects 
Advantages of Multimodal Assignments
Audio Narrative Essay
       Getting Started 
Digital Story 
       General Parameters 
Podcast
       Getting Started 
iSTART/Visual Report 
Visual Report 
Remixing Your Writing 


IV Research and Documentation 

Chapter 8 Research 
Getting Started 
Finding and Evaluating Sources 
Incorporating Research 
       In-Text Citations 
       Why Do In-Text Citations Matter? 
       Integrating Source Material: Paraphrasing, Quoting, Summarizing 
       Paraphrasing 
       Quoting 
       Signal Phrases 
       Formatting Longer Quotes 
Summarizing 
       Taking a Closer Look at In-Text Citations 
Consider the Following Examples 
Example: From a Book with One Author
Quick-Reference: In-Text Citations 
       No Author 
       Multiple Authors 
       Corporate Author 
       Multiple Works by the Same Author 
       Electronic or Multimedia Sources (No Page Numbers).
       Most sources found online will not have a page number: 
       Credit Paraphrase to Multiple Sources 
       Bible 
       Indirect Sources (Quoted in) 
       Authors with Same Last Names (include initial of first name) 

Chapter 9 MLA Style 
Works Cited Page 
Quick-Reference Chart: MLA Citations 
Books 
       Book 
       Two Books by the Same Author 
       Republished Book 
       Selection from an Anthology or Collection (e.g., Collection of Essays) 
       Translated Book
       An Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword 
       A Pamphlet
       Dissertations and Master’s Theses
       Government 
Periodicals 
       Journal Article
       Magazine Article 
       Newspaper Article
Electronic (Online Sources) 
      A Page on a Website 
       A Website
       Online Magazine Article 
       Online Journal Article 
       An Article from an Online Database
       Online Government Source 
       YouTube 
       Social Media 
       Photograph or Image 
Other Sources
       Email
       Interview 
       TV Show 
       Movie 
       Podcast 
       Spotify 
       CD 
       Optional Components: Notes Page, Works Consulted, and Appendix 
       Sample MLA Paper 

Chapter 10 Academic Integrity: Generative AI and Plagiarism 


V Appendices
Appendix A 
Appendix B
Appendix C 
Appendix D 
Appendix E 
Appendix F 
References 

Mary Wallen

Dr. Mary Ruth Stepp Wallen brings over three decades of college teaching experience to her work. A native of Inez, Kentucky, she holds dual B.A. degrees in English and Journalism from Morehead State University (1995), an M.A. in English with a creative writing emphasis from Indiana State University (1997), an MFA in Fiction from Southern Illinois University–Carbondale (2003), and a Doctorate of Arts in English Pedagogy from Murray State University (2021). Since 2003, she has been teaching at Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg, KY. Dr. Wallen believes that strong writing transcends genre and empowers all who practice it.

This concise e-textbook offers clear, practical guidance for writing essays, with a focus on description, narration, exemplification, and argument. It includes a quick-reference review of common grammar errors, introduces multimodal assignment ideas, and provides a brief overview of MLA formatting. Designed to help students develop confidence, Writing Is Communicating: Composition, Grammar, Style encourages students to reflect on themselves as writers and to own their voice.

I Introduction 
Advice 
Voice 
Discovering Your Subjects 
Generating Ideas 


II Modes of Communication 

Chapter 1 Description and Drafting 
Paragraph Development 
Paragraph Structure 
       Figurative Language 
Suggestions for Descriptive Paragraphs 
       Student Sample 

Chapter 2 Narration 
Narrative Essay Structure 
       Other Considerations 
Suggestions for Narrative Writing 
       Other Considerations 

Chapter 3 Exemplification 
Exemplification Essay Structure 
       Introduction 
       Conclusion 
Suggestions for Exemplification Essay 

Chapter 4 Argument 
Essay Structure 
Introduction 
Body Paragraphs 
Conclusion 
Important Considerations 
       Avoid Logical Fallacies 


III Grammar, Mechanics, and Style

Chapter 5 Grammar 
Comma Splice and Run-On 
Fragment 
Pronoun-Antecedent 
Gendered Pronouns 
Pronoun: Subjective versus Objective 
       Subjective 
       Objective 
Verb Tenses 
Parallelism 
       Nonparallel 
       Parallel 
       Nonparallel 
       Parallel 
Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers 
Miscellaneous 
       To/too/two 
       Their/there/they’re 
       Its/It’s 

Chapter 6 Style 
Cloze 
6.1: Opening of To Kill a Mockingbird (1960) by Harper Lee 
6.2: Opening of Chapter Two, “The Vanishing Glass” in Harry Potter: The Sorcerer’s Stone (1998) by J. K. Rowling 
6.3: Opening of “Think Like a Mountain” (1943) by Aldo Leopold, conservationist and writer 
Copying Passages and Imitation 
Sentence Combining 
Punctuation: Making Your Mark 
       Colon 
       To Introduce a Series 
       To Introduce a Complete Sentence That Explains the Previous Sentence 
       To Introduce a Direct Quotation 
       To Introduce an Appositive (Restatement of Noun) 
       Dash 
Hyphen 
Building Vocabulary 

Chapter 7 Multimodal Projects 
Advantages of Multimodal Assignments
Audio Narrative Essay
       Getting Started 
Digital Story 
       General Parameters 
Podcast
       Getting Started 
iSTART/Visual Report 
Visual Report 
Remixing Your Writing 


IV Research and Documentation 

Chapter 8 Research 
Getting Started 
Finding and Evaluating Sources 
Incorporating Research 
       In-Text Citations 
       Why Do In-Text Citations Matter? 
       Integrating Source Material: Paraphrasing, Quoting, Summarizing 
       Paraphrasing 
       Quoting 
       Signal Phrases 
       Formatting Longer Quotes 
Summarizing 
       Taking a Closer Look at In-Text Citations 
Consider the Following Examples 
Example: From a Book with One Author
Quick-Reference: In-Text Citations 
       No Author 
       Multiple Authors 
       Corporate Author 
       Multiple Works by the Same Author 
       Electronic or Multimedia Sources (No Page Numbers).
       Most sources found online will not have a page number: 
       Credit Paraphrase to Multiple Sources 
       Bible 
       Indirect Sources (Quoted in) 
       Authors with Same Last Names (include initial of first name) 

Chapter 9 MLA Style 
Works Cited Page 
Quick-Reference Chart: MLA Citations 
Books 
       Book 
       Two Books by the Same Author 
       Republished Book 
       Selection from an Anthology or Collection (e.g., Collection of Essays) 
       Translated Book
       An Introduction, Preface, Foreword, or Afterword 
       A Pamphlet
       Dissertations and Master’s Theses
       Government 
Periodicals 
       Journal Article
       Magazine Article 
       Newspaper Article
Electronic (Online Sources) 
      A Page on a Website 
       A Website
       Online Magazine Article 
       Online Journal Article 
       An Article from an Online Database
       Online Government Source 
       YouTube 
       Social Media 
       Photograph or Image 
Other Sources
       Email
       Interview 
       TV Show 
       Movie 
       Podcast 
       Spotify 
       CD 
       Optional Components: Notes Page, Works Consulted, and Appendix 
       Sample MLA Paper 

Chapter 10 Academic Integrity: Generative AI and Plagiarism 


V Appendices
Appendix A 
Appendix B
Appendix C 
Appendix D 
Appendix E 
Appendix F 
References 

Mary Wallen

Dr. Mary Ruth Stepp Wallen brings over three decades of college teaching experience to her work. A native of Inez, Kentucky, she holds dual B.A. degrees in English and Journalism from Morehead State University (1995), an M.A. in English with a creative writing emphasis from Indiana State University (1997), an MFA in Fiction from Southern Illinois University–Carbondale (2003), and a Doctorate of Arts in English Pedagogy from Murray State University (2021). Since 2003, she has been teaching at Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg, KY. Dr. Wallen believes that strong writing transcends genre and empowers all who practice it.