Writing About Architecture
For those new to architectural history (and for general inspiration for everyone) discipline-specific guides to architecture research and writing about architecture can be very useful. Here are a few, and places to find more:
Writing about Architecture by This handbook on how to write effectively and critically about the contemporary city uses famous historical examples of architectural criticism, then shows how to apply their methods in criticism of your own. Online access at Northwestern.
Writing Architecture: A Practical Guide to Clear Communication about the Built Environment by Considers the process, methods, and value of architecture writing based on Carter Wiseman’s thirty years of personal experience writing, editing, and teaching young architects how to write.
A great way to learn to write about architecture, as illustrated in Alexandra Lange's book, is to model other architecture writers. To find books and collections of architectural criticism, browse the library catalog for subject headings such as Architectural Criticism, or browse the library shelves in sections 720.1 (Dewey classification numbers) or NA 2599 (Library of Congress classification numbers). Ask us to show you where to find them in the Architecture Reading Room.
The Writing Place
The Writing Place is Northwestern’s center for peer writing consultations.
Whether you are writing a paper for a class, composing application letters and essays, or working on some other writing project, a Writing Place consultant can help you at any stage of the writing process, from talking about ideas to developing a plan to revising and editing a draft.
Consultations are free and available to anyone in the Northwestern community: undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, or staff.
Citation Management
To help you keep track of the citations you find for articles, books, and images while you're researching, and to help you integrate the citations into your papers, footnotes, and bibliographies while you're writing, the library supports two citation management tools, EndNote and Zotero.
- WorkshopsLibrary workshops on using EndNote, Zotero, can be found on the main library workshops calendar.
- EndNoteEndNote is a subscription software program designed to store and manipulate bibliographic information (your citations). This link takes you to Northwestern University Libraries' full guide to using EndNote.
- ZoteroZotero is a free bibliographic manager for your citations that is usable with through your computer's web browser. This link takes you to Northwestern University Libraries' full guide to using Zotero.
Style Manuals
The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed.Call Number: Art Library Reference Desk 655.2 C53 2010Art History's preferred style manual describes recommended nuances of grammar and writing style and shows the preferred formats for footnotes and bibliographies.
- Chicago Manual of Style Online, 16th ed.The full text of the Chicago Manual of Style is also available to Northwestern library users online.
Citing and Plagiarism
- The Office of the Provost's Guide to Academic Integrity"Academic Integrity: A Basic Guide" governs academic integrity for all students and faculty at Northwestern. There are four main sections of the Guide:
- Principles Regarding Academic Integrity
- Eight Cardinal Rules of Academic Integrity
- Counseling and Contacts
- How to Avoid Plagiarism - Weinberg College's page on Academic IntegrityThis page states that "Plagiarism includes more than just copying someone’s work. Northwestern's 'Principles Regarding Academic Integrity' defines plagiarism as 'submitting material that in part or whole is not entirely one's own work without attributing those same portions to their correct source.' The brochure 'Academic Integrity: A Basic Guide' [see above] contains a discussion of the proper citation of sources ['How to Avoid Plagiarism']. Northwestern's Writing Place provides more tips for avoiding plagiarism."