LibGuides: A Guide for English Professors at Odessa College: The Learning Resources Center (LRC)

Learning Resources Center (LRC Libary)

The Learning Resources Center offers:

access to books and articles
computers and printing
individual and collaborative study spaces
tutoring services
virtual library consultations

The LRC has a wide variety of print and electronic resources available to OC students, faculty, and staff.

Print Resources

Academic, leisure, young adult, children's print books;
Popular magazines;
DVD films and CD audiobook collections

Electronic Resources

E-books and databases with full-text articles
Streaming video (Films on Demand, Academic Video Online)
Learning Express Library

Borrowing Privileges

Currently enrolled students can check out ten books at a time for a two week period.

Interlibrary Loan

When items cannot be found in the LRC or any of the local libraries, students, faculty, and staff may fill out the Interlibrary Loan Request web form.

The LRC has many open areas and study rooms for studying. Students can find a space to individual and group study sessions. Seating, workstations, and study rooms are open to students, faculty, staff, and community members.

Study areas include:

personal pods
collaborative seating areas
computer workstations
study rooms of varying sizes with whiteboards

How to Reserve a Room

LRC users can request to use a room by filling out a reservation form at the LRC. Need to book a room in advance? Give us a call at 432-335-6640.

Other Areas

The Keith Learning Lab offers 20 computer stations and projector for instructional classes.

The Events Room is available for meetings and workshops with a projector that can be connected to your laptop.

Printing is available at $0.05 per page.

The LRC is one of the three tutoring locations for available for OC students, ECISD students, and community members. In-person and online tutoring is free to all users.

Click here to schedule a tutoring appointment.

*We have moved to a new scheduling system called QuadC. You will need to create an account before you can schedule an appointment. Click below to view a walkthrough on using QuadC.

Tutoring Walkthrough Video - English - Spanish

Have questions? Visit our Virtual Library where you can chat with library staff and get the help you need.

Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

Collections

The LRC has a series of collections that will be very useful for your English courses.

The Viewpoints Print Collection in the LRC

This collection is helpful for persuasive essays as it discusses the pros and cons of controversial topics. Each book has a collection of essays on the topic.

The Digital Gale In Context Collection

This collection can be found here and is useful for persuasive essay research.

Information Literacy Tools Provided by TexShare

This collection can be found here.

Articles and Ebooks About Studying, Plagiarism, Citing, and Research

This collection can be found here.

Supplemental Readings for Students

Anatomy of Writing for Publication for Nurses, Fourth Edition by Cynthia Saver (Editor)
ISBN: 9781948057912

Publication Date: 2021-01-15

If you need to make the leap from single sentences to a published manuscript, you will find valuable help and resources in this fully updated fourth edition of Anatomy of Writing for Publication for Nurses. In this practical and useful guide, lead author and editor Cynthia Saver removes the fear and confusion surrounding the writing and publishing process. Along the way, 28 of nursing's top writing experts and decision-makers share important insights to help you craft a quality manu-script and get it accepted for publication.
The Elements of Academic Style by Eric Hayot
ISBN: 9780231168014

Publication Date: 2014-08-26

Eric Hayot offers guidance to graduate students and faculty in literary and cultural studies, helping them cultivate the mindset and skills of a professional scholar. Covering everything from grammar and sentence structure to larger concepts like adhering to genre patterns and developing effective writing habits, Hayot assists students and professors alike in shaping their academic work and finding their scholarly voices. Beyond technical advice, Hayot encourages a transformative perspective on scholarly writing, positioning writers as creators of important contributions. He combines practical tips for composing, scheduling, and structuring with psychological support, drawing on his own experiences to invigorate academic writing in the humanities.
The Elements of Resume Style by Scott Bennett
ISBN: 9780814433935

Publication Date: 2014-09-03

In "The Elements of Résumé Style," Scott Bennett offers expert advice for crafting effective résumés in today's competitive job market. With insights from his extensive hiring experience, Bennett addresses crucial questions about résumé building, such as how to spark employer interest and explain employment gaps. The book provides over 1,400 action words, practical tips for avoiding common mistakes, and guidance on handling challenges like job-hopping and salary history. It includes samples of résumés, cover letters, and more, offering tools to help your résumé stand out and increase your chances of success in the job interview process.
Gwynne's Grammar by N. M. Gwynne
Call Number: 425 G995G

ISBN: 9780385352932

Publication Date: 2014-09-02

Definitions, explanations and illustrations of the parts of speech, and of the other most important technical terms of grammar. Incorporating Strunk's Guide to Style explaining how to write well and the main pitfalls to avoid.
MLA Handbook by The Modern Language Association of America
Call Number: 808.02 MLA

ISBN: 9781603293518

Publication Date: 2021-04-22

Published by the Modern Language Association, the MLA Handbook is the authoritative guide to MLA style, relied upon by writers for generations. The ninth edition builds on MLA's unique approach, using core elements to document sources, enabling citation of various works from books to online images. By emphasizing source evaluation, this edition promotes information literacy. It's a comprehensive resource for research papers and citations, applicable to diverse fields, including composition, literature, and media studies. Noteworthy features include new chapters on grammar, updated formatting advice, improved instructions for works cited lists, and examples of various source formats. It provides guidance on in-text citations, footnotes, paraphrasing, and more, catering to students, teachers, and professional writers alike.
The Elements of Style Collection by Deaver Brown (Editor); William Strunk (Editor)
ISBN: 9781614964544

Publication Date: 2016-07-24

Strunk & Brown present the updated version of the best selling writing book of all time, The Elements of Style, plus the highly rated Punctuation, and 300 Core SAT & GRE Words, all to improve your writing, vocabulary, grammar, and test scores.
Writing Fantastic Fiction by Jennifer Joline Anderson
ISBN: 9781467779081

Publication Date: 2015-08-01

Want to write a fantastic work of fiction? Sometimes getting started is the hardest part. This book takes you through the steps of writing a story from beginning to end. Learn how to gather inspiration and develop a story's characters. Then visualize and organize your story's plot with a writing map. And after you've written a really rough draft, check out tips for revising your work. You'll also be inspired by unique writing exercises and storytelling insights from popular authors. Whether you want to write a puzzling mystery, a lighthearted romance, a dark sci-fi epic, or a tale that borrows from your own life, a blank page can be the starting point for a powerful story.
Writing Fiction by Garry Disher
ISBN: 9781865085890

Publication Date: 2003-04-01

Clearly and compactly explains the fundamentals of good fiction-writing, with examples from a wide variety of known writers.
Writing Historical Fiction by Marina Oliver
ISBN: 9781857032949

Publication Date: 2000-06-01

Writing convincing historical novels requires thorough research and attention to detail. In her fourth How To Book, Marina Oliver reveals the special skills needed for setting your story in its historical context so that you can make the past come alive.
Writing Romantic Fiction by Marina Oliver
ISBN: 9781857034660

Publication Date: 1997-09-01

Written by the author of over forty published romances, this book helps pinpoint the special skills and qualities needed to succeed in this particular genre.
Writing the Past in Twenty-First-century American Fiction by Alexandra Lawrie
ISBN: 9781474463447

Publication Date: 2022-09-13

Writing the Past in Twenty-First-Century American Fiction examines contemporary novels profoundly shaped by a sense of historical consciousness. Authors including Ben Lerner, Colson Whitehead, Dana Spiotta, Hari Kunzru and Garth Greenwell each use flashbacks, historical parallels and non-sequential narrative arrangements to emphasise the re-emergence, in a twenty-first-century context, of historical structures and circumstances. This study explores how these frequent moments of temporal slippage amount to a 'falling out of time', as characters are forced to confront the past crises which continue to exert pressure on their own contemporary moment.
Writing Well in the 21st Century by Linda Spencer
ISBN: 9781442227576

Publication Date: 2014-04-10

This guide provides students, career-builders, and professional writers with the basic elements needed for writing in the 21st century. It fully explains, and links, the five essentials of good writing: punctuation, grammar, fact-checking, style, and voice. Throughout history technology has changed both language and writing. Today in the digital age, language and writing are changing at a phenomenal pace. Students, career-builders, and professional writers need this guide that reviews those changes and connects the essentials for creating good writing in the digital age.