Tag: strategy

Pro Writing Strats

Sarah Rybak 2013 Fall Cohort, Gateway 3 Comments

strat

With an awesome title like that, I’m sure you’re all expecting some amazing, well-thought out, top-tier writing strategies. Well, I’m sorry to say, I have deceived you. The truth is, I really don’t have any concrete writing strategies to speak of. Usually, I just wait until I really feel like I need to get an assignment done, and then I do it. While I’m sure it would definitely be helpful for me to have a more organized, consistent writing technique, I’ve just never used one that has made me want to keep coming back to it.

If I have to pick a strategy to talk about though, I would probably say that it is easiest for me to make sure that the first things I know are what my argument is (or what my purpose is) and how I can support that argument. So, starting with the question I’m trying to answer, I will outline the main points I need to cover and make sure there is enough to talk about under each point to fulfill any specific length requirement there is. After I have the general structure of the essay or article or whatever laid out for me, I just start writing. I will usually start with the intro and end with the conclusion (I know a some people start with body paragraphs and I don’t know why but I just can’t do that), then if I see that my intro sounds odd compared to the points that my conclusion brings up, I will do my best to change it so it makes more sense.

I guess my usual strategy uses a bit of both outlining and free-writing, but there has never been a specific way that I have been taught to write a paper that I use often. I don’t outline all my thoughts beforehand, nor do I always write a thesis and go from there. However, there is usually some structure to what I do in that I like to have all my ideas laid out before I start to write.

Reflections on Writing 200

Christopher Thomas 2012 Winter Cohort, Gateway 1 Comment

We’re not at the end of our fair writing class quite yet, but it’s getting close, and it’s been a journey, so some reflections are in order.

I think I realized the greatest benefit of taking Writing 200 yesterday during a job interview. I must have alluded to my writing skills and fondness of writing in previous correspondence with the company, because one of my interviewer’s first questions was to elaborate on the topic. I told him how I’m not too shabby at writing political sceince papers and arguing policy proposals after spending quite a bit of time in the academic world, and also how my current writing class is giving me phenomenal experience and knowledge of New Media Writing.

The company’s purpose is political campaign strategy, and my interviewer started telling me about the work he does for their clients. A large portion of his job was computer based. He launches websites, blogs, social networking pages, and organizes huge events via these resources. I was quick to tell him about my newfound affinity for blogging and new media. I told him how far I have come in this discipline. From knowing an absolutely marginal amount about blogging and expressing my writing in non-traditional ways, and even having a negligible amount of respect for the field due to this, I know own my own blog, and have confidence writing in this new medium. I know how to appeal to my audience better, and feel able to reach them through new media using pictures and links.

This interview was significant for two reasons. It was obviously productive being able to relate to this possible employer’s work, and being able to prove to him that he should consider me as a candidate. More importantly, however, was the opportunity to hear myself articulate and reflect on the benefits of Writing 200. I have learned how to utilize new media forms which, as I have come to realize, are an increasingly prominent of how people everywhere are writing and how businesses function. Leaving college without this knowledge, stuck in my critical viewpoint of blogging, would be a gigantic inconvenience in searching for a job. I am thankful, and feel I will be even more grateful in the future, for having spent time with blogging and new media so that I can go forward writing online for my own purposes and audiences as well as for my boss.