Author Description

Practically Speaking aims to address four key objectives for students: 1) readability, 2) clarity, 3) applicability, and 4) affordability. Regarding the first objective--readability--the wisdom of Samuel Johnson seems apt: "What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure." Maximum effort has been devoted to writing a textbook that might ignite the interest of student readers, not induce a coma. Textbooks are not meant to read like Stephen King novels, but they do not need to be a horror by reading like an instruction manual for setting up your new flat-screen TV. Consequently, I attempted to practice what I teach about gaining and maintaining attention by using the attention strategies discussed in Chapter 5. There are novel and humorous examples, stories, quotations, photos, and cartoons; intense, dramatic, and poignant illustrations; colorful and vivid language and metaphors; startling statistics and historical facts sprinkled throughout every chapter. The writing style is conversational and the perpendicular pronoun "I" is used when relating personal narratives. First-person singular is more engaging than impersonal references such as "this author experienced" or "a student in the author's class." In addition, second-person pronoun references to "you" are employed frequently to address readers directly.A second objective--clarity--is addressed in a variety of ways. The organization of each chapter follows the rules of good organizational logic presented in Chapter 7. Such logic can be examined by perusing the Table of Contents. In addition, headings and subheadings are carefully chosen and worded to produce maximum clarity as well as originality. Finally, copious illustrations and explanations are provided to clarify all important public speaking concepts and processes.A third objective--applicability--requires concerted effort to demonstrate the practical utility for students of becoming competent public speakers. The first chapter addresses i