To Have, To Know, And To Use: The Writing Process

Prompt 1: Discuss how the writing process can be helpful to writers. How can it help a writer not be overwhelmed with a writing task? How can it help a writer become more confident? Could the writing process help prevent plagiarism? Why/Why not?

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I’m a big believer in the Writing Process.  I teach it to all my English courses.  There’s one day/lesson focused on the Writing Process.

Here are the steps:

1. Prewriting – planning, outlining, and researching

2. Drafting - writing

3. Editing - looking for errors in capitalization, grammar, and spelling

4. Revising - listening for how your words, sentences, and paragraphs flow

5. Publishing - letting someone read your work

These steps are vital because they break the writing up into smaller parts, helping the writer see the project in sections instead of as a massive project.  Writing a 25-page paper can be overwhelming, but when you break it down into chunks, it’s not as scary.

As a writer goes through the steps, they will see their work develop and grow, therefore gaining confidence.  With each project, the steps will become second nature, and writing projects will get easier because a routine is established.  Whether we want to admit it or not, routines help life flow easier.  Seeing growth is the best motivation for a writer.

The writing process can help with plagiarism because the first step, prewriting, sets up the writer to know their source material from their material.  It’s to keep track of your research, so by getting things set up in the beginning stages of a writing project, there’s less likelihood that plagiarism can occur.

All writers must remember that the Writing Process is recursive.  That means you can go through the first four steps multiple times before publishing.  You could even go back to a previous step after publishing.  (I had to do this recently.  It was aggravating, but necessary.)

The Writing Process is a valuable tool for a writer to have, to know, and to use.

Add It To Your Resume

Prompt 2: Thinking about a new skill that you’ve learned in the class; will you add it to your resume? Why/Why not?

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I often encourage my students to include work they’ve done from the class in their e-portfolio because it highlights their skills.

Shameless plug… my e-portfolio… https://profddboone.wixsite.com/profddbooneeport .

I’ve encouraged some students, who show great ability in designing documents to add the skills they’ve learned in the class to their resume.  I think it will help them stand out as a perspective employee.

FYI… I’m teaching Technical Writing now because I had Technical Writing listed as my minor on my resume.  Every little bit helps.

I Write... Therefor I Am A Writer...

Prompt 1: Discuss your thoughts on writing in general. How do you feel about writing? How does what you feel about writing compare to what you feel about Technical Writing? Has your view of writing changed as a result of the things you have learned in this class? Why? Why not?

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This is a loaded question to ask a writer.  I love writing.  It’s what gets me through a hard day.  It’s what helps me deal with tragedy.  It’s what helps me celebrate joys.  It’s what keeps me sane.  I need writing.

When comparing Creative Writing to Technical Writing, I feel there’s no comparison. Technical Writing doesn’t always allow for creativity with words.  If you must write what the client wants, then you can’t be creative with the words.  The content is usually left up to the client.  Even the artist aspect of Technical Writing is left up to the customer. Here’s a personal example.

Once, I created a brochure or something for my church.  (One of my first experiences with outside work.)  I went full on creative with the project.  When I took it to my pastor, he said, “It’s nice, but it’s not what I wanted.  What about what I want?”  I was hurt because I spent at least 3 hours working on the project.  But… I learned a valuable lesson.  Always seek the client’s input first.

Technical Writing can be limiting creatively.

When comparing Academic Writing to Technical Writing, there is some comparison.  Both require you to follow specific constraints based on the conventions assigned to that genre of writing.  Both require you to follow the instructions given regarding the assignment/project.  Both require you to use language appropriate to the conventions assigned to the genre of writing.  Technical Writing doesn’t limit you to academic language.

My view of writing hasn’t changed much over the years.  But, I have discovered some of my writing pet peeves.  My two biggest apply to classes I teach.

For 1301 & 1302… Using contractions in academic writing.  That irks my nerves.

For 2311… Having unused blank pages.  I can’t stand this.  I take off points for it.  (Now that I think about it.  This effects my 1301 and 1302 classes, too.)

Writing is key to my existence and livelihood, so I tend to take it personal when others don’t take it seriously.  That is hard when you’re an English professor, but I know my students see and understand my passion.

My purpose as an English professor is to create students who don’t hate writing as much when they leave my class as they did when they entered it.  I’ve done that in my short three year career.

Technical Writing... Yes, It's Important... Yes, to you!

Prompt 1: Discuss the importance of Technical Writing for professional careers. How can it help them in their career? What specific skills can be learned? Why is it worth the time and money? How can this class enhance a person’s resume?

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Technical Writing is an important skill professionals can have.  It helps them write in a way that keeps the reader in mind.  They learn how to make the page look appropriate for the consumer.  It is writing that is attentive to as many people as possible.  These people include the company, the public, and the customer.

Anyone taking Technical Writing has a leg up because they have learned to write in a way that lets potential employers know they have a skill set that most people do not have.  Also, modern day Technical Writing considers writing using technology.  Social media is big with companies now, and taking Technical Writing (my course in particular) teaches students how to write a blog, post on social media platforms, and develop a website.  The social media aspect by itself is a good reason to spend the money to take the course.

Taking Technical Writing...

Prompt 1: Discuss how you feel about being a college student taking a Technical Writing class. How do you feel? Why are you taking the course? What are your feelings after two days of class? Is the class what you thought it would be?

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I took Technical Writing in college at Tarleton State University.  That's where my love of technical writing began.  I never imagined I would teach Technical Writing, but here I am.

I think this is a class every college student should take because it teaches you how to communicate in a technical way.  When considering communicating in a technical way, here are some things that should be considered: page format, page length, the way the page looks, text formatting, grammar, and mechanics.  Technical Writing goes further than Composition English courses because it teaches students to look at how the document looks as well as how it sounds.  More people will use technical writing in their career than composition.  (Mind you, I teach Composition courses as well.)

I don’t think most students know what to expect when they take this class.  They learn more than they thought at first.  Most of the time, they can use what they learn in class immediately.  That’s what I like about my class.  I teach practical things that you can use instantly.  I think that gives me and the course credibility.

I’m enjoying teaching Technical Writing.

Maymester Blogging Has Begun

Cross post on Adventures of an English Professor (https://adventuresofprofboone.blogspot.com/)...

We have begun blogging in Maymester.  I'm blogging.  Hopefully, I can make all the posts. :)
Surely, I can make these few blog posts.

One of These Days...

I didn't make all the posts this semester.  One of these days, I will.

Respect the Process

I am a big enthusiast of the Writing Process, so much so that I teach it in every English class that I teach.  I feel that it warrants discussion because it breaks writing up into smaller, manageable pieces that make the task less frightening.

Most students, especially college freshmen freak out when given a writing assignment.  They see that they have to write 3 pages, and begin to fret & think… “I won’t be able to write that much.”  Then they look at me like deer caught in headlights.  I assure them that they can do it.

I say… “I had to write a 25 page paper for a class one semester.  I was overwhelmed, but I broke it up into pieces, and I was able to write an “A” paper that the professor raved about.”  That usually impresses them and calms them down at the same time.

The Writing Process has 5 steps… prewriting, writing, revising, editing, and publication.  It is a process that takes the writer from inception to completion.  It makes the writing task easy to do because you do it step by step.

In pre-writing, you generate ideas and plan out the task.  This is very important, and a step that most of my students usually don’t do.  You think about your topic, come up with ideas of what to research (making notes on and about your research so that you can use it when writing your paper and to avoid plagiarism is important here), what to write about, and how to organize your essay.  You also write an outline or essay map in this step.  This is vital to the success and quality of your essay.  Without an outline or a map, you can ramble in your essay, creating an essay that has no logical flow.

When you write, that’s just what you do… WRITE!  You write out your words, or type out your words.  You do not focus on anything else other than getting the words on the page… no editing, no revising, no researching…  just writing!  (You may want to turn off the grammar/spell checker in your word processor when writing.) çNote to self!

As I tell my students… it’s okay to have errors in your writing at this step of the process.

When you revise, you look at the content… in other words… “Am I saying what I want to say, in the way that I want to say it?”  “Does this make sense?”  “Can I use better words?”  Revision is making your writing SOUND better!

Editing is looking for errors.  I teach my students the COPS method of editing… Capitalization, Organization, Punctuation, and Spelling.  Editing makes your writing look better!

You have to revise and edit in two different steps.  YOU HAVE TO DO IT TWICE!

Publishing is fun.  You may turn in an assignment to a professor, you may post it online, or you may just read it to yourself.  However you publish, you should be proud of your work.

Using the writing process is beneficial to all levels of writers.  We all need to remember… WRITING is a process, and we need to RESPECT THE PROCESS!

Technical Writing in Corporate America

Now, more than ever, people in corporate America need an understanding of Technical Writing.  Specifically, with the use of social media, it is imperative that people understand how to use technical writing in their careers.

Technical Writing is becoming a required course for many degrees.  That is good because it helps people who are getting these degrees learn how to communicate using technology.  Technical writing teaches people how to create documents that look good, as well as sound good.  It teaches them the importance of how a document looks using various medias, as well as drawing attention to the way words are written and arranged on the page.  Tech Writing even focuses on how to write for people across genders and cultures.

It is important to understand how to use printed media and digital media.  With more communication being done through technology, we must adapt and learn to use these technologies to our advantage.  Tech Writing teaches people how to do that.

Taking Tech Writing is worth the money.  It teaches you valuable skills that you can use to enhance your resume, as well as boost your company brand.  As a student learns various skills through out the course, they will be able to use these skills immediately in their career, so the cost of the course pays dividends immediately.

Technical Writing is a class that needs to consider when getting a college degree.  It will help you learn how to communicate in this technological world that we live in, and it will provide you with skills that will enhance your resume.

Minored in Technical Writing, But Majoring in Teaching

Minoring in Technical Writing is one of the things that caught the dean’s eye when she was interviewing me to be an English professor at Collin College.  It was (and still is) my endeavor to be a Creative Writing professor.  Now, I know those classes go to full-time professors, and it may be awhile before I can teach one of those classes.

Here is the funny thing… I never thought about teaching Tech Writing.  I enjoy creating, designing, and revising documents of all types, but I never had the desire to teach others how to do it.  I have shown a few people some techniques I use, but I never set my mind to be a TECHNICAL WRITING professor.  It never entered my mind.  Looking back, I see that I had a narrow view of who I could be as a successful professor.  – I thought I would only be happy if I was teaching Creative Writing.

I teach Tech Writing.  I love it.  It is one of my favorite classes.  To see the growth of the students over the course of the semester, is amazing.  To see the students start out disliking a project, then to see them change their mind is great.  To see an email from a student saying that they were able to use something that we talked about in the previous weeks at their job, makes me smile.

As I write this, tears fill my eyes because I can now see that I had one vision for myself as a college professor, but God had another vision for me.  He thought me worthy of helping to make people better technical writers.

Do not limit yourself, be open to wherever you can go in life.  It could be a better place for you, and you could have a lot of fun on the journey.