The art and techniques of geological writing are conveniently set out by the editorial staff of Geo-times (Cochran et al., 1979). Also of great value is a classic book, Suggestions to Authors of Reports of the United States Geological Survey (Bishop et al., 1978). Some writers prefer the third edition. No attempt is made to duplicate these remarkable volumes here. This entry selects some key points from these books for writers to consider.
Audience
For the beginner, practice is everything. A patient, wise teacher is one who will guide and correct while taking care not to stultify or discourage. Young (and some old) writers are very sensitive to criticism, and it should be provided with care and discretion. How many potentially fine scientists have been put off or demoralized by some enthusiastic but insensitive teaching assistant? Combined field experience and writing is an ideal way to practice (Norris, 1983).
Then you may have a long report, perhaps even a university thesis, running...
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References
Bernstein, T. M., 1967, The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage. New York: Atheneum, 487p.
Bishop, E. E., E. B. Eckel, et al., 1978, Suggestions to Authors of Reports of the United States Geological Survey, 6th ed. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Govt. Printing Office, 273p.
Cochran, W., P. Fenner, and M. Hill, eds., 1979, Geowriting: A Guide to Writing, Editing and Printing in Earth Science. Falls Church, Va.: American Geological Institute, 80p.
Evans, B., and C. Evans, 1957, A Dictionary of Contemporary American Usage. New York: Random House, 567p.
Fowler, H. W., 1965, A Dictionary of Modern English Usage, 2nd ed. London: Oxford University Press, 725p.
Johnson, A. M., 1977, Styles of Folding: Mechanics and Mechanisms of Folding Natural Materials. Amsterdam and New York: Elsevier, 406p.
Norris, R. M., 1983, Field geology and the written word. Jour. Geol. Education 31, 184.
O'Connor, M., 1975, Writing Scientific Papers in English. Amsterdam: North Holland, 108p.
Skillin, M. E., R. M. Gay, and other authorities, 1974, Words into Type, 3rd ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 583p.
Souther, J. W., 1957, Technical Report Writing. New York: Wiley, 70p.
Trelease, S. F., 1951, The Scientific Paper: How to Prepare It, How to Write It, 2nd ed. Baltimore, Md.: Williams & Wilkins, 163p.
Williams, G. E., 1981, Megacycles: Episodicity in Earth and Planetary History. Stroudsburg, Pa.: Hutchinson Ross Publishing, 434p.
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© 1988 Van Nostrand Reinhold Company Inc.
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Fairbridge, R.W. (1988). Geological writing . In: General Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30844-X_42
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30844-X_42
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