“How to read like a
writer”:
Writing consists of a series of choices. The authors point
is that realizing those important connections between reading and writing can
influence they way you write. “You are reading to learn about writing” How was
the piece of writing constructed? This makes me think about some terms we
covered in class, tone, vocabulary choices, targeted audience, sentence
structure etc.
It is really about becoming aware of the different
techniques that were used to create the written document and if they appeal to
you as a reader and whether or not you would use them in your own writing. For
example, using quotes, personally if they are too long I find myself skipping
over them, but if they are short and enhance the meaning of the text, I am more
likely to read them.
Overall, reading like a writer with the hopes of developing
as a writer, reminds me of the importance of being able to identify the
conventions of the genre you are reading and what makes it successful or not.
“ I take your point”
Ch. 11:
What I take away from this chapter is that actively
listening and not just thinking about your own response is a lot like
writing successfully, the goal is to identify the audience and write what is
appropriate.
“Academic Writing
Doesn’t Always Mean Setting Aside Your Own Voice” Ch.9:
I found this chapter to be particularly interesting because
I feel that I struggle with finding the right balance in academic writing.
Prior to attending AUSB I was continuously taught to only include the “factual”
type of information that was needed to back up my thesis rather than expressing
my opinion. Whether this was to keep students from “bs-ing” to achieve a
certain word count, I don’t know, but it made writing boring and probably
pretty boring to read.
Hey Kari,
ReplyDeleteI too feel like I can't express my self in my own voice. I think that most of my writing is a done either in a text, email or is being subjected to 140 characters. When I get the chance to really expand my writing it's for school or work and most times those forums are very constraining. If you were to read my early papers in my career in adult education it would bore the piss out of you because it is never about something we are passionate about. I think that the section "academic Writing Doesn't Always Mean Setting Aside Your Own Voice" is a testament that we can provide value to make a point with out sighting and formatting and "Proper" grammar. It also makes the argument that we can make a better read for out audience if we ignore those conventions and make it our own!
Thoughts?
Kari,
ReplyDeleteWriting is a series of choices -- bingo! That's the name of the game. :) It's our job, from a "studying writing" perspective, to be as aware (as possible) of the various choices that are out there. What do we like? What do we think "works," and why? This is what we're ultimately getting at.
Your example of quotes is a case in point: "personally if they are too long I find myself skipping over them, but if they are short and enhance the meaning of the text, I am more likely to read them." To me, this shows that you are aware of what *doesn't* work for you (as a reader). Now I want you to take that and consider: well, shit, maybe I shouldn't be using such long quotes, or else I might bore my reader. (And I'm not saying you use long quotes -- I just mean that I want you, and everyone, to be a *reflective reading/writing practitioner*... to think about what you like, why, and then consider using that more in your own work.
What you mentioned at the end about academic forums, word counts, and bullshit is something I'd like all of us to chat about tonight. I've had very similar experiences, and I've also found it to be very frustrating.
Catch you soon.
Z