How Writing Works

This is an engaging and practical introduction to the elements of grammar, sentence structure, and style that you need to write well across a range of academic, creative, and professional contexts, deftly combining reliable strategies with scholarly principles.

The third edition includes updated material based on a longstanding commitment to writing and to best international practice. It takes into account the huge upsurge in interest and adoption of generative AI in the writing workplace and the writing classroom. Chapters include advice on reading; language; grammar and style; structuring; designing; paragraphing; punctuation; workplace and academic documents; digital writing for social media; and revising, editing, and proofreading.

How Writing Works should be on the desk of everyone who needs to write: students, professionals in all fields, and creative writers. It is an essential handbook for working writers and writing workers in the contemporary writing-reliant workplace.

The accompanying support material includes video interviews and presentations from leading grammarians including Professor David Crystal, Professor Mignon Fogarty (Grammar Girl), and Professor Geoff Pullum, in addition to online quizzes and activities to support readers’ learning.