Keywords

self-expression, audience engagement, revision process

Abstract

When we consider why most of us write, the reasons tend to focus on expressing ourselves, particularly to an audience. We want our voices to be heard, our thoughts to be given substance and weight. We want someone to know and care about what we have to say In essence, we want to be published. Because of that, we are willing to spend time with our thoughts, to wrestle with them as we try to shape them into a form that will have meaning for others, and we are willing to revise/ reshape/rethink what we write so that it becomes even more effective. My experience tells me that the same desires can motivate my students to have similarly engaging experiences with writing. If they are able to publish, they are often more interested in engaging in the messy, challenging, rewarding process of writing instead of spitting something out to give to the teacher.

Original Publication Citation

“Going Public: Letters to the World.” Voices from the Middle, 8.1 (2000): 42-47. Reprinted in NCTE Inbox Newsletter 3.46 (2004) and October 2, 2007, May 29, 2008, September 20, 2008, and September 29, 2009.