Better Writing: Beyond Periods and Commas

Better Writing is an engaging book, written in a conversational and respectful way. There is no condescension. It is a matter-of-fact manual that helps students understand the complexity of college writing.

T.J. Koll presents a refreshing and new perspective on composition by including both the student and instructor perspectives on things like writing, research and grammar. This accessible little book guides students through steps that will help them grow into more sophisticated and confident academic writers.

The tone of T.J. Koll’s Better Writing is warm and engaging, the voice of the kind and nurturing writing instructor that we all wish we had and that we all aspire to be. Relentlessly pragmatic, Koll focuses on the nuts and bolts of the writing process, all the while making clear that improvement lies within the reach of all who care enough to work hard at it. The book comes across as the work of a practitioner, someone who writes as well as teaches, [and] someone who invites us to join him in practicing the craft of writing.

Travis Koll’s Better Writing presents a light-hearted, straight-talking, and culturally relevant approach to the standard fare. It is English instruction as students wish it could be–candid, entertaining, and demystified. Koll’s bookis an absolute must for the college classroom.