Journal Blog #6: What happens next?

You have worked to narrow your topic. By now you have done a bit of reading and research on the topic, and you have even drafted the introduction. This means that you (and your reader) should have sense of where this work is going.

For this piece, you will need 2-3 body paragraph ideas that help to explore your narrowed topic in some depth. Develop, develop, develop, and don't stop developing. Use sources and examples and quotations to help you to develop, so that your points are as strong and as believable and as helpful as they can be. This is really the key to good academic work.

In this journal blog, share for us, "what happens next." What are the body ideas you expect to use to follow from your well-narrowed thesis statement.

Remember to include your ID# in your post. Aj. M

Journal Blog #5: What is the situation?

This is the most crucial step in the writing process...  thinking of a topic. Like we spoke about in class last week, a topic needs to be specific and focused. Only then will it be meaningful. General and wide is at risk of meaningless. And not to mention: high quality topics get high quality scores.

When working to narrow down to a topic, you need to be thinking of a specific situation. There needs to be something that happened or a particular problem or phenomenon. You need to be able to describe it and introduce the situation to the reader. After that, you naturally move to one of the greatest questions we can ask: "... so, what?" If you can answer that question, then you have a topic.

In this journal blog, describe the "situation" that you're thinking to write about. Be as clear and as focused as you can be. I will give you my feedback on your plan, and yes, probably ask you, "so, what?" in order to find what high quality topics lay within the situation.

Remember to include your ID# in your post. Aj. M

Journal Blog #4: An introduction.

In class, we reviewed introductions about Aung San Suu Kyi, Dave Brubeck, and Barack Obama. Starting an essay is often the hardest thing to do. It is also the most crucial. From your first sentence, you are already taking your reader down a path, so from that moment on, there needs to be a clear direction and a logic to that journey. Every sentences is like a step along the way. If a sentence doesn't fit, it is like your reader stepping into a hole, and from there, it is difficult to get back out.

We are working to discuss Aung San Suu Kyi as a woman leader who is able to soften conflict and bring people together. On the blog, write your best attempt at an introduction: catch the reader's attention, provide the background and context, and lead us to the thesis statement.

Remember to include your ID# in your post. Aj. M

Journal Blog #3: A good topic.

Clearly there are good essay and there are bad essay. Some are interesting. Some are not. Sometimes the quality of the topic depends on the reader's interest. But then other times, a great writer has an ability to make a boring topic amazing.

One thing is for sure: as a writer, you need to care about what you're writing. If you don't care, one... it will be very hard to write, and two... your reader will know that you don't care. Neither is a good thing. As readers, we like to be inspired, and surprised, and informed. This is enjoyable to us.

So the question is, how do we develop, create, and find a good topic to write about? In your opinion, what are the ingredients of a great topic?

Share your ideas on the blog. Remember to include your ID# in your post. Aj. M

Journal Blog #2: Yoga

We have been reading about how yoga can wreck your body. By now, you should be noticing that this essay is quite carefully narrowed. It is a long essay, but the topic is very narrow and precise.

What makes the essay long is its development. We get example after example after example in very clear detail. And when the writer uses academic or biological language that we may not know, he makes sure to explain it to us: where the nerves are, how the arteries flow, why the vertebra flex in the way they do. While this is academic language, it is always supported with ideas that we can see, feel, and hear (pop, pop, pop), making this essay both informative academically, but also in a way, entertaining.

In this journal blog, describe one of the injuries talked about in Section 2 of the essay. Explain in your own words what the injury is, what harm it causes, and how it happened.

Remember to include your ID# in your post. Aj. M

Journal Blog #1: Academic writing is hard...

Writing academically is different from other kinds of writing. It requires a different set of vocabulary. It requires a special kind of tone and voice. It also requires attention to detail and support that makes you sound like an authority on the topic of which you write. Despite new media and new forms of communication, academic writing continues to be the medium of communication in the academic community... and guess what...  you have now joined that community at MUIC.

There are many reasons why you may find academic writing harder than other kinds. You may actually enjoy writing...  writing to a friend, writing poetry, writing creatively... some people find this relaxing, a hobby, or even fun. On the other hand, academic writing tends to instill fear in us because we may not know this kind of language yet.

In this first journal blog, explain what makes academic writing for you. Don't say grammar... because this is typical and everyone struggles with it... and I mean everyone. Think about other things about academic writing that you find particularly intimidating.

Remember to include your ID# in your post. I look forward to reading your thoughts. Aj. M