The writing and reading of so-called literary texts can be seen as processes which are genuinely communicational. They lead, that is to say, to the growth of communities within which individuals acknowledge not only each other’s similarities but differences as well. In this new book, Roger D. Sell and his colleagues apply the communicational perspective to the past four centuries of literary activity in English. Paying detailed attention to texts – both canonical and non-canonical – by Amelia Lanyer, Thomas Coryate, John Boys, Pope, Coleridge, Arnold, Kipling, William Plomer, Auden, Walter Macken, Robert Kroetsch, Rudy Wiebe and Lyn Hejinian, the book shows how the communicational issues of addressivity, commonality, dialogicality and ethics have arisen in widely different historical contexts. At a metascholarly level, it suggests that the communicational criticism of literary texts has significant cultural, social and political roles to play in the post-postmodern era of rampant globalization.

Literature in the Making by Joyce Kilmer is an analysis of literary theory and literary practice. Kilmer uses interviews with successful authors like William Dean Howells, Kathleen Norris, and Booth Tarkington to evaluate the how and why of certain streams of literature. Contents: "War Stops Literature, The Joys of the Poor, National Prosperity and Art, Romanticism and American Humor..."

Drawing upon recent research projects undertaken by the co-authors, and other research within the wider research community, this timely book makes connections to projects and initiatives that are unfolding on the national and international scene. Highly Commended for the UKLA Academic Book Award 2013.

Writing may be a solitary profession, but it is also one that relies on a strong sense of community. The Write Crowd offers practical tips and examples of how writers of all genres and experience levels contribute to the sustainability of the literary community, the success of others, and to their own well-rounded writing life. Through interviews and examples of established writers and community members, readers are encouraged to immerse themselves fully in the literary world and the community-at-large by engaging with literary journals, reading series and public workshops, advocacy and education programs, and more. In contemporary publishing, the writer is expected to contribute outside of her own writing projects. Editors and publishers hope to see their writers active in the community, and the public benefits from a more personal interaction with authors. Yet the writer must balance time and resources between deadlines, day jobs, and other commitments. The Write Crowd demonstrates how writers may engage with peers and readers, and have a positive effect on the greater community, without sacrificing writing time.

This unique collection considers the nature of writing groups inside and outside the academic environment. Exploring writing groups as contextual literacy events, editors Beverly J. Moss, Nels P. Highberg, and Melissa Nicolas bring together contributors to document and reflect on the various types of collaborations that occur in writing groups in a wide range of settings, both within and outside the academy. The chapters in this volume respond to a variety of questions about writing groups, including: *What is the impact of gender, race, and socioeconomic class on power dynamics in writing groups? *When is a writing group a community and are all writing groups communities? *How does the local community of a writing group impact the participation of group members in other local or global communities? *How does the local community of a writing group impact the participation of group members in other local or global communities? *What actions contribute to a strong community of writers and what actions contribute to the breakdown of community? *When and for whom are writing groups ineffective? *What is it about belonging to a community of writers that makes writing groups appealing to so many within and beyond the academy? Each chapter highlights how writing groups, whether or not they are labeled as such, function in various spaces and locations, and how collaboration works when writers from a variety of backgrounds with diverse interests come together. Writing Groups Inside and Outside the Classroom illustrates that writing groups outside of the academy are worthy of study and serve as important sites of writing and literacy instruction. Offering significant insights into the roles of writing groups in literacy and writing practice, this volume is appropriate for scholars and teachers of writing, rhetoric, composition, and literacy; for writing center administrators and staff; and for writing group participants.