This is a step-by-step guide to writing a short persuasive argument. The book is directed towards students and business people who have trouble putting their arguments into a structured, coherent format. The technique it presents is also a useful way for experienced writers to turn out a brief persuasive argument under time pressure.

After a very quick review of some basic principles of writing, the reader will learn how to write a topic sentence. She will then learn a simple way to write sentences that support the topic sentence. Next she will learn - cookbook style - how to put topic and supporting sentences together to form a paragraph and how to organize paragraphs into an argument. Finally, she will consider whether and how she might want to deal with arguments that the other side might make to try to undermine hers.

Unfortunately, knowing how to write a short persuasive argument is almost a lost art these days. This brief guide is an easy way to pick up this important skill.