Professional Writing in Context

John Frederick Reynolds City College of CUNY Carolyn B. Matalene University of South Carolina Joyce Neff Magnotta Old Dominion University Donald C. Samson, Jr. Radford University Lynn Veach Sadler Human Technology Interface, Inc.

• Contents: Preface. F. Reynolds, What Adult Work-World Writers Have Taught Me About Adult Work-World Writing. C. Matalene, Of the People, by the People, for the People: Texts in Public Contexts. J.N. Magnotto, Consulting in a Bureaucracy: Helping Government Evaluators Write Effective Reports. D. Samson, Writing in High-Tech Firms. L.V. Sadler, Preparing for the White Rabbit and Taking It On the Neck: Tales of the Workplace and Writingplace.

"...a rich, relevant, useful, and coherent source of the various, writing-related goings-on in the world of work. The articles touch on aspects of writing which are usually not dealt with in the academic context, as composition teachers immerse themselves totally and solely in linguistic concerns, which often make them lose sight of the 'big picture,' that is, the outside world of the work environment. Furthermore, the authors deliver their views in a personal tone which adds to the reader-friendly quality of the text."—LanguageIn addition to taking the time to learn from the originality and insightfulness of Matalene's piece, I would recommend that both scolars and newcomers to professional communication at least skim through all five "stories" to develop an overall flavor of the realities of workplace communication. Doing so will provide a valuable reality check for scholars, and a useful overview for newcomers.—IEEE Transactions on Professional CommunicatonThere is a pleasant spirit of collaboration in this collection that readers will enjoy. All five authors assume equal status as volume contributors, and they all had the chance to read and comment upon each others' earlier drafts. Most of the essays are highly readable, informal, "chatty," and comfortable, and readers can move through all five chapters quite quickly in about half a day.—IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication.