Week 3

It's clear from our discussion that there's no single way to write well. What all our examples do have in common is a clarity and precision that we can certainly emulate in our own projects.

If you'd like to see what authors consider good writing, The Atlantic Monthly has a regular column called "A Close Read" that takes apart a passage from a book and explains how it works.

Week 2

This week we'll have a shortened class to allow time to attend the job talk at 4:30 in Dale Hall 31. Be sure to bring to class a copy of what you consider to be good writing.

If you'd like to read more about Alan Sokal's hoax in Social Text, see the collection of articles on his site. There's more information about the bad writing contest at the site of the journal Philosophy and Literature.

Week 1

For this week, you'll have to sign up for a free blog using Blogger. There are step-by-step instructions at this site. Be sure to e-mail me the address you created.

Once you have set up your blog, refer to the assignment for the first week on the syllabus. It asks you to read George Orwell's essay "Politics and the English Language." Write a short paragraph about how this piece from 1946 relates to your writing project. Post your response on your blog.