Assignment 01

J/Discuss your experience with writing. How do you understand yourself as a writer? What are your strengths and weaknesses? What are your writing techniques/process (i.e. Do you do any prewriting? Are you are compulsive drafter? Do you wait until the last minute? Do you use paper or a computer to compose? Do you follow any formulas for writing?)

My Experience with writing so far has been either pure bliss or utter failure. The Bliss part is in creative endeavours; whether or not the pieces were good I'dhave enjoyed the freedom of writing without that ridgid structure which science papers require. Which brings me to the despot that is my failure in writing. When I write papers for science classes, even for politics classes I find my grades never reflect the ammount of effort I put into these papers. truth be told I suck at writing fromal papers, even some English papers are so ridgid as to trip me up. I try so very hard to conform and though it had marked some improvement over the years, I find that the grade still reflects my minimal skill in the trade rather than the days upon days of brain-scratching I put into getting it "right" and getting it to "conform." My grammer too, ain't all that great... (had to put it in there like that for the dry humour it was worth! {D )
As a writer however (and I'm talking about as a creative writer here) I tend to follow flow. Whatever the story seems to want or need to flow to is where I take it. It's hard to link one short story to another this way, but it makes each short story itself into a compelling, riveting and can't-take-your-eyes-off-it-good read. I'm not claiming here that my stories and my writing is phenominal, but occationally, when I actually do just let the flow take it's course, it is jaw-dropping. So often I sit down with an idea and end up with crap, and that I think is the problem with all my writing, when I try, I end up getting nervous about how to make it fit rather than letting it fit itself in. I also pay attention to Length a lot, I hate letting things go too long. People don't read things that are long. You for instance are probably looking at the looming length of this assignment entry and rolling your eyes, I know I would.
So I think that covers history, strengths, weaknesses, self-assessment... Oh that leaves process... oh this is a fun one. There are two processes for the two types of writing I tend to engage in:
One, for the creative writing:
Unless something hits me and I am in "that zone," the one where you sit down and just record the myriaads crossing your brain in rapid sucession. Unless that inspiration and flow hit at the same time this is what I usually do to work on better articulating what I mean and am thinking when I have an idea and a plot already in mind. I usually sit down and free-write for a bit, get the idea juices flowing then I latch onto an idea or scenario. I think "How do I want this to end and how do I want it to begin, what exactly are the phrases I want to use for each..." I record just the beginning and mentally plot the events while I try to set up atmosphere, scene and first and foremost hook. After I have all that I usually count the piece as half over at a quarted the length, because throughout the piece I know I will try to incorporate elements of scene and atmosphere at random high or low points to add a gripping sensation to the part the reader is reading. Tried and true it seems to work. I briefly and vaguely, though vague is not the proper term, I whisper or ease through the plot, event by event. I try to make it both abiguous and specific at the same time. This actually works I've found, the specifics are what make it a new story but if word-choice leaves it open to interpretation you have something that really speaks to it's audience because each readier is relating it to their own interpretations and their own personal experiences. One it's all said and done up to that point I read through it and make gramatical and simple work choice corrections, occationally I add parts to smooth out the flow of events and often I've found I tack on more at the end to help it flow into the planned ending. Then I read the whole thing over again before tacking on the last of the end to make sure that the ending meshes well with the whole tale.
And for the formal paper writing:
I research, Read read read reread and reread all of my research. Then I sit down, think on the topic of the paper while I set up the basic format of the page then I title it a title that I've found always changes by the time I'm done with the paper (which is why I usually tack on a fun or interesting title just to start off; it serves as inspiration throughout the writing of the paper.) Sometimes if the false-title is just too good, I'll leave it to see what the professor thinks of it. (The example I'm thinking of at the moment is "The Ideal Man… (let us think about this and laugh to ourselves for a moment!)") Meanwhile, I appologize, I digress.
Once I have the research in mind and the page set up I throw my research over my shoulder (often literally) and rant on the page about the topic for a good hour or two or until I'm exhausted and cannot bring myself to write anymore. The next time I sit down to it, (be it the next day or a few hours later,) I read through it adding what I think needs to be added or elaborated upon and I often organize the paper thematically by grouping each major point together. I then read through it again and make severe altercations (word choice purposeful - pun intended) in an effort to make the paper in it's topics flow together. I then read through it again only correctin gspelling and small word-choice errors and put it aside for a little while. When I come back to it the third time I read through it first, make changes as needed and then after I have the finished product, I finally go back to the research and add at least one reference per theme per topic and I try to find new references for the areas which seem to require a great deal more backing up. (god my grammer sucked with that one. I hope you understood what I meant!) Anyway I then read through the "finished paper" and if I have time between then and the deadline I start a new document and begin re-typing the paper which causes me to make editing changes which make the paper roll off more or less like a speech depending on which end of the scale the paper is on in it's "finished" form. You see, I have this nasty tendenccy to write like I speak, all over the place and with more complex sentences. And a you may well have noticed, on the page this doesn't work so well because of my limited grasp of grammer and because black and white lack inflection and emotion in it's basic forms. This ecffect wreaks havoc on the basic form that is formal wirting for me. I realize this, get severely depressed over the crap I have for a paper and hand it in last minute utilizing every minute to say "why turn this crap in, what can I do to it in this the lastfive minutes that would make it better..." and the like.
So that's my process. I always compose on computer, it serves for faster writing easier editing and hands which are far less sore after an all-nighter of words.
So I hope that covers all of those questions you had. I found it odd that you wanted to know these things about all of us and I felt a bit naked at some points in there because I've never told some of those processes to anyone but heck, you're the professor and this is my grade at steak,
so...
I'll strip... I'll strip.