Allen Response

The Inspired Writer vs. The Real Writer and Text/Constructs: How do readers read and writers write?

1.       Summary:

This article is by Sarah Allen and she attempts to argue that nobody is a perfect writer. She talks on how everybody has to struggle with writing and what to talk about or how to explain something. That even her, a writing teacher gets a writer block or often finds herself not wanting to write a paper or report. Sarah feels that everyone struggles with writing an everyone can be pained by it as well but that’s not what matters. The concept is that you have to keep going and searching for ways to develop and improve your piece. That nobody is gifted at writing a paper real quick and mastering it all in one draft. That you have to take time develop a structure and that you have to keep communicating. That’s the goal that’s the idea, you must keep practicing and using writing or communication in whatever you do to develop and to grow. She talks and argues how everyone is scared of their piece or that it will fail but you have to know and understand everyone is like that and that’s why you must work at it constantly. Then the second article is more of an opening description of what is to be done and covered in the next chapter. This covers projected things to happen as well as it covers the concept of construct. It explains and gives examples of what these are and which ones will be brought up later in the chapter.  

“Decisions and Revisions” and “Response of a laboratory Rat-or, Being Protocoled”

2.       Summary:

In this first article by Carol Berkenkotter we find the author talking about an experiment that she and Mr. Murray decided to perform under naturalist terms. This experiment is being used to conduct and observe how a writer such as Mr.Murray goes about writing and performing certain writing task. The article argues that he has a distinct process he uses in order to get papers done but also depending on what he is writing about or for he will change his area of focus. She also sees and discovers that Mr.Murray at points uses a process called reconceiving where he uses other author’s opinions and ideas on his own material in order to improve it and eliminate all error. Another is how he talks about writers and when they use internal revision which is doing so by self and when external revision occurs because of and for the audience. Then she precedes to mention planning and incubation and how they are important a work together revising a paper. First in planning what needs changed for fixed to format with the others then using incubation to come to and revise astoundingly there writing piece. Then she argues how Murray used introspective revision to fix and revise his piece and title. That this is the process of using breaks in order to think deep and get a chance to escape form compressing your piece. The piece also spoke on or went in depth of the process of his revision at all levels from planning to drafting. In Mr. Murray’s response he talks about all the things that this research project has shown him about himself and about writers. He argues writing is a intellectual process and that it is not separate from thinking just because you don’t sit there and do it out loud. He and the researcher agree that introspective research was great for allowing new ideas to generate as well as how import and affective conditions can be on research. He also argues for is fear that writers us other writers or common processes to much and often fall into a rhythm and lose the ability to branch off and explore further in research and rhetorical heuristic writing.

3.       Synthesis:

I think this article and Sarah Allen’s article are very similar they both argue for the concept that writers make mistakes and need help. Also that they can’t always do it by themselves or perfect on the first time they argue for revision and for the help and opinions of others whom they respect and trust. Another idea they both speak on is ho no author is perfect that everyone has to revise and edit that you can’t ever discover or use a perfect formula to write. Writing is a form of communication and is ever changing Sarah Allen would argue as in this piece they talk about how Mr. Murray found himself stuck and in trouble using the same process over time and caught up with him in one of his writing assignments to complete. They both mention how space away and to think can often help bring up and discover someone’s best work, but overall they both argue for the continuous revision and in depth methods of so in order to get better and create a better paper.

1.       Questions and Analyzing:

I think the way Murray went about his revisions and writing in general was very effective and professional compared to mine. Murray spent a lot of time brainstorming and review recently written work. Also he was always using his peers to branch off new ideas and concepts or to fix errors or faults in his writings. I often only found myself review the whole draft once and allowing a single peer review before I would turn my work in. I do many things differently to such that I don’t use breaks in or to develop new and better ideas or I don’t tend to think to myself or out loud to work up an idea.

2.       Berkenkotter used this research and discovered that there is no single method of revision and planning. Berkenkotter argues that you can never narrow it down or categorize it to a single system and so forth. The author argues that planning and revising is a long process of creating and eliminating new ideas and concepts as well as the constant editing of sentences and structure. That in using different methods and different peers you can learn to write in many different methods and create a more diverse and original piece instead of repeating your past methods.

1.       Applying and Exploring:

I think that when I write I spend almost all my time on brainstorming an idea and concept I think will work best for my piece. I then go about writing and making my paper and after I continue to revise the things I’m saying and how I choose to say them. I have never been beginning on editing my work for simple structure and grammatical mistakes but I have never been good at grammar or noticing it either way. This has definitely been a big flaw of mine and I think it effects how much time I spend on certain parts of the paper all the time. I always find myself revising sentences to sound a specific way or fixing them to make a powerful statement or quote. I look to revision and brainstorming to do all my best work because I lack the effort and ability to edit and rewrite my work. I think that we subconsciously go about our writing like this because we find areas where we do our best or where we are most comfortable and we stick to them. Writers tend to follow their best ways but eventually get stuck there or use other writers to advance their paper instead of brainstorming and working new ideas and processes yourself.

1.       Meta Moment:

I think that after this reading I will go about my writing differently and I will try and use introspection in order to branch off my work and make better papers or concepts overall for my paper. The use of this and peer revision I think will really help me in writing a better paper because I always rely on myself and my original idea instead of challenging for more or something new and different.

1.       Article Evaluation:

I think that all of these article can be of use because of all the information and enlightenment provided on revisitng and revising your papers. All these articles really harp on using your writing ability to generate and create ideas, concepts or just overall papers from new and different methods. That also you shouldn’t limit yourself to a single process or step by step method for competition that changing it up often leads to new and original work that diversifies the world of writing. Also the articles have motivated me and helped me understand that I am not alone in struggling with writing a paper and then after doing so struggling to edit and revise it to a completed form. This is because of my lack of attention to all important areas of the process and the fact that over time I began to rely to much on the things that I could do best. I now will use my peers to edit my work further grammatically and structurally as well as the further my concepts and develop different opinions on the work and how it is presented. I don’t think any of these articles were interesting to read or super enlightening but I got a lot of information and tips I think will help improve and develop my writing into much more effective work. These articles were dry and lacked fun and drawing examples like those of some of our past reading assignments but these were just as relevant and important in the process.