Part I. Research and writing : from planning to production / Wayne C. Booth, Gregory C. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams.

1. What research is and how researchers think about it

2. Moving from a topic to a question to a working hypothesis

3. Finding useful sources

4. Engaging sources

5. Planning your argument

6. Planning a first draft

7. Drafting your report

8. Presenting evidence in tables and figures

9. Revising your draft

10. Writing your final introduction and conclusion

11. Revising sentences

12. Learning from your returned paper

13. Presenting research in alternative forums

14. On the spirit of research.

Part II. Source citation.

15. General introduction to citation practices

16. Notes-bibliography style: the basic form

17. Notes-bibliography style : citing specific types of sources

18. Author-date style : the basic form

19. Author-date style : citing specific types of sources.

Part III. Style.

20. Spelling

21. Punctuation

22. Names, special terms, and titles of works

23. Numbers

24. Abbreviations

25. Quotations

26. Tables and figures

Appendix: Paper format and submission.

A note to students

Preface. Part I. Research and writing / Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams, Joseph Bizup, and William T. FitzGerald: 1. What research is and how researchers think about it: What research is ; How researchers think about their aims ; Conversing with your readers

2. Defining a project: topic, question, problem, working hypothesis: Find a question in your topic ; Understanding research problems ; Propose a working hypothesis ; Build a storyboard to plan and guide your work ; Join or organize a writing group

3. Finding useful sources: Three kinds of sources and their uses ; Search for sources systematically ; Evaluate sources for relevance and reliability ; Look beyond the usual kinds of references ; Record your sources fully, accurately, and appropriately

4. Engaging your sources: Read generously to understand, then critically to engage ; Take notes systematically ; Take useful notes ; Review your progress ; Manage moments of normal anxiety

5. Constructing your argument: What a research argument is and is not ; Build your argument around answers to readers' questions ; Turn your working hypothesis into a claim ; Assemble the elements of your argument ; Prefer arguments based on evidence to arguments based on warrants ; Assemble an argument

6. Planning a first draft: Avoid unhelpful plans ; Create a plan that meets your readers' needs ; File away leftovers

7. Drafting your paper: Draft in the way that feels most comfortable ; Develop effective writing habits ; Keep yourself on track through headings and key terms ; Quote, paraphrase, and summarize appropriately ; Integrate quotations into your text ; Use footnotes and endnotes judiciously ; Sow how complex or detailed evidence is relevant ; Be open to surprises ; Guard against inadvertent plagiarism ; Guard against inappropriate assistance ; Work through chronic procrastination and writer's block

8. Presenting evidence in tables and figures: Choose verbal or visual representations of your data ; Choose the most effective graphic ; Design tables and figures ; Communicate data ethically

9. Revising your draft: Check for blind spots in your argument ; Check your introduction, conclusion, and claim ; Make sure the body of your report is coherent ; Check your paragraphs ; Let your draft cool, then rephrase it

10. Writing your final introduction and conclusion: Draft your final introduction ; Draft your final conclusion ; Write your title last

11. Revising sentences: Focus on the first seven of eight words of a sentence ; Diagnose what you read ; Choose the right word ; Polish it up ; Give it up and turn it in

12. Learning from comments on your paper: Two kinds of feedback: advice and data ; Find general principles in specific comments ; Talk with your reader

13. Presenting research in alternative forums: Plan your oral presentation ; Design your presentation to be listened to ; Plan your poster presentation ; Plan you conference report

On the spirit of research.

Part II. Source citation : General introduction to citation practices : Reasons for citing your sources ; The requirements of citation ; Two citation styles ; Electronic sources ; Preparation of citations ; Citation management tools

Notes-bibliography style: the basic form : Basic patterns ; Bibliographies ; Notes ; Short forms for notes

Notes-bibliography style: citing specific types of sources : Books ; Journal articles ; Magazine articles ; Newspaper articles ; Websites, blogs, and social media ; Interviews and personal communications ; Papers, lectures, and manuscript collections ; Older works and sacred works ; Reference works and secondary citations ; Sources in the visual and performing arts ; Public documents

Author-date style: the basic form : Basic patterns ; Reference lists ; Parenthetical citations

Author-date style: citing specific types of sources : Books ; Journal articles ; Magazine articles ; Newspaper articles ; Websites, blogs, and social media ; Interviews and personal communications ; Papers, lectures, and manuscript collections ; Older works and sacred works ; Reference works and secondary sources ; Sources in the visual and performing arts ; Public documents.

Part III. Style : Spelling : Plurals ; Possessives ; Compounds and words formed with prefixes ; Line breaks

Punctuation : Periods ; Commas ; Semicolons ; Colons ; Question marks ; Exclamation points ; Hyphens and dashes ; Parentheses and brackets ; Slashes ; Quotation marks ; Apostrophes ; Multiple punctuation marks

Names, special terms, and titles of works : Names ; Special terms ; Titles of works

Numbers : Words or numerals? ; Plurals and punctuation ; Data systems ; Numbers used outside the text

Abbreviations : General principles ; Names and titles ; Geographical terms ; Time and dates ; Units of measure ; The Bible and other sacred works ; Abbreviations in citations and other scholarly contexts

Quotations : Quoting accurately and avoiding plagiarism ; Incorporating quotations into your text ; Modifying quotations

Tables and figures : General issues ; Tables ; Figures

Appendix: Paper format and submission : General format requirements ; Format requirements for specific elements ; File preparation and submission requirements.