tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-184816134218901227.post1427530418962654493..comments2023-04-09T04:29:48.993-07:00Comments on Taming the Octopus - The Many Arms of Writing: Atlantic Magazine - thoughts from a Pacific NW GalKendra Wagnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14482850811450981959noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-184816134218901227.post-59882214736850116832012-12-23T11:43:15.621-08:002012-12-23T11:43:15.621-08:00False humility aside, I'm a great writer. And...False humility aside, I'm a great writer. And that is because it was something I molded myself into. Nobody taught me. Of course writing can be taught, but the only thing I know how to teach people to do is to more efficiently self-teach.<br /><br />I'm 21 now, and when I was 14, I was an average writer. I never paid attention in class, but I still had some innate potential to write well. So, I started reading quite a bit, and tried to take different writing methods and incorporate them into my own.<br /><br />I've crafted my writing to have a professional command of respect (from legal/government documents), a poetic feel (from poetry and fiction) and a sense of frankness and cogency (from many powerfully persuasive)<br /><br />As for what teaching method is most effective, right now I'm leaning toward a Socrates-Meno teaching method. A one-on-one dialogue that examines deep into a person's deepest convictions about writing (or anything really) and questions habits that have been pursued for a long time.<br /><br />I've felt like I've learned the most when I was writing for my own purposes. When I had a point I wanted to convince people of, I would write essays of my own and they would come out much better than if I were assigned to do them. <br /><br />A problem that school assignments have is that they feel like an artificial jumping into hoops, where the writing itself is not appreciated and it doesn't have any impact/influence on the world AT ALL. That is what makes it difficult for teachers to connect with students, regarding writing.<br /><br />- Juggernautkinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03608732823307476597noreply@blogger.com