I can't remember which of you found this article, but I think it's a good one, even though it targets faculty writers. Author Kerry Ann Rockquemore emphasizes what Ann Russell often tells us: That early drafts can be sloppy, disorganized, discombobmulated and all the other "dis-es." How many of you feel you have to complete all your research and thinking before you commit anything to the page? And of those who do, how many of you feel paralyzed to start?
Maybe those early drafts are like late-night, free-wheeling conversations, at the tail end of parties, that dart all over the place, unstructured and possibly incoherent but incredibly fertile and alternately hilarious and profound. Don't you wish you had some of those conversations down on the page? (Well...maybe not. They could be blackmail fodder for future generations.)
Besides being tutors and, in some cases, teachers, we're all writers, whether we're writing for class, for publication, for art, or for fun. And we all get stuck because we're not used to "thinking aloud" on the page.
Do any of you write a half hour to an hour a day? Does anyone want to take on the challenge (30 to 60 minutes daily, Monday through Friday)? We might feel we don't have time, but surely we could use the half-hour we typically spend watching Modern Family or half of Glee and put fingers to keyboard. Maybe we could try this for two weeks and figure out a few prizes for those who stick with it. Perhaps we'll come up with something we could submit to MU Voices.
What do you think?
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I used to feel like I had to do all of my research and thinking before I could commit anything to a page, but once I started college, I had to give up that idea very quickly. Trying to juggle a few five to ten page papers at once does not allow me to obsess over a perfect first draft.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite way to begin writing is to use flash cards and colored pens. I write an idea on the front and then elaborate on the back. This works especially well for research papers because I can even write out the citations on the flash cards.
If doing homework counts as writing, I definitely write for 30 to 60 minutes a day. I hardly ever find time to write just for fun anymore. I ususlly do enjoy writing for homework, though. My favorite kind of writing is actually research papers!
This is so me! I admit that this is my biggest problem as a writer. I enjoy writing, I really do, but I always like to have my outline and all of my ideas mapped out in my head before I type them out.
ReplyDeleteThis week is a prime example. A week and a half ago I was assigned a paper that is due a few days from now. I have spent the past week reading everything that I could find on my topic, but I haven't written a sentence. I have really enjoyed researching, but now tonight I have to sit down and try to reign in all of the thoughts that have been bouncing around in my mind for the past week. A few days ago the thought of getting everything on paper in time was really stressing me out.
I have realized that this is a ridiculous predicament to be in because I love writing. I am making a commitment to write as I research in the future. I am excited to see how this will help me to improve as a writer!
I do believe that writing is thinking and anyone who says it isn't must not write very much. I watch as our 1000 and 1150 students come in and really focus on what they write. They like a quiet room so that they can hear themselves think.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the 30-60 minutes a day challenge to write is not very practical for most people. I know for myself that I don't even get to watch tv every day, let alone have any free time to write. I wish I could workout three days a week too, but that rarely happens. It's a nice idea, but actually making it happen is a different story.
I do like the suggestion to throw a towel over the computer screen or to turn off the monitor when writing. I know I get stressed when I keep telling myself I have to write at least one more page before I'm finished. I keep looking at how much more I have to write instead of getting my ideas on the page. Hopefully using this technique will help my anxiety.
When I have an English paper due (or any paper that does not require research) I tend to sit down and write my way into the thesis. I have had teachers who strongly encourage writing outlines or thesis statements before beginning, as a way to save time and stay on track, but I like to develop my thoughts by putting them on paper as I am thinking of them. The first draft does look awful, and I rarely keep very much of it once I have finished my revisions, but the process inevitably helps me to have a better end result. Therefore, I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly with this article. I stopped short, however, when I realized this technique of writing your way into the assignment could work for a research paper, too. Like Cassie, with research papers I want all my sources lined up and a thorough outline written before I even consider typing the words. In the future I will have to remind myself to start writing immediately no matter what type of paper I am working on.
ReplyDeleteSomething that has helped me learn how to “think aloud on paper” is journaling, because after getting in the habit of writing every day even the kind of writing required for academic research papers feels more natural. There are certainly times when I struggle to grab a moment to write; making a point to write regularly, though, helps me to remain a little calmer when I prepare to start a paper.
Sarah: I'm intrigued by your journaling. It sounds as though it's like flexing a muscle. We can remain (or become more) fit as long as we're frequently active, whether it's running or writing.
ReplyDeleteI especially like your line, "...getting in the habit of writing every day even the kind of writing required for academic research papers feels more natural." To belabor the fitness theme, embarking on a marathon would seem far less terrifying if we've been running all along.
By the way, I've kept a journal--although not daily--since 1967. It's a way to create and track the narrative of your life. Remember what Socrates said about the value of an "unreflected life."
Writing is like breathing. Without it, I can't live. I have no life. I don't write for a certain amount of time each day, but I do write each day. I have to.
ReplyDeleteMind-mapping is my favorite writing technique. I'm really glad the author suggests it. I learned how to mind-map from my children (they had to do it in school), and I've been mind-mapping ever since. I'm extremely visual, and I can't figure anything out (or, so it seems), without drawing a picture of it. Every single paper I've ever written has come to life as a drawing or sketch. It's nice to see that someone approves of this "marker-to-the-newsprint" method. Markers are the perfect writing tool! I have to admit that I've never thought of getting down on the floor to do this (I have four cats!), but I might try it now. Sounds like fun!
Although this article is aimed at faculty members, I wish that my students would read it. I see them paralyzed with perfectionism. When I talk about drafting, they look at me quizzically. When I suggest revision, they think I'm talking about spelling. It seems this article explains why this is so. These students (of course, not all of them) must think about writing as what you do after it's all "done." To be asked to change what is all "done," must seem pretty crazy.
I think of writing as playing, and I've tried to convey this with my students. In kindergarten, did anyone tell you how to play with play-doh? I don't think so. You just did it! What I want my students to do is to listen to me explain what I want them to do (a narrative, a rhetorical analysis, or whatever), examine an example, and then…go play! Work with the format, add some words together to make sentences, and just go with it. That'll result in the first draft. Then, after consultation with peers and me, they can go write something edging more to the finished product.
Rockquemore's suggestions for eliminating writer's block are very useful, and I think this would be a good article to share with writing center students, particularly first-timers unaccustomed to writing much of anything. She described perfectly a common problem for people who think writing is "too hard," or have no confidence at it: They have narrow idealized beliefs about what writing is and what it takes to write something decent, beliefs that are realistic for maybe only 1-10% of writers. Rockquemore's use of the word "disempowering" for these beliefs (one could even call them stereotypes) is very insightful.
ReplyDeletePerfectionism is the ultimate catalyst for procrastination. Expecting to be "inspired" first is another doorway to procrastination. Rockquemore describes exactly some of the problems I've had with starting writing: expecting it to be "perfect" and well-organized right away, because I'm a good writer, so it should be, right?
To get past this, I tell myself to treat my first draft as a journal entry: In my journal, I write meanderingly to process the events or thoughts of my day -- Doing this, all kinds of insights and details I didn't think of at the time occur to me. In the case of an academic paper, I would "journal" about my thoughts on the assignment itself, what it's asking, what I already know, and what I think would be good research sources.
When I read in the Harry Potter books about Professor Dumbledore's "pensieve," the cauldron in which he puts the thoughts he's pulled out of his head, I realized that I use writing like wizards uses the pensieve: literally getting thoughts out of my head so I can see them in front of me, and interpret and organize them accordingly.
I heard someone once say, if you're trying to brainstorm, and you get stuck, write that you're stuck -- just blab on page until your thoughts get back in line again. If you stop when you get stuck, you prevent yourself from doing what it takes to get unstuck: continue writing.