Writing Woes In the academic writing classes I used to teach, most of which were for nonnative English speakers, many of my students came to the first class of the semester with this adamant stance: they did not like writing. Why? Their worries were plenty. I don’t have the right Read more
A Visual Model for Writing When I read an essay or listen to a presentation, I’m always fascinated by how the writer or speaker organizes and presents their content. Did the content drive the form, or did they fit the content into a desired form? A friend of mine explained Read more
Writing Prompts and Freewriting Writing prompts can be used alone or in conjunction with freewriting. They are useful not only for creative writing but also for other kinds of writing (e.g., academic writing, professional writing). As a teacher, I started each writing class with a freewriting exercise, providing my students Read more
Looking for “Perfect” As a kid, I remember worrying about whether my socks matched my outfit perfectly and whether my shoes were just right for my outfit. As a teenager plagued with the usual zits, I wanted perfect skin. I can recall fretting for hours about all these things and Read more
Work-Life Balance When I was teaching full-time, I’d often come home from work after a ten-hour day and just want to sit in front of the TV. But sitting there, my mind would be buzzing with story ideas and other things I wanted to write (and other things I wanted Read more
Writing Is a Process Because Improvement Is a Process. Improvement is an ongoing process. As a runner who participates in various short races (and the very occasional half-marathon), I enjoy tracking my progress, as well as my setbacks. I will most likely never win a race, but I like to Read more