Effective Writing The ABCs of Composition

The approach to traditional composition is twofold: that the writing should be reader-centered and outcome-directed. First, every piece of writing that is not fiction is basically an argument, an attempt to get the reader to accept the idea presented in the paper, whether it is the solution to world hunger or the beauty of a flower. This interpretation of writing requires a shift from the traditional text stress on the writer and what he wishes to express to the reader and what the reader will accept. The first section of the book is given over, therefore, to determining the nature of the potential reader, either real or fictional, his or her likes and dislikes, what proof or evidence will or will not be accepted as convincing and an organization that leads the reader logically to the acceptance of the writer's idea.The second approach that reverses the usual traditional orientation is that composition is not an art, but a craft, a learned skill that has a logic of its own and structural patterns determined by what the reader wishes to do. The second part of the book lays out these patterns in a threefold presentation. At the introduction of each pattern there is a list of the various ways that the pattern may be used. The material that follows gives detailed instructions on the preparation prior to writing and finally, step-by-step instructions for the application of the pattern to the idea being presented.Cleary, James J. is the author of 'Effective Writing The ABCs of Composition' with ISBN 9781589393950 and ISBN 1589393953.