Before beginning the discussion, be sure to read the two items above about expanding your vocabulary and participating in the discussion board. They contain instructions that are vital to successful completion of the assignment.
For this discussion board, respond to the following prompt:
Introduce yourself to your professor and your classmates. Begin by telling them your name, your background and your educational goals. Then describe your experiences as a reader and a writer. What experiences (positive or negative) have you had as a reader and a writer? Is there a book that has been significant for you? Do you experience joy in reading or writing? fear? You do not have to limit yourself to writing or reading in an academic setting. In addition to writing this self introduction, you may choose to record a short video of yourself using the webcam tool link.
As with all discussion boards, your initial response should be at least 300 words. Then make 2 replies to classmates of at least 100 words each. Feel free to exceed these minimum requirements.
…And don’t forget to include at least 2 vocabulary words from this unit in your response! Underline the vocabulary words that you use so that I can easily find them
Lesson: The Writing Process
Lesson Overview
Lesson OverviewThree stages of writing. Invent. Deliver. Revise.Activities in this lesson expand the context of how you see yourself as a writer and provide an overview of the stages of writing along with tips for overcoming writer’s block.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Describe the overall process and stages of writing.
Develop strategies to overcome “writer’s block.”
Identify activities involved in each stage of writing.
A RECURSIVE PROCESS
Invention, delivery, and revision. What is involved in these three distinct stages of writing? Obviously, invention involves discovering an idea, delivery is concerned with how the idea is organized and developed so the reader can follow along, and revision is laboring over the clarity, editing, and accuracy of the writing. Sounds easy, right? But these stages are not always a 1-2-3 step process.Two “writing gurus” introduce themselves and discuss the writing process, focusing on the recursive nature of writing and the importance of feedback from a writer’s group. For some of you, recursive is a new term. When describing the writing process, writers realize they often are revising during the delivery stage and they might be inventing in the revision stage. Ideas and new insights are common during the process of completing a writing. We re-see our ideas as we try to work them into better shape and meaning. Just remember that you may experience the recursive nature of writing and that is normal for good writers.Download the transcript of A Recursive Process A Recursive Process – Alternative Formats
STAGES OF WRITING
The gurus discuss what it means to “be a writer” and explain the basic steps in the writing process: invention, delivery, and revision.Download the transcript of Stages of Writing Stages of Writing – Alternative Formats
Invention Strategies
Invention StrategiesWhy choose a strategy or strategies for getting started on a writing project? The answer is fundamental to overcoming and avoiding writer’s block: practicing a prewriting strategy forces the writer to start writing rather than procrastinate or stare at the wall. Asking questions during and after the process helps a writer begin exploring ideas generated by prewriting strategies.
PREWRITING STRATEGIES
Our mind likes to create and organize, but the two processes are often at odds. When we need to be creative in discovering ideas, we need flexibility and freedom to explore. We need to let go and see where our ideas take us. Too often student writers want to edit and correct as they are trying to loosen up and explore, yet editing and correcting stifle creativity and discovery. That’s why many writers rely on freewriting, brainstorming, mapping, or outlining to free up their thinking.Open notebook, pencil, pad of sticky notes, and cup of coffeeFreewriting: This activity is easy to describe but harder to do. When writers freewrite, they set a timer (5–15 minutes) and write non-stop. They do not pause to reflect or correct, but write the words as quickly as they come to mind. Even when the mind freezes up, they continue writing, confident that ideas will find them! If you have never written this way, you will struggle at first, because we have been taught to correct and reflect (but these mental activities will come later). Practice freewriting several times before you give up on the strategy. With practice, freewriting will lead you to discover an idea, a concept, or an insight that you can lift from the wandering thoughts and use as a topic for a more thoughtful and considered draft.Brainstorming: Usually brainstorming is done in a small group, but it can be done alone. The idea for either situation is the same: start jotting down every idea that comes to mind without editing or eliminating. If you are brainstorming in a group, it is vital that no one criticize or eliminate the ideas posed by members of the group. Brainstorming can help a writer discover specific topics that might lie beneath the surface of broader concepts.Mapping: For visual learners who like to see ideas connected in ways other than sentences, mapping is a simple prewriting activity in which the writer starts in the center of the page with an idea within a circle. Then the writer begins drawing links to other circles with ideas and tries to connect them to as many details and related ideas as possible. This is a good way to see relationships between ideas that is more visual than the linear approach of outlining.Outlining: If your MBTI identifies you as a “T” (Thinking) type, you may find outlining a very natural and linear way to put together a plan for developing ideas. In outlining, the writer assigns a number to ideas of similar weight and relationship, and then uses subnumerals or letters to fill in supporting ideas and details. If you are an “F” (Feeling) type on the MBTI, you may find outlining is best done after you have written through your working draft. The outline allows the writer to see if the draft has a logical and orderly development of ideas and supporting details.
INVENTING IDEAS
Prewriting also invites the writer to use writing to discover what he or she knows. That’s right. Often student writers think of writing as a way of expressing what they know, but, in fact, writing can also help writers discover what they know as they work through the invention process.
CHOOSING A TOPIC
Lakshmi, a student writer, begins working on an essay about the relationship between humans and germs. Questions from the writer’s group play an important role in developing the topic, while a series of self-directed questions eventually lead to a working thesis.
VIDEO FOCUS POINTS
Look for answers to these questions when watching the video:
Describe the process Lakshmi follows to begin working on her essay.
What questions typically help writers identify and narrow a topic?
Download the transcript of Choosing a Topic Choosing a Topic – Alternative Formats
Delivery Strategies
Delivery StrategiesOnce a writer has discovered and explored an idea for a subject through the invention stage, the idea must be explored more fully. A variety of techniques help a writer expand, develop, describe, evaluate, analyze, and present ideas. These techniques allow the writer to successfully achieve the purpose of the writing.The delivery stage also involves organizing the writing in a way that conveys the topic clearly to the reader. Choosing how to explain a topic and how to organize the explanation both depend on the purpose of the writing.In the delivery stage, writers complete a working draft that explores the subject with deliberate organization and rhetorical techniques. Some writers refer to this draft as a rough draft, but working draft is a more appropriate term since most writers are already editing and revising as they write this draft. (Remember the term recursive?)
IDEAS, PARAGRAPHS, AND DETAILS
Lakshmi begins exploring the relationship between humans and germs and demonstrates the challenges of writing an introduction, developing paragraphs, and adding details to the essay. The advantages of seeking feedback during the writing process become apparent in her conversation with another student writer.
VIDEO FOCUS POINTS
Look for answers to these questions when watching the video:
What changes does Lakshmi make to her essay after her conversation with another student writer?
What techniques typically help you organize your thoughts when writing?
Download the transcript of Ideas, Paragraphs, And Details Ideas, Paragraphs, And Details – Alternative Formats
Revision Strategies
The writer invents to find a topic and then writes through a working draft to get the overall organization and techniques in place. All this time, the writer is also rethinking and considering ways to sharpen and improve the writing.
WE THINK…WE WRITE…WE REVISE
Expert writers talk about the number of drafts they write, how they revise, and how they know when the work is finished.
VIDEO FOCUS POINTS
Look for answers to these questions when watching the video:
How does revision help writers improve their writing?
Do you listen to your inner editor?
Download the transcript of We Think…We Write…We Revise We Think…We Write…We Revise – Alternative FormatsOnce the working draft is complete, the writer is at a point where feedback from a writer’s circle is most beneficial. It may sound scary to allow others to see a draft that has not been polished, but this is the stage at which writers can make valuable changes and revisions, while readers can at least see what the writer is trying to achieve. Feedback on these drafts does not criticize or find fault, but rather offers reader responses to what is being communicated.
I DON’T THINK IT’S FINISHED
The student writer’s group reviews Lakshmi’s essay about the relationship between humans and germs, helping her with revisions to clarify the thesis and write a stronger conclusion.
VIDEO FOCUS POINTS
Look for answers to these questions when watching the video:
How do changes made after the peer review process improve Lakshmi’s essay?
How does writing about relationships affect Lakshmi’s everyday life?
What are the advantages of participating in a peer review process?
What cautions do the student writers suggest for peer review?
Download the transcript of I Don’t Think It’s Finished I Don’t Think It’s Finished – Alternative FormatsNow is the time to take all those reader observations and instructor comments, along with the writer’s own ideas, and revise. Revision is not a one-step fix. Writers must rethink the organization, the development, and all other elements of good writing such as voice, audience, and purpose. And then there is the careful proofreading to correct inaccurate sentences, punctuation, grammar, and usage. All these activities comprise the final preparation of writing for publication. Any time writing is made available for reading by others, it is considered published.
Summary
SummaryGood writing can be developed through a practice of taking writing through the necessary stages, from invention (prewriting and planning) to drafting (revision and editing), collaborating with others through feedback and suggestions, research (if required), and finally proofreading. As you work on essays for this class, allow time for all of these stages.We will now look more closely at the writing process and how your approach to writing is shaped and determined by what is called the rhetorical situation. As you will see, your audience, your purpose, and the voice you use are three very important considerations in written communication
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