This blog will follow students enrolled in Kara Taczak's WEPO course (Summer 2011) in their efforts to develop an understanding of writing, editing and print online.
There is nothing more compelling than raw talent. As a writer, I am here to grow and learn forever. I have committed myself to being a student for life. I hope I continue to grow and develop as a composer and I wish the same for you all. Who am I as a writer now, I like to think of myself as the Beyonce of writing.
I am dangerously in LOVEwith writing. (uh OH) I believe we RUN the WORLD, when we have writers block just move to the left to the left. One thing for sure is that you don't wanna be a SINGLE writer. Compose with a purpose and for others. This is my farewell. Beyonce style. Is there any other way to go?
"Remind yourself. Nobody built like you, you design yourself. -Jay-Z, A Dream
Disclaimer: For those off the hip-hop radar, The title "The Black Post" is in reference to Jay-z's "The Black Album" which was his last album before his (short) retirement.
Dee as a Composer
As a composer I am all over the place. My basic theory of composing is taking my random thoughts and trying to make them sound smart. If not smart at least grammatically correct.
Sometimes I am biggest procrastinator in getting these thoughts down, but when there are no new status updates on Facebook or my Twitter timeline seems to be dead and I cant find a simple YouTube video that’s interesting and sit down at the computer and Just Do It!
As a writer I feel that I am someone loves to back up my words. I like incorporating others ideas into my ideas to give the reader a better understanding of why I think what I think. I just said a mouthful.
As an Editor, I think this person is till evolving. I like to get my ideas and suggestions across without having to rip someone’s paper apart especially when it comes to peer review. No one wants to be the big nasty mean editor. I remember an old episode of Sex and the City when Carrie first went to work at Vogue and her editor, played by Candice Bergen didn’t like anything she wrote. That’s the editor I DON’T want to be. I am striving to be an editor that can take a piece of okay writing and turn it into a good or great piece of writing without the author having to do it all over again.
So in this world of Writing, Editing, and Print I am a composer of thoughts and an editor of loyalty.
Here's a video of me describing what I've learned about myself throughout the semester. It's a little embarrassing because I'm a babbler. However, I thought it would be a neato-burrito way to personally express what I've gotten out of the course! I think that this is the most accurate representation of who I am because it's unfiltered, unedited, and uncensored. Just kidding... there's nothing that needs censoring in my video.
As a writer, I love to incorporate my natural speaking voice and sense of humor (when it is appropriate). I love rhyming, alliterations, and plays on words. I am especially inspired as a writer by these two lovely ladies, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.
It instills hope as a young female writer to see the success of these talented women as writers and comedic actresses in a business dominated by men. I do not plan on being a regular on SNL, but I do aspire to make my writing Emmy nod worthy in the future. I write with a purpose, whether it is to inform, persuade, or explain, and I try to have as much fun with it as possible.
Composer Kelly
This is normally how my composing process starts-
This is my roommate’s kitten, Brandon. I actually have a Facebook photo album dedicated to him labeled “proCrAsTination”. Once I get him off of my keyboard, I take a couple pictures with him:
I then look at the time and plan a Facebook break for the next top of the hour. AND THEN I begin! I read the assignment description, and like I learned back in fourth grade, I underline or ‘copy’ ‘paste’ what exactly the prompt is asking for. From there I start to sort through some brainstorming ideas.
Then, with the blank word document as my canvas, I start putting my thoughts onto digital paper. My first draft is typically not in the order it will end in. Consequently, the information still flows but is able to avoid being too redundant all in a row. After how ever long it takes me to meet the word count, and the accompanying Facebook breaks, I am left with my finished product!
And as a result, this ^ reaction most of the time.
Editor Kelly
As an editor, I find myself playing the roles of a good cop/bad cop routine. I normally try to give the author the benefit of the doubt; after all, they are only human. I love finding the genius parts of a work and giving credit where credit is do for a job well done. However, the “bad cop” editor side of me can be quite persnickety.
Spelling mistakes are my BIGGEST editing pet peeve. With all of the technology out now, including the classic ABC Check, obvious typos should be caught and stopped. Even a simple read-through can prevent other typing errors. When an author fails to go through these measures to make their writing as correct as possible, it drives me mad.
I just think this guy looks awesome. Sometimes I feel the need to shake some sense into what I’m reading online (Facebook group names riddled with typos and grammatical errors, Facebook statuses with the same problems.. to name a couple), or erasing everything in one of my own writing projects with a good shake of my laptop like an Etch-a-Sketch.
In the end, when the edit is complete and the assignment looks and sounds like the masterpiece it was meant to be I do celebrate. It is rewarding to know that I could help someone shape an assignment into a better version of itself.
When reflecting on who I am as a composer, it is necessary to look back on my entire life. The things that I have experienced growing up have not only made me who I am today but has also transformed the way I write. The past 19 years, one month, and 23 days of my life have been very interesting and have led me to perceive the world in my own light. This class has taught me that creativity is rooted in the perception of reality. With every project we have done, everyone has turned in something different and that goes back to everything they have been through during their lives.
There are two sides to my personality. There always has been. I can be very serious or very silly. When I write or compose, I struggle to bring out the sillier side of me. It is something I work on every time I create something. My voice now tends to be very impersonal and as I learn more and more about the composing process, I have started to work on opening up when I write.
My goal is to one day be able to show people my full personality through the use of words. As I said, it is an ongoing process and I still consider myself to be a serious composer.
I want to become a more fun writer, even though my goal in being an EWM major is to become a business journalist. I think that if I could learn to be a little less serious, I would be more successful and more relatable. I have the personality for it but my writing is not quite there.
When discussing what elements of our background create our perspectives on life that translate into our writing, I credit everything to my family. Family is very important to me and I consider myself to have an identical personality to my parents. They have their two sides as well but they do not write. They do not have to think about how to incorporate their two sides into one piece. That's what college is for. The development of our education parallels the composing process in my opinion. When I began college my freshman year, I had really no idea what I wanted to do with my life or where I was going to go. All I had was the memories of my childhood and my family to hold on to and that is when I began to brainstorm on how I could use these memories and create a path for myself. I ended up an EWM major along with Economics. I decided I could use Economics to represent my serious side and EWM to bring out my creative/silly side. It's still a work in progress. I think my sophomore year is going to be about writing that first draft. I am testing the waters, trying to decide if my insight on life is good enough to write about. I want to figure out what I'm good at and what my weaknesses are. My junior year should be the revision process. I will know where I'm headed and how to achieve my goals. Senior year will be the editing/publishing phase. I will be perfecting everything and head off into a world of possibilities. I will bring my experiences from my childhood and my college life and hopefully have a true writing style developed.
To conclude, I do not have a developed writing style as of yet. I am working on perfecting it and being able to really show who I am through words. Since I do not know where I'm heading when it comes to writing, I can't even begin to touch on where I stand as an editor. I have had barely any practice when it comes to editing and I think that I will know what my style is through practice. All I can do is keep working at everything and hopefully one day I will truly be happy with who I am as a writer, composer, and editor.
Characteristics that influence me as a COMPOSER...
Connection: Connecting with others is important to me and influences me as a composer. I have also learned it is important to connect with the audience when composing.
Delta Love "Let Us Steadfastly Love One Another"
Deep Thinker:I constantly reflect on myself, others, and the relationship between art and the artist. Psychology interests me and influences me as a composer.
I believe in the power of the mind.
Persuasive: I love a good debate!
Characteristics that influence me as an EDITOR:
Constructive: I have developed as an editor to give consructive advice according to the cannons of rhetoric. I love Kitties!
Clear: as an editor you must be clear in communicating with the writer.
Whenever people think of being artistic, painters and musicians come to mind. Even though this might not pop up first, writing is such a unique and expressive form of art.
As a writer and composer I enjoy putting my own creativity and style on every composition. For anything to be successful it must be audience appropriate, from the tone, word choice, formality of writing, structure and topic. Before I begin composing I make sure I am in a clear state of mind, not consumed by drama or any other problems. Music, working out, talking to my loved ones or even working (depnding on the customers) can help relieve stress or clear my head.
Whenever I begin something, I want the audience’s focus to be on solely my work.From what I have noticed from my classmates in addition to my friends,Facebook seems to be the common go-to place when you are out of ideas, bored, distracted or any other excuse you can use.I always take small breaks throughout my composing process to ensure fresh editing skills and new ideas.
CAUTION: THIS BLOG POST CONTAINS EXTREMELY CORNY PHOTOS!!!
As a writer/composer, I am.....
Thoughtful... I always consider who the audience is. I ask myself, "would this make sense to the reader?". If it doesn't make sense to me, the author, then it probably wouldn't make sense to my audience. It is vital that the reader knows all the details.
Informative... It doesn't matter if I'm writing an informative essay or a blog about my life, I like to tell my reader something important. When writing essays, I make sure I use direct quotes and cite creditable sources. Or, if I'm tweeting about something, I like to let people know the facts; I hold NOTHING back. Either way, the reader knows the truth.
Current... When I write, I like to use up-to-date info. I like to compare what I am talking about to a current trend so that my audience can better relate. This also makes my writing more interesting to read.
As an editor, I am...
Tough... I make sure that when I read, every word flows smoothly. There is nothing worse than reading and being confused about what you just read. If something isn't right, I have no problem telling someone to fix it. I like to think I do a good job at giving constructive criticism!
Sweet... Okay, so I'm not THAT tough. I don't want the writer to think that I am the meanest person ever! I try to make sure when I critique, that I also complement! :)
Caroline as a composer is similar to Caroline as a person...or at least that's what I aim for. You always know what you're going to get, it's never fake, it'll never leave you guessing, always....
I hate monotony. I hate works that
make your eyes bleed. They're necessary in many cases but
my writing is colorful and I try to entertain my audience...similar to my efforts of entertaining my real life audience..life is too short not to.
When I begin, I try to think outside of the box. I believe the best thoughts come when you're hard
ly waiting on them. Your ideas flutter when you don't try to cage them. Your first instinct is usually the most accurate. My first draft, although a little rusty, is the one I should go with because it's usually how I really feel.
Once the work is finished, I believe strongly in reflection. It helps to expand and explore, to make connections and to gain full under
standing. When I reflect I take into consideration all aspects of the work; how they fit together, how they don't; how well I convey my thoughts. I reflect before I revise to finalize my thoughts.
Once it's time to edit, whether it's my work or another, I always try to be fair. I have to tell myself to chill out...SOMEONE, SOMEWHERE will think my work is good...even if it's just my mom. This could possibly be a psychotic way to compose...but as some say, writers are hard on themselves. Anyways, as an editor I think one's word is only respectable if it's...
!!!!!!!!! There is a way to convey a point without being harsh. No one likes to be crucified in a critique, it lessens a persons confidence and makes them feel even more incompetent than they may already feel.
I believe no matter what you do..it's best to do you. Composing is a time when a person can let their true colors shine, avoiding persecution and rejection. Who cares if someone doesn't like your work? Someone will..even if it's just your mom....
!!!!!!!!! There is a way to convey a point without being harsh. No one likes to be crucified in a critique, it lessens a persons confidence and makes them feel even more incompetent than they may already feel. 