Helpful Little Books for Students who Intend to Write about Literature

Writing About Literature (brief 11th ed.), by Edgar V. Roberts.

They Say / I Say, by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein.

Glossary of Literary Terms, by M.H. Abrams and Geoffrey Galt Harpham.

The Elements of Style, by William Strunk, Jr., and E.B. White.

Six Keepers from 2011 and 2012.

Vary sentence lengths.

Vary sentence types.

Make ample use of introductory phrases and clauses.

“Get the first sentence right, and the rest will follow.” ~ Hugh Kenner.

Write with that rare balance of mental energy, sheer exuberance, and strategic reserve.

Always remember to ask, “Where is the love?”