How to Manage Multiple Writing Assignments at Once

Written by Cameron Henderson

Hello, folks! The semester is drawing to a close, and that means finals–for some of you, lots of finals at once. A lot of you will therefore be juggling multiple papers and studying for tests. That can be stressful! We at the Write Site don’t want you to burn yourself out, so here are some strategies you can use to help you manage multiple assignments at once.

Create an assignment calendar

Maybe you already have an assignment planner, maybe you don’t, or maybe you started one at the beginning of the semester and haven’t looked at it since week three (@ me…). Whatever the case, I cannot recommend enough that you sit down with the syllabi from each of your classes and write down every deadline listed for the papers you are working on. That includes outlines, drafts, peer reviews, update posts, presentations, and the finished papers. You can organize this into a calendar or a to-do list; just make sure you can see what kind of progress you need to be making for each class. This will help you to prioritize your work and avoid losing points for missing any smaller deadlines.

These little in-between deadlines professors often assign may seem like an annoyance while you’re trying to balance everything on your plate, but they exist for a good reason! Having concrete, graded milestones to ensure that you’re making some progress on your papers actually helps a ton. An annotated bibliography gives you sources to use in your paper as well as ideas for where you might want to take your argument. You may open up the “update discussion post” on Canvas and realize you haven’t thought about your paper in a week, but now at least you’re thinking about it, even if it feels like you’re just making something up for the grade. Maybe you are just making it up, but you can still use the ideas you come up with and get some feedback from your instructor! Additionally, oftentimes these little assignments are intended as a buffer for that final grade. That’s why it’s so important to keep up with these due dates and actually complete these assignments.

Block out some dedicated time to work on your assignments. Prioritize more urgent deadlines

Now that you have your calendar of due dates, you can start scheduling yourself some time to work on specific assignments. This may mean that you mark out a day for one assignment and a day for another, or it may mean going in and scheduling your week hour by hour to make sure your time is more firmly managed. Some people will find that having a more tightly scheduled plan reduces uncertainty (and, therefore, anxiety). Some people prefer to keep their plan looser so they don’t feel guilty if they stray from it. Either way works, but I absolutely recommend having some kind of work schedule to follow. 

Looking over the deadlines, you can get a sense of what you need to focus on now and what you should save for later. This may seem obvious, but sometimes our brains tell us to work on things we consider more important (or easier) first. Blocking out time for things that are due sooner will help save you from last-minute crunch down the line. That brings me to my next point:

Any progress you make is a good thing

Say you followed the last step and blocked out time for the assignment that is due sooner. You get to your scheduled work time and open up the assignment, but you find yourself stuck and unable to make the progress you were hoping for. In this case, any kind of progress you can make will benefit you down the line, even if that means doing something small and moving onto the next assignment.

There are different small steps you can take to make writing easier when you return to an assignment later on. You could spend a few minutes using a brainstorming technique. You could create a to-do list or checklist with things you need to do for one particular assignment assignment. Maybe you could create an outline with ideas about how many pages each section needs to be. You could look for one scholarly source on the TWU databases and give it a quick read to see what the main idea of the article is. Even if you only get a little bit done, whatever you come up with will be processing in the back of your mind as you put the paper aside and do something else. You may find when you come back to it that you have even more ideas, or that your writing flows much easier than before.

Practice self-care

It’s easy to burn out when you’re juggling multiple finals at one time. It’s important to make sure you are taking breaks from writing to take care of your body and rest your mind. When I create a schedule for working on my own papers, I always make sure to leave time open to do something that isn’t work–take a nap or a hot bath, eat a snack, drink some water, go for a little walk. I always feel rejuvenated after a walk; if I take a break to watch an episode of Property Brothers, I find that my lack of momentum carries over into being unable to get back to work. Taking a walk gets me doing something, which makes transitioning back into school work much easier.

Leaving your schedule open for self-care is also easier when you start on things early–waiting until the last minute means less time for breaks, which makes burnout more likely. I get it, I’ve been there. Sometimes you find yourself drinking coffee in the library at midnight and asking where you went wrong. Trying to stick to your schedule may not feel like self care now, but it will make things easier for Future You. Future You will thank you for that. If you don’t want to let Future You down, remember: small progress is progress, and opening up your document and writing one sentence is better than not doing anything at all.

Write Site Reads: Little Fires Everywhere

Written by Write Site Staff

Write Site consultants recently concluded their book club, reading Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng. Here are their opinions.

Sam

This book told a beautiful story while incorporating some relevant political topics. It forces you to look at complicated situations from multiple perspectives. It was a wonderful experience, and I would definitely recommend it to a friend!

Ethan

My final thoughts (after our discussion, since I haven’t finished yet): I’m really enjoying the book so far. It starts a bit slow, but I really enjoy learning about everyone’s motivations and why they are the way they are. Ng does a great job portraying small suburbia as well in a way that I haven’t seen done very much in novels.

Scarlett 

After finishing Little Fires Everywhere, my final thoughts are that the story is an engaging read that gives the reader a lot to ponder. The characters have depth to them, and I like the way the narrative challenges the reader to really consider and empathize with a wider range of perspectives, without casting judgment. I especially appreciated how well-written the female characters are, and how this book hits that sweet spot where enough is left to the imagination of the reader. 8/10 I recommend

Taylor

I enjoyed this book a lot. I highly recommend it 🙂

Carli

I thought this was a great read! Once it picks up again it’s a relatively fast-paced read, and Ng does an excellent job of connecting all the dots for her readers. I was satisfied with how it ended, though I also could have read a sequel right afterward!

Little Fires Everywhere: Who Did It Better?

Written by Carli Varble

It’s the age-old debate, do you prefer the miniseries or the book? Personally, I’m usually on team book. I probably spend an unhealthy amount of time dwelling on things that were changed for show, and I definitely spend an annoying amount of time talking about it to people who don’t really care. Cut to me in 2012 absolutely raging about how Effie Trinket said hat instead of buttons, my dad about ready to leave me at the movies. That being said, after watching the show and reading the novel Little Fires Everywhere, I am actually pretty on the fence of which I like more. So, I decided to write up a little comparison for myself, and for those of you who are also deeply invested in this debate. There will be spoilers ahead! You have been warned.

I think the main aspect that made me want to write about this was the relationship between Elena and Izzy. I watched the show first, and really remember disliking Elena a lot more because of how she treated Izzy. The show implies that Elena, an overwhelmed working mother, didn’t want another child, and that’s why she’s so terrible to Izzy. This made me hate Elena so much more. The fact that Elena was so cruel to Izzy (cutting her out of family pictures, actually telling her she wasn’t wanted) just made her character so much more irredeemable. Not that she isn’t also awful in the book, but the book paints a very different picture.

In the book, Elena’s criticisms of Izzy stem from Izzy being a premature baby with lots of health complications. While it doesn’t justify Elena’s actions, they definitely take on a bit of a different meaning especially with the absence of some of Elena’s crueler actions that are in the show. For this aspect, I am team book.

The next thing I want to talk about is the big blowout between Elena and Mia. If I’m being honest, the book left a lot to be desired. I finished this part of the book, and I was a little disappointed. For me, the fallout from the argument in the show really helped me see why Mia decided to leave Shaker Heights, but the argument in the book made me wonder why Mia—no nonsense, doesn’t care about other people’s opinions—decided that she had to leave. Yes, they were renting from the Richardson’s and working for them to cover the rent, but it was established that Mia didn’t need to work for the Richardson’s so why not just find a new apartment? I prefer clearer motivation, which I found in the show and not in the book. Point to team show!

Now I’ve got to address Lexie and Pearl. This may be an unpopular opinion, but I really think the show did Lexie wrong. She wasn’t stellar in the book, but like her mom, she was so much worse in the show. In the show, you miss out on Lexie taking Pearl shopping and the two lending clothes to each other. The book actually shows a friendship between the two rather than Lexie taking advantage of Pearl. Like Elena and Izzy’s relationship, this stems from one event. Book Pearl offers to write Book Lexie’s college admissions essay rather than Cinematic Lexie stealing Cinematic Pearl’s experience for her essay.

These are two drastically different events that show Lexie in two very different lights, which I guess is my big problem with it. Lexie is still not great in the book. She leaves Pearl at a party and uses Pearl’s name at the clinic, but it’s almost like the people behind the show were concerned we wouldn’t dislike the Richardson’s enough and had to make them worse, which brings up a whole other list of questions in my brain that I don’t have the time to cover in this piece. Point to team book for its portrayal of Lexie.

Lastly: that ending. Both the book and the show did great with the ending. Despite knowing the house was going to burn down, I was still pretty amazed with how they got there. There is just something about the plot twist in the show that just makes it slightly better than the book in my opinion. In the book, all signs point to Izzy the whole time. You get to the end and it plays out and you’re pretty satisfied. The show twists this on its head by making you think its Izzy, but it’s actually the other siblings.

I love this plot twist so much because it shows some good sibling solidarity that we don’t really get in the book. The book ends with Izzy leaving because she feels like she’s absolutely alone in the world, but the show ends with her siblings sticking up for her. You get the sense that the siblings have grown closer together rather than further apart which puts me on team miniseries for this aspect.

I have so many more thoughts about the show and the book, but these were the things that stuck out the most to me. I thoroughly enjoyed watching the show and reading the book, and definitely recommend both to anyone looking for something to watch or read. Leave your thoughts in the comments!

Review: Little Fires Everywhere

Written by Sam Steelman

Celeste Ng tells a breath-taking story of the war between social classes, the chaos of parenting, the differing opinions centered on morality, with a “love prevails all” message, all in the confinements of a small town. This story forces the reader to look at controversial situations from both perspectives. It provides anyone who reads this book with a widened view as to why people choose the life decisions they do.

In all honesty, it took me a couple tries to be completely immersed in this novel. The first chapter grabs you by the throat. However, the second chapter takes its sweet time setting the scene. I now can understand and appreciate the slow parts of this novel because it was taking necessary time to develop these wonderfully complicated characters. The character progression in this novel is a beautiful experience. Seeing Mrs. Richardson’s complete loss of control and her youngest daughter, Izzy’s, reclamation of her own control is a meticulously written mother-daughter clash.

Mrs. Richardson’s character is intricate and complex, mean-spirited and vile, wrapped in a pretty bow to maintain an upstanding reputation as a small-town reporter stuck in her hometown. She forces herself to believe that staying in Shaker Heights was her plan in order to keep herself from feeling like a bird forever confined to its cage. I personally found Mr. Richardson to not be relevant to the story at all, except for his involvement with the McCulloughs. Other than that, he contributes almost no substance to the story. The Richardson children have their own unique personalities and relationships. However, Mia and Pearl are by far my favorite characters because of their aesthetically pleasing, adventurous lifestyle.

The main character rivalry in this novel is between Mia and Mrs. Richardson. Celeste Ng portrays each character as the other’s complete opposite, leading to a perfect falling out by the end of the novel. Mia is a completely free spirit. She parents Pearl with love and understanding, allowing her to make the mistakes she will learn the most meaningful lessons from. Mia goes wherever she feels inspired to complete her artwork, never staying in one spot for too long. On the other hand, Mrs. Richardson has perfectly structured her life, with a perfect house, perfect husband, perfect job. However, her desire to control her children to force them to follow the upstanding path she envisioned for them results in complete rebellion and resentment. Mrs. Richardson resents herself, and the reader sees this unfold throughout the novel. Mia wraps this up in a passionate confrontation: “‘It terrifies you. That you missed out on something. That you gave up something you didn’t know you wanted.’ A sharp, pitying smile pinched the corners of her lips. ‘What was it? Was it a boy? Was it a vocation? Or was it a whole life?’” (Ng 302).

Overall, I would recommend for everyone to read this book. I would especially recommend it to those with a narrow perspective on life, those who make judgements before thinking about the other party’s situation. Above all, this book, in the words of Celeste Ng, is for “those out on their own paths, setting little fires.”

Defeating Writer’s Anxiety with the Writing Game, “Elegy for a Dead World”

Written by Daehyun Won

Most writers, including myself, when writing something academic or creative, face writing anxiety during the process. Ironically, it’s when we need our creativity the most when that anxiety hits – when we pour over a sentence or passage for far too long. In those situations, our brains blank and become full of muddy sufferings. I remember a tough day last semester when I could only write five clumsy sentences. Those clumsy sentences took all of my energy that day.

Fortunately, we’re not alone in this problem. Famous, full-time writers struggle with writer’s anxiety. Van Wyck Brooks wrote in Opinions of Oliver Allston:

“No work this morning. My brain feels like an old sponge, battered by the waves and rocks of dozens of winters. In thirty years of writing, I have not gained an ounce of confidence. I begin each new book (as I have probably always begun, although I never remember it) with a sense of impotence, chaos and desperation that cannot be overstated. I always feel that I am foredoomed to failure.”

“Notebooks of the Mind: Explorations of Thinking” by Vera John-Steiner

Writer’s anxiety can come at any time to anyone.

The burden of creativity is the major factor that weighs on, pushes down, and blocks that creativity. Yes, the anxiety is all about creativity. Jeff Goins suggests various solutions to writer’s anxiety – to alleviate and ultimately defeat it; they include activities like walking, doing a puzzle, changing your environment, listening to music, calling someone, etc.

The most effective solution he suggests, however, is freewriting. This is meant to shifting the burden of creativity to the joy of creation. By freewriting, we can take the muddy sufferings as they come and put them on the page as part of the process.

Players write the story of “Elegy for a Dead World.”

For those who love video games like me, there is a perfect answer to writer’s anxiety: Elegy for a Dead World, the creative writing video game. This unique game is aimed to stir a writer’s inventive thinking. Throughout explorations of exotic, cosmic worlds, players write possible stories in given situations. What the player writes then becomes the game’s narrative – ultimately becoming the game’s creative ending.

The game’s interface is simple – not imposing or burdensome on the player. In certain places, spaceship-like writing pods with prompts appear in which the player fills in the blank with their imagination. The writing is not bound to a specific genre. Users can write down anything, such as a haiku, long-form poem, short fiction, etc. This creates the perfect setting for free writing as well as a great way to stimulate the player’s creativity.

Players write the story of “Elegy for a Dead World.”

You are a lone astronaut in a sci-fi world. This solitary situation provides an opportunity to contemplate and imagine your own plot. The player’s creativity is connected to various visual interactions with vivid surroundings. To assist visual learners’ in overcoming their writing block, these imaginative visual elements are helpful in disturbing a resting creativity. The most fascinating part of this game is its communal component. Players can share their stories with the game’s online community.

Writer’s anxiety might not be defeated flat out, but it can definitely be soothed so that creative writing is again fun and imaginative. It’s important to build confidence in your writing, so that you can defeat writer’s anxiety when you encounter it next.

For the game trailer:

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References

“Elegy for a Dead World – A Game About Writing.” YouTube, uploaded by GameSpot Trailer, 30 Sep 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRXp-VfMOF0.

Elegy for a Dead World, Dejobaan Games, LLC, 2014.

“Elegy for a Dead World.” Steam, Valve, 2014, store.steampowered.com/app/252290/Elegy_for_a_Dead_World/.

Goins, Jeff. “How to Overcome Writer’s Block: 14 Tricks that Work.” Goins, Writer, GoinsWriter, n.d., goinswriter.com/how-to-overcome-writers-block/.

John-Steiner, Vera. Notebooks of the Mind: Explorations of Thinking. Oxford University Press, 1997.

Why We Tutor

Written by the Write Site | Edited by Charles Dyer

While we try to somewhat standardize the way we tutor, the writing center is an eclectic and unique body of knowledge and experience. Every appointment is a cordial meeting of two authors and an experiment in communication. Some authors lack confidence in their abilities, while others’ hubris lay evident on the page. No matter who walks into (or video calls with) the Write Site, they’re met with a tutor who wishes nothing more than to refine and encourage. At a time when the space between student and tutor is substantial, we thought it appropriate to remind students why our tutors personally do the work they do.

The following are written sentiments from Write Site tutors on why they tutor:

Regan

“I tutor because the ability to communicate is something everyone should feel proficient in. We are all artists; we just need to feel confident and secure in our craft. I tutor to ensure that you feel secure in yourself and your abilities.”

Sam

“I tutor because of that lightbulb moment. When a student begins an appointment and is extremely confused, we work on the parts of the essay they’re struggling with, and suddenly, the lightbulb goes off! When it clicks in their brain and they say, “Oh, I get it!” it gives me a sense of accomplishment. Ultimately, I tutor because I love to help our Texas Woman’s University (TWU) students find their voice and undiscovered love for writing.”

Lia

“I tutor because I love working with students individually to help them realize their potential as writers and communicators of their own thoughts and ideas. It’s so refreshing to see students reflect on writing and see what they think is important while learning how to craft their argument. I love seeing the breakthroughs when they realize that they can write about topics they are passionate about. I love seeing them realize that they are good writers because they can communicate their ideas and not bad ones because they don’t know where to place commas (which is a struggle even for a tutor).”

Jourdan

“I tutor for so many reasons. My main drive to tutor is to boost students’ confidence and empower them to feel good about their work, whatever that may look like. Seeing students grow in their abilities and their faith in those abilities is so rewarding. Also, I love being able to just connect human-to-human with students and other tutors through our center, and I think that is a huge part of what makes this work so fulfilling for me. I’ve also found that tutoring makes me a better student, and I get to learn about so many people and disciplines along the way! I fell in love with tutoring when I was at Texas State for my undergraduate degree, and I have always felt so lucky to be able to continue that here at TWU.”

Ch’nell

“I love tutoring because you get to help someone take an idea in their mind, and clearly articulate it on paper. The Write Site is special because we aren’t editing your paper for mistakes, but instead we look for ways to elevate a paper and highlight all the ways the writer has excelled. I often read how TWU students hope to use their research to impact the world, and I find myself inspired by their vision and goals. It’s an honor to help them share their dreams with the masses in the best way possible.”

Ethan

“I’ve been tutoring in various subjects since I started college – first, at North Central Texas College (NCTC) and now at TWU. At Ryan High School, I didn’t tutor exactly, but I was a student assistant helping get a class of students ready to retake the state exam. I tutored math for three years. I never wanted to study math as my degree. I tried for one semester and learned quickly that I don’t want to be a mathematician. Now, I tutor English. It has unique and difficult challenges compared to tutoring math. I liked the direct, “There’s a right way to do this,” discussion in math. There’s a problem so solve it. English doesn’t have that. Rarely is there a correct way to write a paper. There are effective ways and institutionally correct ways, but for every method of doing something, there are a bajillion examples of a different method that also works. My point: helping students solve problems is much more nuanced in English tutoring.

To make a long point shorter: It is fulfilling to help students develop a better sense of understanding for what they are learning. Learning new things can be painful or scary or frustrating, and if I can alleviate some of that stress and help in some way, I’m happy.”

Daniel

“I tutor because I struggled with anxiety about writing when I was in college. I love helping students realize that writing doesn’t have to be scary! With practice and feedback, every writer can become more confident and accomplished.”

Taylor

“Tutoring is such a fulfilling and rewarding experience. I tutor because I love encouraging students to excel in their education, even if it’s a struggle for them at first. Many students think they aren’t good writers, but I love showing them otherwise by working with them one-on-one and helping them develop their ability to write. The moment when I see a sudden burst of inspiration, revelation, or comprehension is the best!”

Graham

“I want to help people think clearly and write well so that they can get good grades and succeed.”

Daehyun

“I tutor to help students who have difficulty in contextual academic writing in particular due to their language barrier.”

Sarah

“Sharing knowledge with students is such a rewarding experience. The process becomes to meaningful when you see a student apply learned material in various ways. It warms my heart when my student gains confidence by the few details they are able to remember and use in their learning process!”

Elijah

“Since I was young, I was a painfully shy kid. I was always the one sitting on the bench reading a book during recess. I felt safer with words than I did with people. Now, though, I find comfort in helping people weave together words in order to create works that can make people feel as safe as books made me feel when I was a kid. I have always wanted to teach English – to help others understand just how precious words can be – so tutoring is my ‘introduction to teaching,’ if you will.”

Scarlett

“I tutor for a lot of reasons: peer-to-peer tutoring lets us really make a connection with our students, and it’s very rewarding to show students the path toward effective writing. A lot of times, students come to the WS with the perception that their writing is inherently bad and that the art of writing is out of their personal reach, so as a tutor, I want to help students get past those mental barriers and give them the freedom that writing and language represent. Also, a more immediately personal reason I tutor is because teaching the mechanics of writing on a regular basis has improved my own fluency, communication skills, and the overall strength of my own writing. There are things I would never have otherwise known about writing if I hadn’t needed to prepare for the numerous appointments – mainly because I think it is our job as tutors to deliver the most holistic help possible!”

Rebekah

“I tutor because I love being able to work individually with students and see growth. I enjoy working alongside those who come into the Write Site and helping others find a love of writing like I have!”

Writing Fatigue: A Way Out

Written by Elijah Gamble

As a senior undergraduate rhetoric major, I feel like school takes a lot from me sometimes. Not to mention I also work in a writing center where it is my job to ingest and critique pages of content. One of the leisures school has taken from me is the joy of reading and the release of writing. (That is not to say I do not love my job because I do). To read for me in the past was to liberate myself from the confines of reality and into the realm of deep imagination; to read for me now is to dissect, to identify, to bind the world and the many perceptions of it into a linguistic code. By the same token, writing for me in the past was to record my imagination, my laughter, my story into something of my own creation and done by my own volition. Similar to my present experience with reading, writing can now feel like a chore of a madman’s making.

Lately, however, I have tried branching out of my routine-generated comfort zone. Over the summer I participated in a poetry workshop via Zoom. There, I rediscovered some of the bliss of reading and writing. The workshop provided me with a low-stakes zone where reading and writing was not required but encouraged, shared, spoken, loved, imagined, experienced, and most of all, lived— not only by me but by others as well. I was allowed access to a platform that I had been denying myself for years.

I found myself perplexed by my former inability to access a portion of myself that had seemed so vital to my existence in the past. Then, I found myself questioning why I even needed permission, from someone else no less, to revisit my long lost loves. Being able to capture reading and writing in a whole new light once again made me realize that I could also apply my reunion to my academic and professional life.

Consequently, this rediscovery of mine reignited my passion for my major and my field of study. The exposure that the workshop provided me with helped me realign my focus. I tried implementing new reading habits and new writing habits in my personal writing. I did the same with my academic and professional writing. I feel as if I have recovered a bit from the reading and writing fatigue I had been experiencing and was able to read a new novel cover-to-cover, for myself and myself only, like I used to when I was younger. Reading and writing for class and work seem less like a chore and more like a hobby. I was not expecting to gain so much from stepping out of my comfort zone, but what I gained was well worth the discomfort the journey to rediscovery caused me.

TL;DR I went to a poetry workshop and found my love for literature and composition again. I recovered from a terrible case of writing fatigue and burnout.

Elevated Diction: How We Choose Our Language Through Context, Content and Construction

Written by Scarlett Brou

A common piece of advice from professors, scholarship applicant reviewers, and potential employers is for college students to utilize “professional language” in career-focused and academic contexts. Whenever I am asked to define what this type of language looks like, I usually come up with three distinct characteristics. Professional language is:

1. Formal (as opposed to informal or conversational)
2. Direct and clear in communication (acknowledging both the audience and the purpose of writing)
3. Elevated in diction (asserting a unique voice that presents a distinct image to the reader)

When asking for help with writing, most students expect to focus on the more surface-level issues of formality. We’ve been taught to “improve” our writing by only using grammatically consistent and objectively “correct” language—which, we are told, is what constitutes “good” writing.

Formal language, for most students, is taught as merely the absence of casual or “slang” vocabulary. But if there is no point of reference for students as to what their readers think is “formal” or “informal,” this recommendation falls flat—therefore, we need to approach this conception of language in a more productive way.

I believe that it is far more important to view the term “formal” as designating a context for the use of language, and what kind of language is effective in achieving one’s literary goals. 

If, for example, I applied to an academic conference via an essay prompt, I would try to use language that was structured, deliberate, and concise because I would want to answer the question cohesively while also displaying my familiarity with college essay-writing. 

If, instead, I was looking to contact a professional in my field to inquire about an internship, I would include language that was personable, coherent, and socially appropriate, because I want above all to make a lasting impression and impact on the professional.  

The context of the academic conference or a potential internship influences what my formal language looks like, and the intended effect of my language is derived from that context. When looking to improve the formality of one’s language, writers should ask themselves these questions: 

• Who is the audience for this piece of writing? What are their expectations of me?
• What do I want them to know (or feel) about me as a writer?
• What do I want my language to look like and why?

These questions will help students establish the context in which they are writing—which, in turn, makes it easier to understand how to further develop mature, compelling language. 

While practicing implementing the rules of grammar is a necessary step in the writing process, it is absolutely more important for students (and all writers) to internalize that all the formal/grammatically sound language in the world cannot replace the effect of direct and clear communication.  

The construction of all language is just a vehicle, a flexible supplemental force, to the intended impartation of the message or content that one wishes to deliver to the reader. It is the job of the writer to find the literary expression that best represents the content of what they are trying to communicate. 

To be “direct” is to ultimately judge the content by what must be kept—and what can be removed without changing the reader’s understanding of one’s writing. This is an internal process built up through practice; a writer must find a balance between their innate abilities of articulation and a continuous state of questioning how to better complement the content through construction. Often, grammatical errors are a symptom of obscured content, and by focusing on what the sentence is trying to communicate, writers can more intuitively arrange their phrases and clauses. 

Even the word “direct” gives us a good indication of the challenge in professional writing—there are infinite ways of writing or articulating an idea, and while none are necessarily “better” than another, we want our language to have a type of “direction”—a signpost clearly delineating the way to a message.

So, keeping in mind the fluidity of language, how do we create language that is direct? 

The best example I can probably give is my own experience writing this article; I wanted to re-write the last two paragraphs before I moved on to this one, because the first attempt to get my thoughts about language on the page were, in my own opinion, too wordy and comma-heavy. This would have perhaps resulted in the reader not understanding my argument. I fully expect to have to go back and revise my language again, because I know my writing style well enough to know that some of my explanations will not be as accessible to readers as I would like them to be. 

If I want my language to be direct (especially concerning abstract linguistic concepts), I have to refer back to both the purpose of this article (to educate) and the audience (students like myself). When I am finished with this article, I will have to come to a conclusion about if this writing is successful in what I want it to do—after which point this article leaves my own literary space and becomes collaborative, as my peers will proofread and give me commentary. The initial expressions of one’s thoughts are an integral component of getting a piece of writing started, but the final product will inevitably look very different—and more professional. 

To break down my own writing process further, and to highlight the repetitive nature of developing direct language, here’s an example template:

1. Outline points of article (basic sections)
2. Organization for each section (definitions, examples, explanations)
3. Actually write, answering the questions I’ve posed myself, engaging with potential revisions of sentences as I create them
4. Revise for content (am I actually getting my meaning across?)
5. Revise for construction (is my wording/sentence structure repetitive, bulky, or convoluted?)
6. Read collaboratively (what is the perspective of the reader?)

Note how the last 3 steps in this process involve answering a specific question. Questions such as these encourage students to think critically not only about the subject of their composition but about their own intellectual position as a writer. Students looking to foster direct, communication-focused writing should expect to engage in repetitive practice, organization, questioning, and revision. 

Additionally, adopting a perspective that expression in the form of written language is never singular, simple, or set in stone will aid students in becoming accomplished and robust writers not only for the contexts we previously discussed, but for other modes of communication as well. When a writer understands the context they are writing in and establishes a heightened awareness of audience and purpose, they become more comfortable with the process of writing itself. The significance of a writer’s comfort with their own style is codified in the concept of “elevated diction”—or, how we develop a completely individualized literary voice. 

I have placed heavy emphasis on the importance of cultivating direct, context-appropriate language because without these secure foundations, it is difficult for students to truly stretch their writing muscles. If one does not acknowledge these underlying mechanisms, it becomes easy for our language to become muddled, “fluffy,” vague, generalized, depersonalized, or tedious to both write and read. The steps to elevate one’s diction—to figuratively “raise” their mastery over language—are, on paper, pretty simple:

1. Read
2. Write

There is, unfortunately, no substitute for the significant impact the act of reading has on one’s writing abilities. I say “unfortunately” because I understand how difficult it is for many people to read on a regular basis. However, even the most cursory acts of reading embolden one’s critical thinking, understanding of linguistic context, and overall vocabulary. As we read others’ writings, we are exposed to the freedom of creation that we would not have otherwise seen. The subconscious processes that go into the active choice to read all help develop one’s diction; the more one reads, the more mastery they have over their own writing. Even the act of reading this blog post has increased your ability to conceptualize and internalize the functions of language. 

The last step for synthesizing elevated diction is perhaps the hardest behavioral change for anyone to make—to commit to writing consistently. But again, similarly to the issue of reading, the act of writing, of practicing one’s skills, wherever and whenever you can, will result in language that is as unique to you as your fingerprints, which is by and far the most effective type of language for any situation. I will end this article with a quote from the poet Mary Oliver in order to inspire readers to respect their inherent and incredible literary potential: 

“Because the process of writing is not fully understood—we don’t know what part of ourselves we use to write, from what part of ourselves the writing comes—it’s important to nourish whatever part of ourselves that is the writer.”

Accommodating Cultural Diversity in Writing

Written by Sarah Cho

Born in South Korea and having lived my toddler years there, I learned to read and write in the Korean language first; English was not my primary language and I had to learn to write my ABCs almost simultaneously as I was mastering the basic Korean alphabet. Upon moving to the U.S., my parents spoke to me almost exclusively in Korean at home. I never thought it strange that I bounced between the two languages, home language and school language, but the cultural transition was not always easy.

In third grade, I was assigned a book report of making a shoe box diorama and writing up a paragraph that describes the scene depicted in the project. Mrs. Thompson, my homeroom teacher, had even created a rubric with instructions that requested parents help and participate in their child’s project. I was delighted to engage some artistic flair in my school assignment and I immediately requested my mother’s help with the glue gun because I knew her aesthetic skills would come in handy. We worked many hours into the night until I was satisfied with the final result. 

The next day, I set my diorama on the table where all of my classmates’ projects rested until it was each of the student’s turn to present it. After glancing at the other projects, my heart thudded rapidly in trepidation. I was completely mortified. I had not been mentally prepared to bring an incorrectly produced project to school.

When the dreaded moment finally came, I slowly walked up to the table and wrapped my shaking fingers around the personally designed shoebox. As I stood in front of my peers, I opened my lips to speak. No words came out. My eyes brimming with tears, I shamefully faced my classmates as they tilted their heads side-to-side confused. Their eyes shifted back and forth from my reddening face to my project that looked different from everybody else’s. After a few, excruciatingly long minutes of trying to explain the creation I had made, I broke down in tears. Mrs. Thompson swiftly intervened as she handed me the bathroom hall pass and suggested that I recollect myself with a little break. In those few moments in the bathroom, I cried my little heart out. I had been so proud of my creation, but why had mine looked so different?

I looked at my puffy-eyed reflection in the mirror and I despised being the only Asian girl in my grade. I was tired of explaining why my lunch was a salad that came in a styrofoam to-go box; I did not want to explain that my mother was an immigrant who worked full-time at a sandwich shop and neither had the time nor the cultural understanding of what American third-graders bring from home as packed lunch. My nine-year-old self merely longed to have the same PB&J sandwiches in brown paper bags or the do-it-yourself Lunchables that my classmates brought to school every day. But most importantly, I hated the way I could not stop being embarrassed of my differences.

As I grew up, I consistently performed well in class, but occasionally struggled to understand unfamiliar directions. By the time I was in college and taking the required first-year writing seminar, I worked with my professor to catch many detrimental habits as a writer. Together, we found that I was an abstract thinker, especially because I would try to incorporate multiple ideas and concepts. Therefore, naturally, writing happens when I want to organize my ideas or when I want to process intangible information in my mind in a more physical form. Also, I recognized my tendency to fully dissect a rubric before jumping into writing. In hindsight, these habits (abstract thoughts and need for clear instructions for a starting point) may have formed due to my cultural background that does not stem from a western worldview. 

Much research shows that culture can influence the way people think, experience, and write. According to Richard E. Nisbett (2003), “East Asian thought tends to be more holistic…They also emphasize change, and they recognize contradiction and the need for multiple perspectives, searching for the ‘Middle Way’ between opposing propositions.” Meanwhile, Westerners incorporate formal logic, categories, and rules to analytically explain phenomena. This stems from the different classical philosophies that the East and West based their ideas upon. Many Eastern countries based scholarly knowledge through the works of Lao Tzu and Confucius, while Western countries emphasized the works of Aristotle, Cicero, and other classical Greek and Roman teachers.

As many non-Western students are either not familiar with such Sophistic and Aristotelian-based style of writing or are confused by the necessity of it, understanding the historical and philosophical background of Eastern rhetoric could better allow educators to recognize the variety of ways to think about the student writing process. Teachers, as well as students, would greatly benefit from understanding different worldviews and being more open to various writing processes to give and receive appropriate guidance. 

In addition to historical differences, modern scholars in the field of composition stress the importance of understanding how different experiences (including cultural) and backgrounds can impact the writing process. First and foremost, goal-setting and understanding the purpose behind a lesson are important processes for students as well as teachers to go through when they begin learning or teaching something new. Nonetheless, these goals and rules of English writing are systematically created by those who have been taught with a Western worldview and most likely with Aristotelian and other classical Greek/Roman rhetorical strategies. For instance, concepts like Aristotle’s three rhetorical appeals (ethos, pathos, and logos) or Cicero’s five canons of rhetoric (invention, arrangement, expression, memory, and delivery) are popular concepts immersed in secondary English classrooms and college English courses. This is further stressed in most educational settings, whether it is in a writing center or a first-year composition classroom – the end goal oftentimes has become learning how to write well from a structural or grammatical standpoint. Then, the question becomes whose standard of “good writing” are instructors and tutors thinking of as they guide students?

One way to embrace cultural differences as some experts suggest is through a form of reflection to allow a deeper understanding of the writing process instead of forcing concepts that may not make sense to students due to their different backgrounds. In “Documenting and Discovering Learning: Reimagining the Work of the Literacy Narrative,” Julie Lindquist and Bump Halbritter make an interesting point that “…writing is positioned as a means of learning, rather than as the goal of learning” (417). With a shift in focus of the learning process, such a perspective would definitely change the way both student and teacher alike experience the learning process. Furthermore, the authors suggest that the writing process itself is a “system of informed reflection and that it becomes “an authentic expression of self-realization” (Lindquist & Halbritter, 423). By understanding the socio-cultural background and the experiential history of the student, the teacher gains a deeper insight into how to lead the writer towards his/her development. In this way, the writing process itself becomes a part of the writer’s identity. 

The abstract concepts of discovering identity through narrative writing are more concretely exemplified in Talking Back as Bell Hooks explores her own interest in African-American poetry, the significance of finding a voice, and the notion of speaking out. Through her life experiences, Hooks learns to find her “authentic voice” and finds out there can be a variety of voices and not just a single definitive voice. Also, she points out that due to different cultural contexts, students may fear speaking out in the classroom, especially if the student feels that his/her narrative is unrelatable and might be criticized by peers who have had different experiences. Hooks also asserts that dominant societies may lump the voices of marginalized groups, despite the fact that within a minority group there may be a range of narratives that do not deserve to be forcefully limited in a single category. (As a Korean-American who grew up in an immigrant family myself, the points that Hooks makes really hit home.)

In contrast to Hooks and her perspective on narrative writing as an African-American woman, in “Writing on the Bias,” Linda Brodkey writes about her own experiences of white middle-class culture. Brodkey describes her writing process as beginning when something replays in her mind again and again. Moreover, she argues the importance of writing “on the bias” (Brodkey, 546). Can Brodkey be comfortable enough to express her biases while hoping other writers do so as well because she was privileged to do so in white middle-class culture? Would a non-white writer be able to experience the satisfaction of openly writing with bias just as easily? Upon synthesizing Brodkey’s family background, her experiences as a child, and her particular viewpoints as well as Hooks’ narrative, the reader can understand both authors’ perspectives after holistically reading about their socio-cultural backgrounds. 

Just like a doctor or a nurse may ask a patient a list of questions regarding his/her family medical history as well as personal medical history, an educator might want to invest some time to purposefully comprehend the literacy narrative of a student. As Lindquist and Halbritter propose that “…any act of literacy entails not only genre-specific understanding but also situated awarenesses of socio-rhetorical implications and engagements,” perhaps there are some hidden treasures behind understanding a writer’s own narrative before jumping straight into the mechanical aspects of learning how to write (Lindquist and Halbritter, 437).

Each writer most likely experiences various dilemmas regarding the writing process. Nonetheless, I have recognized my good and bad habits of writing through my own cultural experiences and background. (I am sure there are other habits that I haven’t realized too.) Wouldn’t it be worth a try for instructors and tutors to understand a bit of the students’ cultural background and narratives before jumping in to help them with their writing?  

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References

Brodkey, Linda. “Writing on the Bias.” College English, vol. 56, no. 5, 1994, pp. 527–547. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/378605

Confucius. The Analects of Confucius: a Philosophical Translation. New York: Ballantine Books, 1999.

Choi, Young Jun, “Yonsei GSIS: Comparison of Eastern and Western Civilizations Lecture” October 2014. New Millenium Hall. Seoul, South Korea.

Jensen, J. V., Rhetorical emphasis of Taoism. Rhetorica, 5(3), 219-229, 1987

Lao-Tzu. Tao Te Ching

Lindquist, Julie, and Bump Halbritter. “Documenting and Discovering Learning: Reimagining the Work of the Literacy Narrative.” College Composition and Communication, vol. 70, no. 3, 2019, pp. 413-445

Lu, Xing & Frank, David A. On the study of ancient Chinese rhetoric/Bian, Western Journal of Communication, 57:4, 445-463, 1993

Nisbett, Richard E. The Geography of Thought : How Asians and Westerners Think Differently– and Why. New York :Free Press, 2003.

Williams, James D. An Introduction to Classical Rhetoric: Essential Readings. Wiley-Blackwell, 2009.

Sprinting Through Writers Block

Written by Abigail Beard

Let’s face it: Writing is hard.

It doesn’t matter who you are or how long you’ve been writing. It takes a lot of focus to sit down and write a draft, and it sometimes seems all but impossible, especially if the paper is more than a page long. And with social media easily accessible, it’s easy to get distracted; ten minutes go by, then a half hour, then a full hour, and the page (and our minds) are still blank.

I expressed my problem with staying focused and meeting my word count with my writing mentor, Kayla Olson, and asked her how she is able to finish a book draft on time. Her response:

Try Writing Sprints!

Writing Sprints is a technique many authors, journalists, and writers use to maximize their writing time and decrease their distractions while writing.

Here’s how it works:

1. Set a timer for 15 – 20 minutes, depending on how comfortable you are with writing and how you’re feeling that day. If you’re feeling discouraged or daunted, try setting the timer for 15 minutes. If you’re feeling great and you’re just struggling to put words down, go for 20!
2. Once you start the timer, write! Don’t worry about whether what you’re writing is “good” or not—just write. Get those thoughts down, and try your best not to stop until you hear that timer go off!
3. Give yourself a 5 – 10-minute break (this is your time to check Instagram and TikTok, stretch, get some water, or refill your coffee or tea).
4. Repeat!

I’m a fairly slow writer. It takes me a while to get into a groove where my thoughts really start coming to me and my fingers start flying across my keyboard. But when I started incorporating Writing Sprints into my writing routine, I went from writing about 700 -1,000 words in an hour of writing time to writing between 1,500 – 2,000 words in an hour of writing time. For me, that’s a lot, and it was a sign that Writing Sprints worked and was something I needed to do more often.

Benefits of Writing Sprints:

You’ll find that the more sprints you do, the better you train your brain to produce words when you sit down at your computer. The brain is a muscle, too, and it takes consistent training to become a better writer, just like it takes consistent exercise to train your body to run a 5k.

You’ll make the most of your writing time. Which would you rather do? Write for an hour straight, or write for a 15 – 20-minute chunk of time, and repeat that a couple times? Writing for a focused 15 – 20 minutes seems way more manageable to me. And knowing that I get a quick break after I work hard makes the time fly!

Extra Tip:

When she advised I try Writing Sprints, Kayla told me about an app called Forest that she uses during the time she’s writing. The purpose of it is that you set the amount of time you cannot look at your phone (the same time as your writing sprint), and you plant a tree. If you open your phone, you kill the tree. If you don’t, and you keep planting a tree each time you “sprint,” you grow a forest! It’s a great incentive to not touch your phone during your Writing Sprint!

Take it slow. Start writing for 15 minutes and give yourself a 10-minute break, and then as you become accustomed to Writing Sprints, try adding an extra 5 minutes to your sprint! That being said, don’t force it. If you’re not feeling it that day, don’t push yourself to write for 20 minutes. Write for 15 minutes, or even 10 minutes. If 10 minutes is all you’re able to manage that day, then you wrote for 10 minutes, and that’s infinitely better than nothing.

Writing is hard. That’s a fact of the game, but you now have another trick in your writing arsenal. The next time writing gets hard, get comfortable, set a timer, shut off your phone, and Sprint!