« Interdisciplinary Literature Review: Humor in Odessa | Main | Evidence and Style »
March 06, 2006
Writing Rules
Writing Rules -- Tricks of the Trade
Faculty are experienced researchers and writers, and they share their attitudes and techniques during “How I Write” conversations with Hilton Obenzinger. Here are two sets of rules or guidelines drawn from conversations that students may find useful in their own work.
Prof Terry Karl, Political Science
Gildred Professor in Latin American Studies and Senior Fellow at the Institute for International Studies
My first rule I call the Fidel Castro rule, and the reason I call it that is because I learned it watching him give a speech on a very, very complicated political issue. There were thousands and thousands of people listening to him, and I realized there were all sorts of people—people from the University of Havana who I happened to be with and a peasant who had looked like he came from a rural area just outside of Havana, an elderly man who had not been educated prior to the Cuban Revolution. I was looking at this wide range of people and I realized that Fidel Castro was able somehow to explain extremely complicated political phenomena that we teach courses on, and everybody in that particular space, from this range of people, understood. I never forgot that lesson, and I say to myself that it’s the “Fidel Castro How I Write” rule. And that means that we ought to be able to take in our writing and talking the most complicated things and make them understandable to all kinds of people. . . So if my writing is too complicated or I’m not expressing myself as clearly as possible, I actually think that’s my problem and not my reader’s problem . . .
My second rule is what I call the “Murder She Wrote How I Write” rule, it could be the “Law and Order How I Write” rule too, and that is, at least academic writing is not a mystery, the people who are reading what you’re saying are not supposed to wait until the end to get the surprise ending. In fact, you’re supposed to be telling them what you’re going to tell them and then giving them all kinds of signposts along the way, to say “Please come with me. I want to take you with me on this journey which happens to be whatever it is I am writing. That is actually a very difficult task, and that means I struggle most with the introductions. That is to me the roadmap of what’s coming, and once I understand the roadmap it’s easier for me to take pieces of the road. I tend to figure out the roadmap as I’m halfway down the road, which means I have to go back and change the roadmap.
Rev. Scotty McLennan, Dean for Religious Life
Up in front of me is a sheet that I put together for myself on writer’s attitude, with little personal inspirational quips, and a picture next to it—this first book I wrote which had a metaphor of climbing the spiritual mountain—of this gorgeous Himalayan mountain. So I needed those to inspire me. . . .
So they’re probably rather platitudinous, but the first one is “Live and breathe my passion.”
And the second is “Imagine I am talking to someone in my office” (because I do a lot of counseling and one-to-one work with people in my office). And I always, although I probably should be listening to the people as they speak to me, it seems I always have plenty to say in that context, so say it now on paper!
Third, I say, “Write poetry: make every word count.” And for me one of the greatest authors in terms of beauty of his writing is F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I think of The Great Gatsby, for example. It’s just this beautifully constructed piece of work. So I say here to myself “Think Fitzgerald. ”
Fourth is “Get out on the edge: take risks as you write. ”
Fifth, for me, I say, “This is the life of the spirit we are talking about here, ” and therefore I feel I need to stay in touch with that spirit and hopefully be inspiring to others.
Sixth, “Think about the audience: students and other searchers”—this was for this book Finding Your Religion— “students and other searchers on retreat, trying to change their lives. ” So, to fix the audience in mind as I’m writing.
Seventh, “Sing God’s Glory.”
Eighth, “You bore, you die.” [laughter]
And ninth, “Write from the top of my head, and the bottom of my heart.”
Posted by hilton at March 6, 2006 03:12 PM
Comments
what you are saying is very good approach to start .i want to know more
Posted by: dr. sallawi at May 16, 2006 08:28 AM