Writing is hard. Mathematics is hard. Writing mathematics is exponentially hard.

But like any other expressive endeavor—playing the piano, painting a watercolor, composing a poem—communicating mathematics is a skill that improves with dedicated practice, with attention to detail, and with study of the masters. Here are some pointers to useful tools for learning the craft of writing mathematics.

• A good dictionary and a thesaurus are essential for every kind of writing. If your computer, tablet, or phone does not have a suitable app installed, you can download one from your favorite app store; or you can consult websites such as dictionary.com and merriam-webster.com. Registered TAMU students have online access to the definitive Oxford English Dictionary (login with your NetID may be required).
• Many reference books are available concerning English usage and style. One short classic is William Strunk’s Elements of Style. (The revision by E. B. White is renowned too.) I have on my bookshelf hard copies of Garner’s Modern American Usage and Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage, both of which have the valuable feature of being based on data rather than being merely a single person’s opinion.
• The University Writing Center makes available numerous guides about all aspects of writing. You can also make an appointment with a consultant at the Writing Center.
• There are a few books directed specifically to writing mathematics.
  • Franco Vivaldi, Mathematical Writing, Springer, 2014. This book is the only one addressed to university students. The audience for the other books is professional mathematicians and graduate students.
  • Nicholas J. Higham, Handbook of Writing for the Mathematical Sciences, third edition, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, 2019.
  • Steven G. Krantz, A Primer of Mathematical Writing, second edition, American Mathematical Society, 2017.
  • Donald E. Knuth, Tracy Larrabee, and Paul M. Roberts, Mathematical Writing, Mathematical Association of America, 1989.
  • Leonard Gillman, Writing Mathematics Well, MAA Press, 1987.
  • N. E. Steenrod, P. R. Halmos, M. M. Schiffer, and J. A. Dieudonné, How to Write Mathematics, American Mathematical Society, 1973.
• Several mathematicians have posted advice about writing mathematics.
  • Guide to Writing Mathematics from The University of Hong Kong.
  • Kevin Houston’s How to Write Mathematics.
  • Jack Lee’s Some Remarks on Writing Mathematical Proofs.
  • Kevin P. Lee’s Guide to Writing Mathematics.
  • Francis Su’s Some Guidelines for Good Mathematical Writing.
  • Terence Tao’s advice On writing.
  • Mark Tomforde’s Mathematical Writing: A Brief Guide.
• Most mathematicians use LaTeX to write their documents. You can find an introduction to this freely available software at The LaTeX Project, including information about using LaTeX online or installing it on your own computer. To go beyond the basics, consult George Grätzer’s book More Math into LaTeX.