Blog 17: "What is Style?" Part 2

Style is a blend between Peter Cushing and Billy Dee Williams.

No.
Sort of.


My previous post on Style - way back in September - is written too poetically (blah) to describe what Style actually is, or what it can be. Style (in regards to writing) umbrellas much more than some dude/chick free-associating with a thesaurus. To have style one must know the rules and how to break/bend them. In this class we read Strunk and White's 'Elements of Style' and Joseph M. Williams' 'Style: Toward Clarity and Grace'. These praised publications really helped me sketch what good writing is, what good writing ought to be, and - finally - how to write well - or better, depending.

If someone were to ask me what I learned in English 328 I would tell them that, after taking the course, I learned the importance/benefits of technological literacy in (and out of ) the classroom. Furthermore, I learned many new (to me) grammar rules that I would otherwise turned my nose at.

As I prepare to be a Secondary School teacher (scary thought), I will use some of the content from this course in my own classroom. For example, we learned that technology can sometimes breed motivation. I want my students to experience low-end types of technology in order to encourage motivation and implement course work.

Blog 16: Peer review recap, part 4

What was the most useful aspect(s) of peer review? What parts of the process did you find least useful?
The most useful aspect of peer review is getting some insight into your work. It's nice to hear what others have to say - even it it's somewhat negative - as long as it can be used constructively, it's okay with me. The least useful aspect was receiving positive comments without any critical comments.

What do you think you have learned this term about responding to others' writing?
This term I learned that it is crucial is be as concise and constructive as possible when responding to others' writing. We're all in this boat together, we should be working together to recieve the grades we deserve.

What do you think you have learned this term about making use of your classmates' advice?
I was taught a long time ago that you should use your own discretion when recieving feedback - that is to say, only use the suggestions you feel will be useful or beneficial. I thought recieving advice on my papers was extremely useful, but there were some I didn't necessarily agree with - which is OK. In fact it's good because it opens your mind to new directions your paper may or may not take.

Anything else about peer review?
It's is very useful when used appropriately. I enjoyed learning about and using Google Docs and plan to use it in the future.

Thankyou,
David Slaga.

Blog 15: Looking back at past readings, looking forward to the essay about the movie-making process

I think Strunk and White, Williams, & Ong will be particulary helpful for me when writing my essay.

Through this experience I've learned that writing is the backbone of any technological medium. You need to start somewhere. For this assignment we needed to create a video depicting some sort of grammar rule. This required us to go back to our readings (particularly Strunk, White, and Williams) and create some sort of script or outline for what we planned on filming. Surprisingly, I felt the writing part was the easiest. The filming and editing has been giving us the most trouble.

Since we are making such a low-grade video (at least our group is) it's difficult to draw strong connections between some of our readings and this project. However, we drew from 'Elements of Style' and 'Style: Toward Clarity and Grace' in that we expand on the "Omit Needless Words" rule.

Ong believes writing is a technology and I couldn't agree with the guy more. Especially in our information age... so much writing goes into everything we see on television and the internet. Albiet, TV is jammed with mostly "reality" shows now - but I would bet my tombstone that quite a bit of writing goes into those shows. Makes me think of the writers strike a year or two back. This proved that writing is the backbone to our media relations (entertainment, news, etc...) and without, there is much less direction. Writing directs so to speak.

I feel like I will have quite a bit to write about when I start my essay on this project. There have been things that went smoothly and things that have been borderline disasterous. For example... writing and filming the first scenes were a breeze but when it came to editing... one of our group members forgot the camera one day. No big deal, really... but it put a damper on our project I think. Also, our file was deleted off the school computer. Thankfully, it was saved on one of the cameras. It's been a bumpy ride, but I can't wait to see the final result.

YouTube: is it good? is it bad? is it writing?"

For me, this process has more more confusing than I expected. I've heard many times that making your first video is always the hardest and I've found it to be true. Maybe it's because we are collaborating for this one. Actually, I'm sure of it. Too many people with too many different ideas to get things done in a timely fashion. Since this is a low-end video we should be more concerned with the writing part than the video part. This isn't the case for some in my group. I think the writing part is the most important part, actually. It's the "meat and potatoes" or backbone of the whole operation. Remember the writers strike? TV sucked after that (It's always sucked, but it got even more pathetic because of the strike).

I think there is a strong connection between writing in video making. Sure there are spur of the moment or "caught on tape" videos but most videos with purpose have some sort of script laid out before filming.

Furthermore I think it's a misconception that anybody can pick up a camera and make a good video. Some work needs to be done.
For example, check this guy out...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bo-eoFgmzlo
Some may think that this guy just sits in front of a camera and drinks, but he has a purpose. I don't think any writing goes into his videos, but he definitely thinks them out before filming. This example in particular is him challenging himself to accomplish a near impossible feat. On others he talks politics or about his favorite music as if he had an outline in front of him (as well as a 40).

Today my group finally got over the writing hurdle and we plan to film on Friday. I'm excited to see how our writing is adapted to film. It will probably be low quality, but I still expect it to be a great experience.

Peer Review Recap, Part 3

Nothing changed for this peer review. I'm glad we used Google Docs again, but nothing was significantly different in how we went about it.

I recieved helpful comments from one of my group members, and none from the other. Maybe she will put some comments up tonight, but as of this morning there were none.

I do see some repeating patterns in the responses I recieved. For one I need to be a little more clear on connecting my "creations" to the readings. Also, I should work more on creating a stronger introductions and conclusions. My introductions thus far have been "filler". This is probably because it's a rough draft, but I definitely should be taking more time to complete these assigments. I wish I had that time. I'm not going to complain but I've been pretty busy with all my other classes and this is the balance I've found.

What I've learned...
We are all capable of successful peer reviewing. Unfortunately, some refuse to take it as seriously as others. One of my fellow classmates feels that since these papers are online he instintively "scims" them. This blocks a successful peer review. Personally, I don't see any problem with them being online and I've enjoyed learning how to use Google docs and Wiki.

All-in-all our peer review processes could have been much better, but they did work. It's awesome to have a tool like Google Docs, but if your reviewing with pen and paper I think it's easier to see mistakes. Besides, it much more fun to mark up a page then to type some words.

Reading and Writing about Comics ala McCloud, Part 2

http://www.davidgaddis.com/piercing.html

This is the comic I chose from one of my classmates blogs. This is a very strange comic. Niether my wonderful girlfriend nor I could figure it out. Even with Busch Light by our side. It is halloween so I thought this obscure comic would set the mood but it did the opposite. It only raised questions.

The comic is arranged with Action-to-action transitions. There are no words, only pictures. Some are in color, some are not. The larger panels show much more details than the others, helping the reader follow the story.

The steam from the coffee is represented by a sort of 'fog'. I'm sure in a standard "oldschool" comic this would be represented by lines as Scott Mccloud points out in Chapter 4 of his book, 'Understanding Comics'.

Actually if the panels were cut out and placed in order, I'm sure it would be a pretty good picture.

After the lady pulls the string out of the man's chest the color changes from bright to oblique and dreary.

Happy Halloween!
Spooky!

Reading and Writing about Comics ala McCloud, Part 1

The comic I chose for this post is on entitled 'Over the Hedge' by: Michael Fry and T. Lewis. The strip is concerned with the changing of the seasons, particularly with the falling of leaves. The comic personifies the last leaf on a tree by giving it artful dialogue - some even in French.

http://www.comics.com/comics/hedge/archive/hedge-20081027.html

While reading this comic, I found a couple connections between our reading of Scott Mclouds 'Understanding Comics' and the strip. First, the transitions between panels are Aspect-to-Aspect. For instance, first panel depicts two characters standing under a tree - with a speech bubble sticking out of the upper right. The second panel shows only a leaf, high up in the tree. This is a completely different scene, but the panels aer related through its context. Readers have no trouble percieving the scene displayed in the first two panels. The gutter allows the mind to fill in the gap that the point of view moves from the ground to up in the tree. As Mcloud puts it, "Comics asks the mind to work as a sort of an in-betweener -- filling in the gaps between panels as an animator might..." (Mcloud 88)

Second... the second panel has no border. The first and last use the classic rectangle border. "... Panels come in many shapes and sizes, though the classic rectangle is used most often.... Most of us are so used to the standard rectangular format that a "borderless" panel such as this can take on a timeless quality." (102). I feel the creators of this comic were going for the timeless feel since the second panel has some very 'artsy' overtones and dialogue.

Pictures Texts on the Web

For this post I will be looking at a website I frequently visit.

Writing.com

The home page is cluttered, in my opinion, but it is definitely navigable. The top inch and a half is a "skin" or picture-background with text in the foreground. The text here are links to other pages in the site. There is not much balance because the heading "Writing.com" is off the the left while the links are to its right. My favorite part of the sites design in the background color - a light manilla. I learned in my special education course that manilla is easiest on our eyes and is most condusive to reading.

The body of the site is more balanced. Three columns are presented, the middle being the widest. The left column has login information, signup info, and some general information about the site. The middle column provides writing.com's "mission statement(s)" and has a blank form used for registering on the side. The right column contains advertisements for online colleges, creative writing courses, and other writing related opportunities.

I dont see how the site embodies a metaphor nor do I see it comparing/contrasting anything, but I do see a slight balance with the information. The color of it, like I said, stands out to me. The website has a lot of text, but it's a writing website so that is to be expected.
One thing that I just now noticed was that the headings are not balanced one bit. One side has 4 while the other only has one. Interesting...

Peer Review Recap, Part 2.

When working with Wiki I was surprised as to how easy the process went. Reviews others papers, posting my own, creating pages, changings fonts, and making comments worked best for me. Having to reformat my paper when putting it on the site was the most frustrating part but it really wasn't that bad. I wish more people would have commented on my paper giving me ideas on how to expand my topic. I thought this was actually easier than google docs, but I enjoyed both processes.
Pros of working with wetpaint:
Easy to use
Easy to post
Easy to edit
Esay to make comments

Con:
Having to reformat your paper.


All in all, wiki wetpaint seems like a great tool for peer review.

What others are saying...

One of our classmates says how it is not fun to write with rigid, structural rules. I agree with this to a certain extent. To what extent that is, I'm not entirely sure but I do know that we need the rules. The rules should be second nature. That's why we're studying them, isn't it? Once they become second nature our style will, in turn, flow. If we didn't have these rules, there would be nothing to classify good writing. Revising is one of my favorite parts of writing. The fun part, if you will. When I write something, it almost never comes out perfect at first. It's when I re-read and revise that I start having fun. Twisting sentences, playing with words - simple amusement that I adore. (Especially while under the influence - but that's neither here nor there).

Allow me to quote another classmate, "I think Stunk and White's book was only more effective in actually stating and reinforcing the basic rules of writing, it would be a good book for reference while writing if you were unsure of what word or punctuation to use at a certain point."
I agree with this because I think Strunk and White has a ton of useful information that is easily accessible for anyone. Nevertheless, Williams is much more effective in it's application. The detail and examples William's gives have much more depth and coherence than that of Strunk and White.

Yet another, (In regards to Strunk and White) "I found arrogance in the writing. I was turned off when these authors put down writers who don’t follow their strict rules. Through discussions in class and close reading, I came to change my opinion. To me, this book now seems to be a conceited way to list personal annoyances rather than truly helpful writing style tips."
I wouldn't go as far to say the book is conceited, but I did pick up on a hint of arrogance. These are old white guys writing a long, long time ago so I can understand where the "its my way or the highway" tone comes from, but they should have given some consideration to great writers who don't always follow the rules. But, on the same account, you need to know the rules before you can bend or break them so maybe this book is supposed to be conceited in nature.

And another, The Williams text expects that you have some previous knowledge and offers some insight into the short comings of other writers so that you can avoid making the same mistakes that could make your writing unclear, disjointed, etc. " The beginning of this quote rings true to me because if I was to read Williams' book when I was 17 or 18, I would have immediately put it down. This book requires some experience and knowledge of writing. Very useful, yes, but not for a beginner. I like how Williams points out shortcomings of writers because I saw my own writing being reflected in his descriptions. Some helpful tips were picked up from Williams and I'm sure it's a book I will not sell back when the semester ends.

Comparing S&W with Williams

William’s book is comparable to Strunk and White in that it covers many of the same concepts. The difference lies in their presentation. Strunk and White offer rules, while Williams offers principles. Williams goes into much more depth and uses many more examples whereas ‘Elements of Style’ is very cut and dry. In my previous blog assignment I discussed Strunk and White’s rule about the active voice. Strunk and White say to always use the active voice and never the passive voice while Williams says you can use the passive voice; you just have to know when it will work. Williams only briefly touches on the ‘However’ rule, but I think he feels the same way. Using ‘however’ too much can be redundant. Strunk and White suggest “nevertheless” and I feel this is a good alternative. The “omit needless words” rule is explained much more clearly in Williams’ book. Williams explains what/when/where words can be omitted and why you should consider omitting them. Strunk and White simply tell their readers to omit them.
I think the advice offered by Williams is much more useful but, at the same time, much more difficult to comprehend. Strunk and White is nice because of its quaintness and direct nature but doesn’t go into much detail as to why the rules are the way they are. Therefore, Strunk and White’s advice is useful but not as effective as Williams whose advice is both useful and effective in its application.

Revising with Williams

Section V: Violations - "The following behavior is subject to disciplinary action under this Code. An individual, a group of individuals or a student organization may be charged with any of the violations. In cases where a violation is committed by an individual member of a student organization, the entire organization may be held responsible, in addition to the individual member, when those members not directly involved participate in the activity by encouraging, witnessing or condoning the act in any manner.

After reading Williams 'Style: Toward Clarity and Grace', I would change the first sentence to read, "Under this Code, the following behavior is subject to disciplinary action." I would make this change because the main point of this sentence is the disciplinary action, not the Code. Also, there should be a period after, "a group of individuals," because there should be a period after every word in a series except the last one. The final sentence is very unclear to me. I think Williams would prefer to have it read, "In cases where a violation is committed by an individual member of a student organization, the entire organization may be held responsible when those members not directly involved participate in the activity by encouraging, witnessing, or condoning the act in any manner." '...in addition to the individual member' is implied and is unecessary for this statement.

Strunk and White: First Impressions

'The Elements of Style' was an 18th birthday gift I recieved from my mom and stepdad. I always thought it was a cool book, but never gave it a close read; mainly because its more of a manual than a story. It's difficult to sit down and read a manual. When we were assigned to read it I looked forward to actually giving this book a shot.
The illustrations could have something to do with it, but this is a pretty enjoyable book. It's dry at times, but it's as excitin5g as a grammar book can be. While reading, I found a couple things especially helpful in my own writing.
1. "Use the active voice" pg. 33 - I consciously try to avoid "I" in anything I am writing. This is because my AP 11 English teacher would have us write essays everyday and one of the rules was no "I". With academic articles the reader shouldn't care what the writer think and I've carried this notion into other writings. The over use if "I" is annoying, I think. (See what I mean?)
2. However (pg. 74). I learned to avoid starting a sentence with "However" when it really means "Nevertheless." I find my self begining sentences with "However" too often, this rule will help me think outside the box and use other words such as "Nevertheless."
3. "Use definite, specific, concrete language"/"Omit needless words" (pg. 37-39). I couldn't agree with this more. I love writing that is short, concise, and compelling all in one.
Here are some examples of "Elements" that I didn't necessarily agree with.
1. "Choose a suitable design and hold to it" (pg. 31). I don't see how this is applicable to every form of writing. Revising and editing can change a design so drastically that I feel it's better to just write and begin picturing designs in your head as you go. Of course, you need a 'main idea' but, as far as the final product goes, it's difficult to assume how an anticipated piece of writing will turn out.
2. I felt Strunk and White could have been more clear on their rule of "Syllibication" (pg. 60). It took me a couple reads to understand what this meant. I couldn't figure out why anyone would want to split a word up, except maybe (maybe) in dialogue. But upon a closer reading, I discovered they were referring to a word that doesn't fit on one line, or trails into the line beneath. Their examples do not refer to this at all, they simply teach to make the break at a syllable.

Peer Review

I had heard about 'Google Docs' before this class but never bothered to learn what it meant or what it could do. Turns out, it appears to be an extremely useful tool for writing, editing, and reviewing. For me, the process was simple and I found no complications. I wish I had known about this sooner and feel other classes could adopt the tool as well. Sure it adds to our dependency on modern technology, but it just seems to be so damn useful. Professor Krause pointed out today in class that 'Google Docs' does not read footnotes very well, but that is only one minor setback. I will say, however, the format it uses is different from what I am used to (no double spacing, spread out to fit the whole screen) but keep in mind these are drafts we are working on. This is a useful tool for contributing to the text itself, not the format.
Adding comments to the text is my favorite part. It's much easier than trying to deciver someones handwriting scrunched into the margin of a page. Also, the ability to highlight and strikeout is great. Finally, the 'revision history' is very useful as you can easily to back to the original piece and see where and when a person has put in their two-cents.
All-in-all, I found 'Google Docs' as easy to use tool with a considerably small learning curve. I will consider using it in the future and possibly in my own classroom.

My only word of advice----make sure all students share their files with their gmail names. Using their emich names seemed to cause much confusion and problems.

My Writing Technologies

Depending on what I am writing, I generally always use the computer. Microsoft word to be exact. However, I use a yellow legal pad to write down personal notes, dreams, ideas, or anything that inspires me. This generally happens late at night, and I always use a pen. If what I jot down on the pad seems worthwhile, I will take it to my computer to revise and add to it. I also use writing.com quite a bit. Most everything on my writing.com profile originated from chicken scratch on the legal pad mentioned above.
My legal pad is a new addition to my writing arsenal. Before the pad, I mainly used the computer - sometimes a notebook. But if I was writing anything for school, it would always end up on a computer. When I dig deeper into my memory, I recall a time when I was probably 12 or 13 years old and using a typewriter to write a book. This book, oddly enough, was about the types of snakes that lived in my neighborhood. My friend and I would catch snakes on a regular basis and I would record them onto this typewriter and eventually compiled a little packet detailing the types of snakes we found. Pretty wierd, but it's a good memory.
I would like to find a nice typewriter to write with, but the idea seems to romanticized that I think I would spend more time finding the right typewriter than actually writing with it. For now, I will stick with my legal pad and microsoft word.

What is style?

Anyone can write. Of course there are illiterates, but anyone can pick up a pen or pencil or splash some words on a page. Writing alone has no style, it's just an act. It's the practice of writing that develops style. When one spends time transferring the thoughts in his/her head to a medium such as a piece of paper only then can style be developed. For me, style comes out when the sound of the keyboard flows like the beat of a drum. Style is when you love what you are writing and can foresee sentences like moves on a chess board. To do this, you must first write without holding anything back and acknowledge that whatever initially comes out will probably be some stupid shit. That's the hardest part. You have to allow yourself to write bad before you can write well. It's like playing sports or an instrument, you must first warm up. But once you get your knuckles and finger tips flowing, the style will eventually rear its beautiful and unique head. It's a fun experience that simply requires a comfortable atmosphere and, most importantly, a comfortable frame of mind.

YEAHHH