Introduction:

I teach composition to both undergraduate upperclassmen and first-year graduate students at my university. In both these classes, I have found the curricular material available to me lacking in a couple of ways: either it’s outdated or it’s intended for doctoral-level readers who already have prior knowledge and a shared vocabulary. That makes reading for these classes in any meaningful way prohibitively difficult for many students. The threshold concepts that many of us who have taught writing for awhile share remain barriers for less experienced students or entry-level teachers. This collection will help those teachers who don’t yet have tons of experience in the classroom or with doctoral-level research in the field. It bridges that gap.

As editor, I want students or early-career teachers who access this collection to feel more confident in being well-informed about disciplinary conversations and better prepared to apply the real-world knowledge of more experienced teachers in their own classrooms. They should have a resource that doesn’t require hours of wading through eye-crossing disciplinary jargon. This collection will use plain, easy-to-understand language.

Objective:

In short, purposeful chapters, this collection will help new and future teachers of writing better understand terminology or concepts in a way that fosters deep learning for themselves and application in their future classrooms. This book is, primarily, borne out of a need for a more context-appropriate textbook in an undergraduate and a master’s-level introduction to composition studies course.

Audience:

The audience for this collection is upper-level undergraduate students and first-year graduate students just beginning to conceptualize what it means to teach writing at the high school or college level. In addition, this collection could be useful for teachers in other disciplines looking for clarification in writing pedagogy approaches outside their experience or instructional librarians tasked with supporting writing curriculum.

Proposal submission procedure:

Please complete and submit this form.

Important Dates:

Priority proposal submission deadline: December 1, 2026

Final proposal submission deadline: March 1, 2027

Submissions due end of 2027

Revisions due summer 2028

Early 2029 publication goal

Send questions to:

Dr. Jill Parrott, Professor of English

Eastern Kentucky University

jill.parrott@eku.edu

Publishing info:

Telling Teaching Writing is an open educational resource (OER) published by EKU Libraries housed in Manifold, a resource for open publishing supported by The Open Education Network (OEN). For more information about the requirements, benefits, and drawbacks for OERs, please read the Unesco statement on Open Educational Resources. This collection will exhibit the values of accessibility, equity, and inclusivity that open resources allow.

Generative AI Policy for Contributors:

Contributors to this edited volume are expected to submit original work that reflects their own scholarship, interpretation, and writing. The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools (e.g., systems that produce text, images, or substantive content) to create, draft, or significantly revise any portion of a chapter is not permitted.

Limited use of AI tools is acceptable for non-substantive purposes, such as proofreading, grammar correction, or general clarity improvements, provided that these tools do not generate new ideas, arguments, or original phrasing. Authors remain fully responsible for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of their submissions.

By submitting a proposal, contributors affirm that their work will comply with this policy.