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15 years ago
In response to Holley Schmeck reading summaries..
I also noticed that the text continues to bring up the same important key points repeatedly. One of which is the difference between academic writing and technical writing like you mentioned. To me, that difference is in techincal writing, you write with the intention of getting your message across as clearly and swiftly as possible. In academic, I feel like my writing has to prove that I know the subject and that my objective is to essentially confuse the reader. If I am able to accomplish this, my audience will conclude that I used great critical thinking skills for my paper. I find technical/business writing to be much more natural form of writing. The writing is current and direct.
This week's chapter readings of the text covers the research aspect of a technical writing piece and its initial draft.
First of, the Research we do at work differ from the research we do at school in three ways:
1) In the workplace, your research goal will be develop ideas, information, and arguments that readers will find to be valuable
2) Emphasis on conducting research efficiently
3) Ethical principles must be taken into consideration
There were some overlap of information from previous chapters that I noticed. For example, the importance of identifying the objectives foremost is clearly stressed once again. Ethics plays a huge role in the research process as a part and the writing piece as a whole. Knowing what information to include and how to present that information is crucial.
I especially found chapter 7 to be informative because it is the first chapter where where the text deals with the actual start of the writing process. The previous 6 chapters were dedicated mostly to planing and research processes. The chapter provided guidelines for drafting individual paragraphs and group them together to form a larger communication. Some key points to remember is to always present your most important points first so that the reader picks up on it right away. It greatly increases the usability and persuasiveness of the communication. The introduction, my least favorite part in any form of writing was also addressed. Every new segment should have a topic statement that tells the readers what it is about. This allows the reader to see the big picture before reading all the minor details.
For as long as I could remember, the first time I heard a rhetoric statement was on an episode of Family Matters. One of the cast members asked a question that was seemingly sarcastic and does not require a response. The question asked was "Did I do that?" by none other than Steve Urkel. He would repeat this line as least once every episode. Now that I had more knowledge on the subject, I realized that the use of rhetoric fits in everyday life and every imaginable situation. Persuasion can be achieved through sarcasm, serious, or even a vindictive tone.
Breaking down the rhetoric of persuasion yields three main key points: pathos, ethos, and logos. Any statement that causes an emotional response from the audience is considered pathos. If the statement was to establish credibility (an ego) of the writer/speaker it is considered to be ethos. Lastly, if the statement is trying to get you to think reason, the statement is using logos. Any persuasions we see in can only exist within these three key points. What I'm curious about is if pathos, ethos, and logos can be combined into one statement, therefore amplifying its effectiveness.
Chapter four covered the planning for usability stage of your writing. Like the previous Chapter, it set forth a set of guidelines to aid you. I believe the main point of this chapter is that planning plays a large part in the success of your writing. It is done to meet the readers' informational needs. The more time you spend on the planning process, the strong your writing piece will be. Planning should be considered as an ongoing process, it should continue until the final draft of your piece is finished.
Chapter five also dealt with the planning process, but it focused primarily on persuasive strategies. There are also guidelines for this process to assist you long the way. In my opinion, the usage of pathos, ethos, and logos are key here. Don't overdo a statement, less is more. Get straight to the point and leave the reader thinking. As long as the readers' needs, concerns, values, and preferences are addressed, the writing piece is solid.
Chapter sixteen is all about teamwork; to create communications with many voices. The writing itself should be much easier to accomplish now that there are multiple brains working with each other. Keep everybody on the same page and on schedule should be given extra attention to. Give all group members some leadership responsibilities and encourage discussions to keep everyone actively involve. A team is especially effective for writing reader-centered instructions pieces. For such a task, the writing must be clear and concise, uses plenty of graphics for demonstration, and finally the writing itself should have a clean and professional look to it. With multiple tasks like this, having a team enables you to split up the project into smaller pieces and attack it more efficiently.
We use persuasion in every aspect of our lives, sometimes without even realizing it. I believe that we focus on the things we say and write a lot more closely in the workplace as oppose to at home or when we're out with friends. Because of this reason, we tend to notice our use of rhetoric a whole lot more when we're at work. Without realizing it, I'm using logos in this post to persuade my point of view to you. I do agree with your comment in regards to people mastering the usage of rhetoric to get the results you desire. These are the people that is not only consistent but also persistent. They see an objective and they work tirelessly until they reach their goal.
The third chapter of the text focuses on defining the communication’s objective in a writing piece. The idea is to concentrate on affecting the reading in ways necessary to bring about a change. This is done continuously while the readers are reading. To help achieve that goal, the text came up with ten guidelines for the writer to follow. This process is design to help the writer "develop expertise in defining objectives to make sound decisions about the content and design of your communications."
Guideline 1: Focus on what you want to happen while your readers are reading.
- What should be given extra attention to, the details in the report itself or the readers of the report?
- What are the questions the reader will ask? What will the outcome/action of the reader after reading your report?
- How do you get your reader's outcome to match with yours?
- Who will read your report? What are their function within the company? How familiar are they with respect to the subject?
- Does the reader have any communication preferences to take into account?
- Consider the condition surrounding the workplace as you are writing the report.
- Ask for a second opinion
- Who else might read the report?
- What other factors should the write take into account before sending out the report?
- Stakeholders are individuals who stand to gain or lose some sort of value as the result of the report. It is important to always consider them when writing the report.
Is there such a thing as a correct way to write? Or some sort of blueprint to follow? These are the questions I always wonder about because I always feel like my writings are not up to standards or even on the right track. I have no difficulty with "casual writing" such as email exchanges or through online instant messaging with friends. This type of writing requires virtually no effort from me to get started and continue. The ideas come out as I am typing.
When it comes to writing with an objective, all that changes. I have to think about what sounds right, how to convey my thoughts thoroughly and correctly, and if I'm using the right terminology. Between all those thoughts, I would forget what I'm supposed to be writing about in the first place. My project papers sounds too rehearsed when I go over and proof read them. I'm using words that I wouldn't normally use in a normal conversation or a simple communication through email. It almost like another person wrote the paper. I'm hoping that this course will help me write better so I can better communicate with others. Maybe once I learn how to write from a business sense, I'll also gain a greater understanding of how to write better research papers for educational purposes.
The reading chapters assigned did a good job of introducing the course to me. The text itself was easy to follow and the sample tutorials are extremely helpful especially when I was writing the lack of ideas memo.
Chapter one was straightforward, it talks about the different types of writing. There's the one you write class for "educational" purposes. To demonstrate you knowledge on the subject matter. In the workplace, writing is done for "practice" purposes. Your writing's objective is to communicate a point thoroughly and clearly to fellow workers to increase efficiency. Writing in the business sense does not require you to write about everything you know about the subject at hand, it's all about giving enough information to the reader so that everybody is on the same page. This form of writing acts as a substitute to a face to face conversation where relevant information are exchanged but minus the actual words spoken. In order to write efficiently, the text suggests to use active voice in business writing as oppose to passive voice. Passive voice is not memorable and the reader will soon forget the message.
Chapter twenty focuses on three specific types of writing correspondence commonly used in the workplace. From formal letters, to interoffice memorandums and e-mail messages, they all serve one purpose, to communicate with others. The number one caution the text suggests for all three types of correspondence is always double check your content especially in a memo or e-mail. Keep the message professional and don't include anything that could stir up an altercation within the company. Assume that all memo or e-mail sent out by you will be read by everybody within the organization, don't include any details that might be detrimental to you and don't write anything about another colleague that you wouldn't say to them in person. These types of messages should short and clear, your main point is stated at the beginning of the message and stays neutral within the message. You don't want to incite the reader's rage as they will just disregard your message and thus productivity decreases.
Chapter twenty two covered the topic of writing reader-centered proposals. In a sense, it's similar to a persuasive paper written in school. The goal is to convince your reader too see your point of view and accept your recommendation. Unlike a school paper, not all details should be included. For instance, convincing someone to recycle will help drive their overall garbage disposal fees down is more realistic as oppose to promising them a better, greener tomorrow etc... Avoid writing anything that will come off as far fetched and offer a false sense of security. As with all of technical writing, keep it clear, concise, and straight to the point. The main points in a persuasive paper are to introduce the topic of discussion, state its problem, and offer your solution and its incentives.
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