Give the Audience What They Want

The first article on Audience Analysis explains that there are three types of audiences for every message. I did not include an audience analysis to my project proposal and have included it below-

1. Primary Audience- this is the group that will act so this would be the tutors who will use the guidebook and the students who use the website

2. Secondary Audience- this is the group that is affected by my plan and this would be the director and assistant director of the Writing Center. The guidebook will aid the training process and hopefully increase the amount of students who use the the center.

3. Immediate Audience- this group transmits information so this would be the teachers and professors who send their students to the center.


In Dodge's article he discusses what should be included in professional reports. In the summary section he stated that the summary should include the subject, the significance and action called for or the solution. Most of the time I think that the summary is a condensed version of the report but it should specifically include those three items. Management needs the facts as quickly as possible and the summary is way to give it to them. But in order for the summary to be successful it needs to effectively state the facts. Ensuring that those three aspects are included is a way to ensure that the basics are included in the executive summary.



Vinci' s article on pitfalls is a basic guide for writing successfully. I mention only a few since there are ten. The first pitfalls emphasize remembering the Who, Why and How of the message being written- always keep the audience in mind. The second is to avoid writing to impress. I had a student in the Writing Center who apologized for using simple language in her paper and said she was going to 'beef it up'. I explained to her that it is more important to be clear than to sound smart and be confusing. The third pitfall stresses that the message should only have one goal. Multiple goals can confuse the reader and undermine the intent of the message. The sixth one is not defining your terms. This one is important--if the reader doesn't know what you're talking about how can they understand the conveyed message? When I was in intercollegiate debate one of the first things we put in our affirmative case was the definitions. Definitions provide a base to build the message on. The tenth one is not rewriting. This is the revision step we have read about and need to incorporate. The document can always be better.

Project Proposal

Executive Summary
Clemson University is taking steps to become a top research university. That goal includes making the Writing Center reflect and aid the research nature of the University. The Writing Center recently obtained a grant to update and improve the center. Previously the Writing Center had only four tutors and was aimed at helping freshmen English students. The Writing Center is currently in the expansion phase—adding more tutors and more space. The Writing Center is also broadening its base to include more than just freshman English students. As the Writing Center expands, informational materials will be crucial for tutors and students in order to create the Writing Center the University desires and needs.

Introduction
The Writing Center needs aids and promotional materials that will inform tutors of their duties and the students of the availability of the service. The Writing Center does not currently have aids and promotional materials. I will remedy this situation by creating aids to equip the tutors and promotional materials to inform the students. The Writing Center is a place that fosters learning. Up until this year the center has had a limited staff. This year begins the expansion process in the Writing Center. The staff has been increased, the space has been expanded and the space will be refined this coming summer. The materials I will provide will help the tutors as they receive students of all levels and disciplines. In anticipation of the bigger and better Writing Center, I will be providing materials that will help students of all levels know about the service and hopefully they will use this tool.

Current Situation
The Writing Center was operating with as few people and as little resources as possible in the past few years. As Clemson University increases the level of academia there is an apparent need for more tools for the students. The Writing Center has been focused on being a resource for the freshman English classes in the past. With the recent reformatting of the freshman classes, a stronger Writing Center is needed. A grant has been given to the center and attention has been turned to expanding the facility. The Writing Center has hired more tutors this year to accommodate the expansion plan. With the additional staff the lack of materials and structure is apparent. Without structure and a consistent message the goal cannot be obtained. Although the Writing Center has been in existence for many years, there are no guides for the tutors to follow in tutoring sessions.

In addition to the lack of material for the tutors, the students are unaware of the services that the Writing Center can provide. Many do not know that the Writing Center exists. Others believe that it is a remedial service or just for freshmen English students. The Writing Center is for all students no matter the level or the discipline. Part of the misconception is the lack of any web information. Just about everything on campus has a website or information on a webpage. The Writing Center has an outdated, single-paragraph little blurb on the library’s webpage. This does not provide the necessary information to the students.

Project Plan
The plan of this project includes a guidebook, website and flyer. The success of the Writing Center is dependent upon the tutors and the students. The tutors must know their duties in order to provide excellent tutoring sessions. The plan for revamping the Writing Center starts with creating an introductory guidebook for tutors.

i. The first aspect of this guidebook is to establish the standards of academic integrity.
ii. This guide will need to provide introductory material for new graduate students who get an assistantship in the Writing Center. They will need to be informed of the required hours, the undergraduate class set-up and other basic introductory information and rules.
iii. One of the duties of that the tutors have is to go to classes and talk about what the Writing Center is and what services it provides. A section will detail out all necessary information for the tutors to ensure a consistent message is portrayed in each class.
iv. The next goal of the guide is to introduce a plan the tutor can follow for any tutoring session. For those who have not tutored before, this will be a crucial aspect of the guidebook.
v. A duty that the Writing Center tutors have recently been given is the Speak Tests. Tutors will be responsible for assessing these tests and will be given extensive training and this will be an important part of the guidebook.

The next part of implementing the University’s research goal is to create several website pages that help expand the sphere of the knowledge of the Writing Center. The Writing Center cannot be successful without the students knowing of the services.

i. The website must include all basic information: location, hours, phone number
ii. The content that is given out in classes by the tutors will also be repeated on the website as part of the effort to create a unified message.
iii. The Writing Center wants the students to create relationships with the tutors so there will be a ‘meet the tutors’ section.

The final aspect of the plan includes a promotional flyer to help inform the students of the Writing Center.

i. This flyer will also repeat the basic information of the Writing Center. It is intended to be a quick reference more than a marketing tool.

Qualifications
Both the job of tutoring and the University are new experiences for me. As a new student to Clemson there are certain aspects about the university that would be helpful to know when tutoring the students. Many undergraduate students look to the graduate student tutors for guidance and help, but many of the graduate students do not know the basics of the University. Tutors would like to be able to help the students who come in as much as possible. Personally, I have been faced with certain situations and it would be helpful to know the correct protocol. What does the University and Writing Center expect? This question is what motivated me to take a look at the need and remedy it. My plan will fill the void of knowledge and allow the tutors to be more effective.

I also have experience in writing materials, especially manuals. Although this will be less formal than a manual, it follows the same idea— inform a new audience. My experience in business has also included maintaining a website. I am familiar with the basic concepts and skills that go along with designing and maintaining a website.

Cost and Benefit/Project Schedule
My plan for this project includes several deliverables. My goal is to start formatting them in the next week. I have met with the Writing Center Director and Assistant Director to get a feel for what they are looking for in this project. I plan on meeting with the director again to get more information about the Speak Tests. A major aspect of this for the client is the website and I hope to get started on that as soon as possible. The draft is due October 14th but I would like to have it completed by October 1st so I can have Barbara Ramirez review it for consistency in purpose and accomplishment of their goals.

Conclusion
My plan will aid in creating a Writing Center that adequately reflects the research nature of the university. It will increase the effectiveness of the tutors and allow for a smoother tutoring session. It will also foster relationships with students of all levels and disciplines and not just freshmen in English classes. The introductory materials for the tutors will equip them with tools that will allow them to effectively tutor all students. My plan will also aid in expanding the sphere of influence that the Writing Center has. The website will allow students everywhere to see the availability of the Writing Center hours and tutors. My plan should foster relationships between the student and tutor and increase the level of learning that is obtained.

Business Correspondence

In David V. Lewis's article, one of the most important statements about what to avoid is, "The letter is writer- rather than reader-oriented" (119). Obviously we write for an audience. If the letter is more for the writer than the reader it defeats the purpose of writing. As a reader, crucial information could be missing because the writer is writing based on his or her knowledge versus the knowledge that the recipient has. This idea hits on the idea of audience adaption again.

In Allan A. Gatthorn's article, he lays out strategies for delivering bad news. I appreciate that he stated there is no good way to deliver bad news, but an empathetic manager who delivers the message in person can alleviate some of the disappointment. The ideas behind the direct and indirect delivery are interesting. I originally thought that the indirect method would mention the 'sorry' aspect sooner than the direct, but then the direct method is called direct because it gets straight to the point.

In Harold K. Mintz's article, he provides methods to writing a memo. As with other technical writing articles we've read this one also states that clarity is most important. He lays out the format of the memo with the questions, "What are the facts? What do they mean? What do we do now?" A memo is written to inform and to direct. If the memo is not clear then the purpose of the memo is defeated--once again hitting on the concept of adapting to the audience. Mintz also mentions this but terms it the "human approach."

Problem Statements

1. The Writing Center knows that the center does not reflect the research nature of the university.

But the Writing Center doesn’t have aids and promotional materials. They need aids and promotional materials in order to equip the tutors and inform the students.

So I will create the aids and promotional materials that reflect the research nature of the university



2. The Writing Center would like to have aids and promotional materials that inform tutors of their duties and the students of the availability of the service.

But the Writing Center does not have aids and promotional materials

So I will make the real situation more ideal by creating aids to equip the tutors and promotional materials to inform the students of the service.



3. The situation the Writing Center is facing can be described as not sufficient to meet the need.

But the situation has negative consequences because the center does not reflect the research nature of the university and the tutors are ill equipped.

So I will alleviate the consequences by writing aids and promotional materials that changes the situation from not able to support the need to supporting the university’s research goals.

Project Proposal Outline

Executive summary- Clemson University is taking steps to become a top research university. That goal includes making the Writing Center reflect and aid to the research nature of the University. Previously the Writing Center had only four tutors and was aimed at helping freshman English students. The Writing Center is currently in the expansion phase, adding more tutors and more space. The Writing Center is also broadening its base to include more than just freshman English students. As the Writing Center expands, informational materials will be crucial for tutors and students.



Introduction- The Writing Center is a place that fosters learning. Up until this year the center has had a limited staff. This year begins the expansion process in the Writing Center. The staff has been increased, the space has been expanded and the space will be refined this coming summer. In anticipation of the new, bigger, better Writing Center I will be providing materials that will help students of all levels know about and hopefully use this tool. Also the materials I will provide will aid the tutors as the receive students of all levels and disciplines.

1. Current Situation— The Writing Center has hired more tutors this year to accommodate the expansion plan. However, no guides or promotional materials exist. Although the Writing Center has been in existence for many years, there is no information on the web about the center other than a paragraph of outdated information on the library’s website. The Writing Center has been focused on being a resource for the freshman English classes, however they goal of the Writing Center is to expand to students of all levels and disciplines.

2. Project Plan- The plan for revamping the Writing Center includes creating an introductory guidebook for tutors. Also, as part of the desire to expand the student audience, certain promotional materials will also be produced, such as a flyer and/or brochure. The final aspect of the plan includes setting up a few web pages to further expand the sphere of influence within the student body.

3. Qualifications- I currently have my assistantship in the Writing Center. As a new student to Clemson they are certain aspects about the university that would be helpful to know when tutoring the students. Using my personal situation along with the vision for the expanded center I hope to create something that will help create the ground work to bring the Writing Center to the forefront of the university.

4. Cost and Benefit/Project Schedule- My plan for this project includes several deliverables. My goal is to start formatting them in the next week. I have met with the Writing Center Director and Assistant Director to get a feel for what they are looking for. A major aspect of this for the client is the website and I hope to get started on that as soon as possible. The draft is due October 14th but I would like to have it completed by October 1st so I can have Barbara Ramirez review it for consistency in purpose.

Conclusion- My plan will aid in creating a Writing Center that adequately reflects the research nature of the university. It will also foster relationships with students of all levels and disciplines--not just freshmen english. The introductory materials for the tutors will equip them with tools that will allow them to effectively tutor all students. My plan will also aid in expanding the sphere of influence that the Writing Center has.

The Composing Process

In Jack Selzer's article I found it interesting that the subject, Kenneth Nelson, spends the least amount of time in the revision steps. "Revision takes up less than 5% of Nelson's time and consists of little more than superficial editing" (184). In other selections that we read, it is revision needing the most time. It does mention that the subject knows the audience and has become a confident writer. Although I agree that knowing the audience and being confident can help write a more effective piece, I think everything needs revision. Everything can be made better.


Also in Selzer, he writes that the Nelson always writes from an outline. I find it can guide the writer and helps with clarity. In the Writing Center, when I have a student whose thoughts and ideas are jumbled or they are repeating themselves, I suggest that they create a quick, simple outline. Basically just one key word for the points, omitting the introduction and conclusion. That way if they can look at the outline it will help them stay on track and support their thesis. I have always had the best intention of writing an outline myself, but rarely do it for short assignments. I tend to write down thoughts and points so I don't forget them, but I don't really organize them into an outline. On larger assignments I depend heavily on my outline. Although very simple, having an outline can help guide the process and prevent writer's block.





Finally, in Greg Myers' article the idea that they must persuade without appearing to be persuasive is a challenge. "Proposal format . . . do not allow for most types of rhetorical appeals; one must persuade without seeming to persuade" (220). Subtlety is hard to achieve on it's own but trying to apply it to a scientific memo or proposal where you're asking for something seems daunting. I think of technical writing to be objective and logical, but if given the task of writing a proposal then one must subtly persuade in order for the proposal to be granted, and the client to be happy. I didn't really think of technical writing as persuasive but given the right task, it can be very persuasive.

Short and Clear Writing

In the beginning of part two, the author sets down two principles; writing should be short and clear and it should be comfortable. In some areas such as engineering and other sciences this is hard to obtain. This industry is one of complex ideas and in-depth analysis. Can an industry that has complexity as an inherent value be reported in a clear and comfortable way? Many other industries and fields can more easily cut the jargon and gobbledygook. Overall, evaluating writing by those two criteria should create better writing.

In Stuart Chase's section on Gobbledygook he shows many examples of problems in language and how they can be cleaned up. I think the best way to characterize this is "over verbalized" language. I think in an academic setting many are trying to prove they are smart and have abilities. Students use so many big and complicated words in order to impress their professors and peers. I think it hides the true value of the work. There may be a flaw in the logic and argument but it may be hard to find if the work is full of gobbledygook. Eliminating gobbledygook allows the true value of the work to show.



William Zinsser's four articles of faith are ideals that should be kept in mind when writing anything, not just pieces for a job. The first one, clarity, is what Chase was aiming for in the Gobbledygook section and the next two, simplicity and brevity, go together. You can't have one without the other. The last one, humanity, goes along with knowing the audience. Realizing their humanity and comprehension allows the reader or listener to get the point with quickness and clarity.

PAFEO

Writing Center guidebook and website.


Purpose- To inform the tutors of the jobs and tasks of the Writing Center. To help students learn about the Writing Center and how they can improve their writing skills.

Audience- The graduate students who work in the Writing Center and the students who use it.

Format- Manual and website must be in line with Clemson and English Dept standards.

Evidence- New documents I'll create and existing documents and guidelines.

Organization- Guidebook/manual and a website.