Process Writing With Line, Hook, and Sinker |
|
Assignment Summary |
When
students hand in their textual analysis essays, I ask them to write a process
piece in which they describe the writing and revising process as though
they were on a fishing expedition (baking a cake, cooking a meal, planting
a garden). I tell them to record all the preparatory steps, talk about their
successes and failures, and notice their emotions . This project works especially well in conjunction with textual analysis because we usually spend some time noticing and exploring metaphors. Sometimes I give students a short poem by Stephen Spender to set the stage: WORD The word bites like a fish. Shall I throw it back free Arrowing to that sea Where thoughts lash tail and fin? Or shall I pull it in To rhyme upon a dish? |
Instructor's Comments |
I
came up with this idea because the process pieces were often stale and superficial.
By giving students this assignment, I hoped to read more lively and detailed
reports, but I was surprised about the good results. Most students, even
the shy or reticent ones, were able to turn their observations into creative
and insightful process notes full of valuable observations. |
| genre | textual analysis |
| course | WRT 102 |
| activity type | individual writing assignment, process writing exercise |
| skills | analysis, reflection, metaphorical thinking |
| duration | 1 class |
| materials/readings |
short poem (see above)
|
| handouts: | none |
| contributor: | Astrid Wimmer |