Tip of the Week: Carry a Notebook!

Does a great idea ever pop into your head as you are walking home from work, taking a walk in the park, shopping for groceries, or really anytime when you are not sitting in front of your computer prepared to write? It certainly happens to me – so what do I do about it? I carry a notebook. I learned this from my husband who is never without his Moleskine, always ready to write down an idea when he thinks of it, relieved of having to worry about remembering it perfectly for later.
Why does this happen – these “aha!” moments in the midst of busy days? Well, because even if your computer is turned off, your brain isn’t! The paper or problem that you are working on continues to be muddled-over and analyzed in your subconscious during what John Bean (the author of the book Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom, which all Writing Across the Curriculum faculty and fellows read) calls the incubation period – the time when the writer steps away from his or her work and “lets ideas cook” (p. 30).
It has been during some of these incubation periods when I have had my best ideas, when things seem to come together. Before I began my notebook-carrying, when I would get a good idea at an inconvenient time, I would be fearful of forgetting the idea’s clarity. Now, with a notebook, I don’t need to worry about that anymore! I’m ready to jot things down in an instant and I have taken away the pressure I put on myself to have a perfect memory.
Now…I know that it’s not always possible to carry a notebook, so if you are out some place fancy and have a pocket, take a little sheet of scrap paper or an index card with you. Also, if you forget to bring something, paper napkins, ticket stubs, and theater programs work well too!
Your mind is always active, which means that you should be ready to write no matter where you are! A lot can happen when you are away from your desk, so be sure to be prepared and take full advantage of it!
Do you have any writing tips or suggestions? Please share! Add a comment!

Good Books are Good Teachers

Last week, the reading that I was doing for my dissertation reminded me of a book that I had read many, many years ago – Tuck Everlasting. In the midst trying to make it through difficult articles and theories that I am learning about and questioning, I couldn’t get it out of my head, so, I picked it up. Within minutes I was hooked by Natalie Babbitts’ words. Let me share some with you:

The road that led to Treegap had been trod out long before by a herd of cows who were, to say the least, relaxed. It wandered along in curves and easy angles, swayed off and up in a pleasant tangent to the top of a small hill, ambled down again between fringes of bee-hung clover, and then cut sidewise across a meadow. Here its edges blurred. It widened and seemed to pause, suggesting tranquil bovine picnics: slow chewing and thoughtful contemplation of the infinite. And then it went on again and came at last to the wood. But on reaching the shadows of the first trees, it veered sharply, swung out in a wide arc as if, for the first time, it had reason to think where it was going, and passed around. (p. 5)

When I read this passage I could see the road in front of me and could imagine cows from the past – could you? I was taken aback by how beautifully this book was written…a book that according to my sister, who is a reading specialist in an elementary school, usually intrigues the imaginations of fifth graders.

You may be wondering why I am sharing all of this with you. The reason is, I learned two very important things from this experience – both of which I think will help me with my writing (and I hope will help with yours!).

1. Don’t be afraid to read something different from what you usually do.

At first, I must admit, I felt a little silly walking into the children’s section of the bookstore to buy something for myself. As you can see, however, I am so happy that I did! It taught me how important it is to read things (at least every once in a while) that are different from my usual. Different can mean it is easier than usual or more difficult, or from a different genre or field of study – just different. You never know what you can learn from the pages of a book you never expected to read. And, a break from the norm may encourage you to be more open to the experience.

2. Good books can be models.

Reading a description that was so clear and felt so real made me consider how I write descriptively in my own work. Furthermore, it made me think about how a piece of writing can be a good model. Now, in no way I am saying to copy someone else’s work, but what you can do is learn a lot from authors…how they create sentences, how they put paragraphs together. More concretely, if you are reading something in your discipline, then how a book (or an article) is organized may be evidence of what is expected in the field, and you can learn how your own work should be organized.

So, go enjoy your writing – and your READING! Leave a comment if you have any questions…and please share any of your own suggestions that you think will also help us with our work!

Welcome Back BMCC Writers!

I hope this entry finds you well on your way to having a successful semester.

How’s the writing going? Are you taking WI classes? Let us know what you’ve been working on!

Now that we are comfortably in Fall 2008 (but not too far in:)) how can we make sure that we stay on top of our coursework and not get buried under papers and information?

COMMUNICATION!

Yes, one of the best ways to stay on top of things is to communicate with your professors, both in class and during their office hours. Speak with your professors and ask your questions so that as the semester continues you are not bogged down with information that you do not understand.

Make sure, however, that the time you spend with your professors is as productive as possible. One way to do this is to do some free-writing before heading to class or office hours.

· Write about the questions you have.
· Write about different possible answers you have for these questions and how you
developed these possible answers.
· Write about what you DO know and look for gaps in the information that you understand.

After doing this free-writing exercise, you can re-write portions of it so that it is clear and you can use it as notes when you go to speak with your professor.

Sometimes I find that if I am feeling confused or frustrated when I go to speak with a professor, my questions sound confusing and impinge on my ability to even ask a lucid question and get the help that I need. When I do the free-writing beforehand, however, it is almost as if I have a dress-rehearsal to the actual meeting and I am able to work through some of my issues so that I can speak more clearly about where I am having trouble.

Of course, in addition to your professors, the fellows are also here to help - with the writing process, not course content – so come see us in room S424. We’ll post our office hours just as soon as we know when they are going to be!

Some may think that osmosis works (like my kitty here), but just to be sure you’re absorbing the information correctly, ask clear questions!