Voice

It is important for your essay to sound like you. Many people try to use big words to make themselves sound more intelligent. Sometimes using a thesaurus is helpful, but most of the time it does not turn out well. Some people will use the word even when they do not know how to use it. A big "intelligent" word when used out of context can ruin a perfectly good sentence. Even some authors keep sentences simple.

Organization

Organization as discussed in the chapter is key to being able to write at your best. I for one am very disorganized. Fortunately on the computer I can save things to folders to keep all of my files together when I write. When talking about tools for writing as tools in a toolbox it kind of made me think about how I use physical tools. I am not a handyman by any standards to beyond basic hammer and nail type projects I am out of my league. I can make some educated guesses and maybe use a few more advanced tools correctly but the end result would still be sloppy. Just as a to become effecient with physical tools you need to observe their use and follow directions. Similarly with writing I can write in my own voice fairly well but when doing scientific or research based writing I struggle. So I need to take advantage of reading other people's work and help build my skills using different writing tools.

Toolbox

In Stephen King's entry, Toolbox, it really open my eyes to all the "tools" one really need to be a good writer. He also explains why it is important why even if you are strong in a certain field such as vocabulary it does not mean you can slack in other aspects of writing such as grammar or organization. While the things at the top of your toolbox may be the strong points in your paper, your paper could be ruined without the things at the bottom of your toolbox. Kings makes it clear to the reason why it is important for one to have multiple layers in their writing "tool box." One needs to expand their toolbox as much a possible to improve their writing skills.

ORGANIZATION IS KEY!

I really like how on page 447 it talks about the different strategies. I am a very organized person and I like things to be "black and white" sort to speak so this part of the text really helps organize my thoughts. It talks about experiential strategies. Those consist of fieldnotes, double-entry notes, notes from our background reading, and other feildwork records like tapes and transcripts, photos and artifacts. It explains how in our fieldwriting, we will use this information to convince our readers that we were there, and that we saw the places, heard the people, and treid to interpret what they were doing. I really like how the author explains into detail what experiential stragegies are because it gives me a clear picture in my mind. It helps to remind me that I have been working hard on this project and I know a lot of information from all the observations and interviews and I need to give myself more credit for it. Another way to represent myself and my information is by rhetorical strategies and by aesthetic strategies. I think the other two are wonderful strategies as well but I really like the first one the best because it is the most personal. I do like the aesthetic strategy too because it talks about representing our information in a creative way and that is something I like to do! I love to be creative so I think that part of the project would be really fun. The text on pages 439-449 was very imformative and I believe it will help me for my final project!!

Toolbox

After reading Stephen King's entry Toolbox it got me thinking.  I really liked his thinking about the "toolbox". He doesn't necessarily mean an actual toolbox he is talking about what you use to assist you in something.  I think each and everyone of us has a toolbox in writing.  The things that help us out the most on top. And the least used on the bottom and so on and so on.  It's a great way to look at things.

Resisting Writing

I enjoyed reading this part of the chapter. I mainly enjoyed it because it described me in a lot of ways. I feel like it is hard for me to just sit down and write on the computer. This is because these days there are so many distractions once you get onto your computer. There is facebook, aim, email, and just plain surfing the internet that can distract you from hours on end. I liked the quote even when you're prepared to begin writing, it's difficult to " just do it." I usually have to sit down, get comfortable and think for five to ten minutes about what I am going to say in a blog or what I am going to focus on in order to be able to start writing and entering a successful blog entry. I thought it was interesting to read that even professional writers procrastinate. I am not surprised by that but it made me feel like I wasn't dumb for procrastinating and going on different websites before I write since even professionals do the same thing. I also enjoyed the quotes that this passage provided from professionals, I thought that they were very informative and smart. Writers are not born but dependent on work habits, daily discipline, and reader response, as well as the voices of other writers they've read. You have to be motivated and disciplined in order to be a great writer, and focus on what you're saying whenever you are writing so you don't sound like an idiot.

Tools of Writing

Withing writing are many aspects. You have to look at writing as not one entity, but as a multi-faceted device. When writing you have to use nouns, verbs, adjectives, verb/subject agreement, gerunds, no runons and the list continues. They are the little things that make up the overall paper or writing. You have to know how to use these in order to write effectively. If you can't then you don't get your point across. People need to practice and figure out all of their tools while they have the time. High school was a great time for figuring out. College is also another great time. It is more crucial to have more of an understanding at a college level, but you can still practice. People do not want to hire someone who does not know how to properly write. Writing is within every discipline that exists. Reading, writing, and speaking correctly all make up how a person is perceived. If they can't do all of them or even just one of them well, they will be looked down upon. That will result in problems, not only for themselves but for those they are around. Writing well is something everyone needs to master to be able to have a life that people respect. Use the tools and learn how they better support writing.