1.
This question is inspired by Tobin’s “Process
Pedagogy.” No matter if you’re rhet/comp, CW, or Lit, what habits, rituals, or
patterns have you developed for your own writing process? To what extent do you
employ these tools consistently?
2.
Bartholomae claims current English and
composition pedagogies critique the critical apparatus and conventional grammar
of writing while shirking responsibility for an investigation of the “types of
knowledge” students are taught, and then employ—and yet his offered solution (“teach
students to question the text by reworking it”) does not appear to offer an
epistemological framework for investigating this problem. Or does it? And if it
does, how? And if it doesn’t, what tools might we use toward this aim?
Hi Zach - I love this question! I was just thinking about it today because I realize that I focus so much on this with my students but have not really pondered it for myself. I would have to describe my own process as controlled chaos. My rituals include a specific table at "my" Starbucks right when they open until I feel I have made sufficient progress. I listen to the same playlist every time I write and always have sharpened pencils, three different color highlighters and a journal notebook for notes, doodling, mapping, etc. The chaos comes in with regards to actual composition of the text. I write in a puzzle format and can only see it in any type of completed form as I begin to put the fragmented paragraphs together. It is like looking at a Seurat. Up close I just see dots, but as I create some distance between myself and my writing, I tend to begin to see some cohesiveness. I am fairly consistent in my rituals except for the occasional need to write in my office at work. It is my least favorite space for writing because of distractions around me.
ReplyDeleteI am loving your rituals--also your process is so cool. Seurat comparison? Gorgeous.
DeleteZach,
ReplyDeleteIn response to your first question, something I struggle with consistently is developing a ritual or pattern for my writing process. I definitely need to write out my first several drafts by hand, preferably in fresh notebooks or legal pads (I've abandoned too many good notebooks halfway through). But as far as time of day and location, I can't find the perfect mix. At home, I get distracted by things that need to get done (or naps), and out in public, I get distracted by conversation or people watching. I'm not much of a morning person, although I've heard it is the best time to work, when your head is most decluttered and fresh. I'm interested to follow this thread and see what other's are able to implement. Thanks for initiating the discussion!
This is a fun question. I tend to read my articles very slowly, copying and pasting large chunks of the text into a Word doc and then stylizing it to mean different things--red means I disagree, yellow means it is important to the argument, green means I agree. I'll put IMOW (in my own words) whenever I'm re-stating someone's opinions in my own words, but I often end up exploring the meaning of it while doing so. I'll underline things I don't understand, italicize things that I know I want to bring into the paper, and embolden things I feel are important to review. I do this with each of my main texts that I'll borrow from to build my argument. Then I start reviewing and re-ordering the various blocks of texts into an organization--authors that covered X all get grouped into the X pile, Y with Y, Z with Z. Then I'll re-order them again, but not according to content, but rather, according to how I'll use them in the paper (for support of points and counterpoints). I end up ordering these chunks into something of an essay, and after that is done I use that outline to start actually writing. The writing takes me no time at all, but all of this work takes me days and days. I also ALWAYS sit in a lazy boy, wrapped in a blanket, with hot coffee or tea that I repeatedly heat up every 5-10 minutes, and my cat on my lap (if he'll have me. Sometimes I have to lure him in with belly rubs and treats).
ReplyDeleteHi Zack,
ReplyDeleteIn response to question 1, I usually gravitate towards one or two processes for writing poetry. When I'm writing little poems, I'm more focused on a complete draft--meaning takes a backseat to music, structure, and voice. I usually spend no more than a night on these pieces unless--on the rare occasion--they're worth revising. I guess it's kind of like jamming in the band room. When I'm writing a big poem, I have something specific in mind that becomes more informed through multiple drafts; the composition slows down and I'm concerned with nuance and mapping out complexities within the speaker and subject. Usually, when writing a big poem, I take breaks, spend a lot of time re-reading lines out loud, and make notes. On the other hand, I might not read a little poem more than once after I've written to an ending and I rarely pause or stop writing for reflection during the composition process.
All the best,
Tom