Writing for the Reader's Brain: A Science-Based Guide

by Yellowlees Douglas

Overview

What makes one sentence easy to read and another a slog that demands rereading? Where do you put information you want readers to recall? What about details you need to reveal but want readers to forget? Drawing on cognitive neuroscience, psychology, and psycholinguistics, this book provides a practical guide on how to write for your reader. Its chapters introduce the five 'Cs' of writing – clarity, continuity, coherence, concision, and cadence – and demonstrate how to use these features to bring your writing to life. This science-based guide also shows you how to improve your writing while also making the writing process speedier and more efficient. Brimming with examples, this humorous, surprisingly irreverent book provides writers with the tools they need to master everything from an email to a research project. If you believe good writers are simply born that way, Writing for the Reader's Brain will change your mind – and, quite possibly, your life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781009221849
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	12/12/2024
Pages:	300
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 8.98(h) x 0.59(d)

About the Author

Yellowlees Douglas is the author of The Reader's Brain: How Neuroscience Can Make You a Better Writer (Cambridge University Press, 2015), and The Biomedical Writer: What You Need to Succeed in Academic Medicine (Cambridge University Press, 2018). For more than twenty-five years, she has taught writing to everyone from professors of medicine to freshmen tackling their first college writing projects.

Table of Contents

1. Writing is a system, not an art; Getting writing done: stages in the writing process; 2. Clarity: choosing words and building sentences; Getting writing done: what you read influences how you write; 3. Continuity: tying sentences together; Getting writing done: writing collaboratively; 4. Coherence: structuring paragraphs and texts; Getting writing done: standard English is a dialect; 5. Concision: maximizing efficiency, minimizing words; Getting writing done: writing from the top down; 6. Cadence: making sentences sophisticated and rhythmic; Getting writing done: harness the power of paradox; Supplement: grammar and punctuation made (relatively) painless; Answers to test your chops; Notes; Bibliography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

‘Your readers will thank you for reading Writing for the Reader’s Brain. Dr. Douglas’ science-based approach will have you writing works that are understood and enjoyed.’ Nicholas Ellinger, Chief Brand Officer at Moore

‘This book shows you the truth about writing, and how it works systematically. The reader will learn new things about an age-old pursuit: how to be a better writer. I never thought a science-based guide to writing would help a fledging writer, but this approach is the panacea we need.’ Lybi Ma, Executive Editor, Psychology Today

‘Douglas’ advice has been crucial to refining my writing for research, international business, and grant writing. I consider her work invaluable in teaching writers to use clarity and concision in a world with an ever-shrinking attention span. Good writing opens doors!’ Kurt Shultz, Senior Director of Global Strategies, US Grains Council

‘The way most students are currently taught to research, write, and revise academic papers is a recipe for frustration. As an antidote, Douglas offers straightforward, evidence-based guidance to transform academic writing from an intimidating and meandering process to a clear-cut and efficient one. Her visionary wisdom about writing will help students replace anxiety with confidence, connect deeply with their research topics, and craft engaging and intelligent papers that they will be proud of.’ Erica Jorgensen, author of Strategic Content Design

From the Publisher