Friday, March 16, 2012
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Vigorous, Clear and Economical Style Continued...
So I was looking around the web and trying to find some good clips or images relating to vigorous, clear and economical style, and I found a couple! Here is one image that really sums up what this style is all about:
This image concludes on the idea that an author should be as simple and clear on his/her writing as possible and make it understandable for the readers.
I found another picture of what an author should try to avoid when writing in vigorous, clear and economical style:
These types of posts happen all the time on Facebook and are exactly what an author should not do when using this style. An author should try to vary the sentence length and delete any not needed information. Well I hope these pictures helped some of my readers understand vigorous, clear and economical style.
Godspeed world.
Works Cited
Image #1- Engrishfunny.org - http://engrishfunny.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/engrish-funny-duh.jpg
Image #2- Martik Panosian's Blog - http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-41wEtLZSR6I/TcTqiAfsMJI/AAAAAAAAA-Y/FX7T1ueFkz0/s1600/Extremely-Long-Status-Updates-In-Facebook-11.png
What in the world is vigorous, clear and economical style?!
Hello blogging world! Its Scott Odorico again to update you on the importance (along with the confusion) of vigorous, clear and economical style! Now if anyone out there is like me, he/she would be thinking, "what the heck is this vigorous, clear and economical style stuff?!" I had no idea what in the world this was when I was first taught it, but luckily, I learned that it is pretty simple stuff. With just editing a paper, most students are doing this anyway, without even knowing it! Vigorous, clear and economical style is simply writing that is clear, understandable and easy-to-read, and is easy to apply to your paper! This style will make work less confusing for the reader and not make the reader think about he/she is reading.
When using vigorous, clear and economical style, there are several guidelines a writer should stick to that will make a paper that much better! These guidelines come from How To Write Anything: A guide and Reference and give some great suggestions on how to edit a paper successfully. Here is the list of guidelines every writer should use if using vigorous, clear and economical style:
-use strong, concrete subjects and objects
-avoid clumsy noun phrases
-avoid sentences with long windups
- use action verbs when possible
-avoid strings of prepositional phrases
-don't repeat key words close together
-avoid doublings
-turn clauses into more direct modifiers
-cut introductory expressions such as it, is and there is/are when you can
-vary your sentence lengths and structures
-listen to what you have written
-cut a first draft by 25 percent or more
(Ruszkiewicz 378-383)
I know what some readers are thinking, "now what in the heck does all this nonsense mean??" Well the truth is, no one really knows. I'm just kidding. It's pretty simple once one gets the hang of it. When looking over this list, some of the rules are pretty easy to understand, such as "listen to what you have written," or "vary your sentence lengths and structures." And then there are others, such as, "avoid clumsy noun phrases," or "turn clauses into more direct modifiers," are a lot more difficult to understand. Well let me see if I can clarify some of these confusing ones for the readers out there.
The rule "avoid clumsy noun phrases" may confuse some young writers out there and give them some worries. Well all this rule is advising against is making a simple noun too long and wordy. An example of a clumsy noun phrase would be:
Members of the entire student body at Oregon High School...
A much more clear and understandable way of writing this would be:
Students at Oregon High School...
With this simple rule, writers can clarify confusing nouns for their readers and make the text shorter at the same time.
Another guideline that confuses some students is "turn clauses into more direct modifiers." This adjustment is easy to spot out in a paper and easy to revise. Modifiers using who, which or that can be replaced with a much more understandable modifier. An example of a wordy modifier that can be revised is:
My coach, who is internationally renowned, expected a higher salary.
A way to simplify this modifier is by cutting the who and cutting the commas, and switching up the word order a bit. A revised version of this sentence would be:
My internationally renowned coach expected a higher salary.
By making this switch, a writer makes his/her work flow easier and roll of the tongue. This switch also allows the readers to simply read and not have to think about the text, which is what the author's goal should be.
Overall, vigorous, clear and economical style should be something authors should try to incorporate into his/her paper to make it easier for his/her audience. This style can be achieved by following these guidelines and thoroughly editing one's paper. One last thought I would like to leave all of my readers with is a webpage I came across while googling vigorous, clear and economical style:
Because I could not find a good video on YouTube that has anything to do with this style, I went to google (like any lost person out in the world). This is a google search list when one types in vigorous, clear and economical style. And if one just looks at some of those people who come up on the page one would see Abraham Lincoln, Ernest Hemingway, Ronald Reagan, as well as Harvard College and Joseph Stalin (a great mind, but in a bad way). This must be a sign how using this style can help one's writing style.
Until next time blogging world!
Godspeed.
Work Cited
Ruszkiewicz, John J. How to Write Anything: A Guide and Reference, with Readings. Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martins, 2010. Print.
Website #1- Google -http://www.google.com/#sclient=psy-ab&hl=en&source=hp&q=vigorous+clear+and+economical+style&pbx=1&oq=vigorous+clear+and+economical+style&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&gs_sm=e&gs_upl=472l15472l0l15598l72l48l14l0l0l4l470l8839l1.29.13.3.1l60l0&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.,cf.osb&fp=5c790db8b679f598&biw=1015&bih=605
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
PEER EDITING CONTINUED
Not so fast blogging world! I was strolling through Youtube and noticed a really good video about peer editing and shows the proper way to go about the process of peer editing and what kind of questions you should be asking. Here it is:
I hope you liked it and I hope you learned a little about how you should go about reviewing someone's paper. These in depth questions about the information and concepts are really what you should be focusing on and not just the spelling!
Until next time blogging World!
Godspeed.
Work Cited
The Always Fun and Exciting Task of Peer Editing! Woo Hoo!
Now whether you're a student in middle school, or a professional businessman or women, everyone has had to go through the process of writing a paper and having a peer edit it. Many problems come from peer editing, including one of the biggest problems: focusing on spelling and grammar instead of bigger issues and the concept of the paper. Now I know when I read over a friends paper, I usually only look over it and check his spelling, grammar, and possibly some confusion in word order along the way. Obviously I have this process wrong and need some help, which I am working on. One should really focus on these big issues and concept problems rather than specifically only correcting spelling errors. Another idea to keep in mind is that one should grade someone else's paper as one would grade and edit one's own paper. One should also be honest with the author of the paper and tell them what is wrong and what is right, but in a appropriate manner. Many other problems occur with the way people share their comments to the author, and I happened to stroll upon a funny video that covers these ideas precisely. Here is the video for your viewing pleasure:
I hoped you enjoyed it! I thought it was pretty humorous, especially the fact that most of those kids are too young to have actually have written an in depth paper and have had it edited. But it did successfully portray the ways that an editor can poorly give his or her thoughts on one's paper. One has to be appropriate in the way that one expresses his or her feelings about someone else's paper; you don't want to look like mean Margaret or speedy Sandy!
With age comes the ability to accept criticism on one's paper, but sometimes this is not true. When a "defensive Dave" attacks the editor because they are "just to mean to them", he is making a big mistake and won't get the honest opinion from the editor. I found a funny image online that shows a little about this idea, although it is in cat form:
Well I don't know if it made you laugh but it sure got me chuckling to myself. Anyway, this image supports the idea that one should definitely not be to harsh on an author or an editor, and be appropriate in the way they portray a message. Silly Cats.
I recently went through the process of writing a large paper and had several peers, including some classmates, edit it and read over it. Although some of them gave me ideas I did not end up using, it was helpful nonetheless to hear some different opinions and go over some options for my paper. I suggest to anyone having a hard time closing up that conclusion, or figuring out that thesis statement to find a peer and have them read over it to see what they think. Who knows, maybe they will be right!
Finally, I would like to leave you with a list of guidelines to follow when you're peer editing. This list of guidelines is brought to you by Ms. Legler, my Expository Writing student teacher:
-edit the draft the same way you would edit yours
-focus on concepts; not spelling and grammar
-write comments in the margins
-use proofreading symbols
-be specific with problems and strengths; provide examples
-praise the meritorious parts of a paper
-be polite, but be honest
One last thing all authors should remember is to thank your editor for a job well done and for being honest and making your paper top-notch!
Well, that's all for this time blogging world. I will see you next time. Be safe out there.
Godspeed.
Work Cited
Video #1: Youtube.com - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBuq4qgRhCc
Image #1: Denisedumars.com - http://www.denisedumars.com/img/lolcats/wrong.jpg
List #1: Ms. Legler - Peer Editing Guidelines Worksheet - January 4th, 2011
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Integrating Sources Continued...
Hello blogging world! I was just strolling through the internet today and came across an interesting video that happens to really help when it comes to integrating your sources. It is about a girl who wrote a paper and had it reviewed and had some minor citing problems in it. She discusses several problems that I have trouble with including hanging quotes and correct paraphrasing. Here is the video for you viewing pleasure:
I hope you enjoyed it and learned a little bit. Comment if you have any questions!
Godspeed.
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