English Academic Writing

This book provides a wealth of help for anyone involved in research writing. The clear, lively text is supported by authentic examples, language 'Makeovers', 'Toolboxes' with language tips and 'In brief' mini-summaries. Each chapter ends with key 'Takeaways', and the book with a phrase bank.

Dr. Gerlinde Mautner lehrt am Institut für Englische Wirtschaftskommunikation der Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien.

AcknowledgmentsExplanatory notes for readersIntroduction: Seven pillars of academic writing1 Creativity and constraints: Planning research texts1.1 Research genres1.1.1 Genres, structures and hierarchies1.1.2 Hierarchical organisation in research texts1.2 The research story and its parts1.2.1 The abstract1.2.2 The beginning: Setting the scene1.2.3 The middle: Developing the plot1.2.4 The ending: Rounding it all off1.3 Text appeal2 One step at a time: Designing paragraphs2.1 The essence of English paragraphs2.2 The components of a paragraph2.2.1 The topic sentence2.2.2 The 'meaty' middle2.2.3 The final sentence2.3 Paragraph appeal3 Focus and flow: Constructing sentences3.1 Sentence types3.1.1 The simple sentence3.1.2 The complex sentence3.1.3 Subordinate clauses3.2 Principles of sentence construction3.2.1 The 'given-new' principle3.2.2 End focus3.3 Passive sentences3.4 Sentence appeal3.4.1 Getting the verb-noun balance right3.4.2 Varying sentence structure4 Breath marks: Punctuation4.1 Why punctuation matters4.2 What punctuation marks signal4.2.1 Suggesting 'stops'4.2.2 Suggesting 'detours'4.2.3 Suggesting 'pauses'4.3 Commas: sometimes a question of style4.3.1 Where style plays little part4.3.2 Where style comes in5 Only connect: Cohesion5.1 General principles of cohesion and coherence5.2 Cohesion within paragraphs5.2.1 Semantic chains5.2.2 Pronouns5.2.3 Linkers5.2.4 Structural devices5.3 Cohesion beyond the paragraph6 Your words, not mine: Citations6.1 What to cite and how much6.2 Types of citations6.2.1 Direct versus indirect citations6.2.2 Integral versus non-integral citations6.3 Weaving citations into the text6.4 Inadvertent plagiarism and how to avoid it7 Follow me: Guiding and persuading the reader7.1 Showing the reader the way: Metacomments7.2 Getting the reader on your side7.2.1 Reasoning7.2.2 Emphasising7.2.3 Evaluating7.2.4 Rapport-buildingAppendix 1 Conference presentationsA1.1 The audience, or 'pity the listener'A1.2 The purposesA1.3 Language considerationsA1.4 Text slidesAppendix 2 Grant proposalsAppendix 3 Phrasebank for academic writingList of referencesIndex