The Essentials of Academic Writingis a brief rhetoric that focuses on the process of writing academic essays for college courses. The text provides a complete overview of the writing process, with concise, nuts-and-bolts coverage of researching, planning, drafting, documenting, revising, and proofreading academic papers. A sample student essay serves as a case study to illustrate each part of the process and an anthology of 19 academic essays covering a variety of disciplines and topics provides good models for student writing. As part of the English Essentials Series, this affordable title is a valuable and cost-effective rhetoric for freshman composition students and reference for students writing in all their college disciplines. A student case study follows one student through the entire writing process, from pre-writing to final draft, showing her draft at each stage of the process and providing a real-life example for composition students. Two anthologies of readings at the end of the text include works from student and professional writers (both contemporary and classic), giving students models for writing as well as topics for thought and classroom discussion. Writing Assignments, Collaborative Activities,andJournal Promptsat the end of each chapter give students a chance to practice their skills, write and revise in groups, or reflect on what they've learned.