We are all writers. College Writing is based on this assumption-that we are all writers and that as writers we grow and develop by writing and working through the steps of the writing process. I know some of you don't believe me. I know some of you are right now thinking: "I don't care what she says-I'm not a writer." Some of you are right. You may not be a fiction writer. You may not be a poet. You may not have published something in a magazine or journal. You may not have sold a story or essay or screenplay. That is okay. You may not be that kind of writer (yet). But there are different ways to define "writer"-meaning there are different ways to be a writer.
As a class, we will begin with the assumption that whenever anyone writes something she is a writer-at least for that moment. But are we the same kind of writer all the time? For example, when I'm writing my novel, am I the same kind of writer as when I'm writing an essay? Am I the same kind of writer as when I'm writing this handout for class? Are there some things that always remain the same regardless of what kind of writing we do? Are there some things that change? Another way to say all this is: How does the specific writing situation or context shape and influence what we write and how we define ourselves as writers?
As a way to begin examining these questions, your first essay will explore the ways you have been and currently are a writer. By working through a series of generative writing you will produce an essay for our class focused on one or two "moments" that illustrates the ways you have been a writer in at least two contexts. These essays will be published in our first class magazine in order to continue and further our on-going discussion about how to define the term "writer."
Although we will be taking this essay through the four-step process, it won't be "finished"-meaning how we see ourselves as writers is something that constantly changes. We will be returning to this essay at the end of the semester when we begin our last unit, the Writer's Reflection.
