LibGuides: ENG-2010 v2: Week 1 Resources

Week 1 Resources

The Word on College Reading and Writing
Burnell, C., Wood, J., Babin, M., Pesznecker, S., Rosevear, N. (n.d.). The word on college reading and writing. https://openoregon.pressbooks.pub/wrd/
Part 2: Writing—Determining Your Audience and Purpose, sections: Audience, Purpose, & Tone, Voice, and Point of View.
This webpage provides an overview on why audience is important to consider before starting a document. It also introduces the ideas of using an appropriate tone, voice, and point-of-view in your documents that can help your work reach the audience effectively.
Open English @ SLCC
SLCC English Department. (n.d.). Audience. In Open English @ SLCC. Pressbooks. https://openenglishatslcc.pressbooks.com/
Part II: 10. Audience, plus the three linked “ADDITIONAL READINGS ON AUDIENCE.”
This selection by Professor Justin Jory defines the importance of understanding your audience.
Definition of Audience
Nordquist, R. (2018, April 5). Definition of audience. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/audience-rhetoric-and-composition-1689147
Linked in Open English @ SLCC Part II: 10
This additional reading linked within Professor Jory’s text offers further useful information to consider when tailoring your approach to a document for the audience’s benefit.
What to Think About When Writing for a Particular Audience
Wray, A. (n.d.). What to think about when writing for a particular audience. Writing Commons. https://writingcommons.org/article/what-to-think-about-when-writing-for-a-particular-audience2/
Linked in Open English @ SLCC Part II: 10
This additional reading linked within Professor Jory’s text offers further useful information to consider when tailoring your approach to a document for the audience’s benefit.
Audience
Moxley, J. (n.d.). Audience. Writing Commons. https://writingcommons.org/section/information-literacy/information/consider-your-audience/
Linked in Open English @ SLCC Part II: 10
This additional reading linked within Professor Jory’s text offers further useful information to consider when tailoring your approach to a document for the audience’s benefit.
The Simple Math of Writing Well
Harrop, J. A. (2018). The simple math of writing well: Writing for the 21st century. George Fox University. https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/the-simple-math-of-writing-well-writing-for-the-21st-century
Chapter 14: Purpose, Chapter 15: Audience, and Chapter 16: Voice
This selection of three chapters from Dr. Harrop’s The Simple Math of Writing Well goes beyond defining what the audience in writing is, exploring how the author’s purpose, audience, and writing “voice” can work together to make an effective document. Feel free to revisit this reading as you tackle essays later in the course, as some of the concepts noted may be clearer to you after having drafted them.
Student Webinar 4/19/17 – Writing Secrets: Finding Your Audience
Johns Hopkins Engineering for Professionals. (2017, April 24). Student webinar 4/19/17 – Writing secrets: Finding your audience [Video].
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2CIdBv-xjk
While made for engineering students, this is an excellent overview by Professor of Communication Bob Graham on how to discover what different audiences need from your writing. As you watch, pay close attention to the kinds of questions he asks about the potential users of his documents to discover useful information about them.

Am I Making Myself Clear? by Cornelia Dean
ISBN: 9780674053717
Publication Date: 2009-10-15
Dean, C. (2009, October 30). Know your audience. In Am I making myself clear?: A scientist’s guide to talking to the public. Harvard University Press. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nu/reader.action?docID=3300836&ppg=24
Chapter 2. Know Your Audience
This book is geared towards scientists who need to communicate complicated technical information to audiences who don’t have the background needed to understand the topics easily. While we may or may not be scientists, the tools the author presents can help us share any information that maybe difficult to understand in the most accessible way possible for our audiences.
Influencing Others by Bill Nothstine
ISBN: 9780931961847
Publication Date: 1989-06-01
Nothstine, W. & Crisp, M.G. (1989, May 01). Section II: Understanding the why’s and when’s of persuasion. In Influencing others: A handbook to persuasive strategies. Course Technology Crisp. https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/nu/reader.action?docID=3116967&ppg=33
Section II: Understanding the Why’s and When’s of Persuasion (pgs. 9-41)
In this selection from Influencing Others, the usefulness and ultimate purposes of persuasion are outlined. Use this text to get a solid grasp of why persuasive (argumentative) skills are important, how we use them, and how can improve them in our communication.

Excelsior Online Writing Lab Website: Argument & Critical Thinking Section
Excelsior Online Writing Lab. (n.d.). Argument & audience. https://owl.excelsior.edu/argument-and-critical-thinking/argument-and-audience/
All subsections within “Argument & Audience” group
These subsections within the Excelsior Online Writing Lab’s website offer additional reasoning as to why recognizing and digging up information on your audience is important to making a successful document. As with many resources in this class, it’s recommended that you return here as you work on your future assignments to ensure you’re utilizing the tips and tricks given.
The Purposeful Argument
Phillips, H., & Bostian, P. (2015). The purposeful argument: A practical guide (2nd ed.). https://www.vitalsource.com
Part 5: An Anthology of Arguments—Intersections: Contemporary Issues and Arguments, “Abolish Corporate Personhood (Thinking Politically)” essay (pp. 386-393)
This essay by Jan Edwards and Molly Morgan is an excellent example of a document that takes complicated legal ideas and attempts to share them with an audience that has less knowledge about the relevant laws than they do. As you read this essay, consider these questions: did the authors make the complex legal ideas easy for you, the audience, to follow? If so, how, and if not, what could they have done to increase the clarity of their points?
To access the Redshelf book, click on the book link located in the Course Resources module or the Bookshelf link on the top navigation bar of the course.