FAQ: Can I ______?

Writers sit at their computers, drafts on their screens, and look up at me to ask, "Can I ______?" all the time. They usually want to know if they can write a certain word or insert a certain punctuation mark.

My answer: yes.

Always: yes.

They need to see that they have ownership of their papers. That does not come from me telling them that they can or cannot do something. They take ownership when they think about "should," not "can."

When it's words: I always tell them that they can write whatever they want, but they need to think about if they should write it. They need to consider what they want to say and make the decision themselves: Does it support my point? Does it need to be there? Is it veering off topic? Does it make my essay better? Does it make me sound intelligent?

When it's punctuation: I ask them what job they think that period or comma or whatever is doing, and if that's what needs to be done in that spot.

I really like telling students they can write what they want. They are too accustomed to just doing what they are told without thinking about why. They need someone to say, "Sure, you can do that, but what happens when you do?"

FAQ: Can you make sure this is good?

That is not a generalization. We are asked that exact question--Can you make sure this is good?--frequently. Those are the words.*

The simplest of answers: No.

The process is always longer than that. People come to us for help, they just don't know what help we have to give. Instead of a bunch of marks on a page that will turn into corrections that students may or may not understand, we have questions.

I usually ask student writers who ask this question if they think their paper is not good. They are not accustomed to this question. It shocks some people visibly. They get a strange, confused expression on their face. If they were moving, they stop. Not everybody reacts this way, but a good number of people may have never been asked to think about the quality of their own work before.

My question leads to why they think their paper is not good. This is the important point in the conversation. They usually have a good idea. Suddenly they are able to verbalize that they know their paper has no thesis, that they need to work on organization, that the are struggling with the conclusion, or some other specific issue that was lurking behind their general request for goodness.

Some of them fall back from making sure it's good to wanting to make sure "it makes sense" or "it flows." I keep on going. I ask them why they think it doesn't. Eventually, they are able to evaluate their own work, and most of the time, they are right.

These students have somehow grown accustomed to other people making sure it's good. When asked to be specific in what they think is malfunctioning in their paper, when they start to think about it, when they do that work, they are able to start to make sure it's good, and we are able to help them do so.

It all comes down to ownership. I find that most people are perfectly capable of crafting a thoughtful paper if they are willing to think about it, answer questions, and dig into what they are trying to say. That's why I make them dig into what they think is wrong in the first place.

FAQ: Print in the Library

It's the beginning of the fall semester, so we, along with every other office on campus, are peppered with questions. People want to know where classes are, how to get ahold of people, where to find services, and we usually know where to send them.

Those are the general, new-student, beginning-of-the-semester questions. We also get certain questions that pertain to our specific expertise not only around the time when classes start, but throughout the semester.

One of those is about printing. People see computers here in the Writing Lab, so they think printing happens here. It doesn't.

A few people asked today. We have one sign that says Print in the Library, but it's not enough. I printed a twin* sign for our door. I told Larry** about our new sign, and Brooks made a joke about having a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) list for the Writing Lab.

I thought, "Hey, that's a good idea." I told Brooks I would put it on the blog. So here I am, starting a new feature on the blog. Whenever a frequently asked question comes up, I'll post how it's asked, who asks it, and how we usually answer it.

*A fraternal twin. I changed the wording just a bit to make sure people know not only to go to the library, but that the library is upstairs in the other building.

**The math guy, who also fields this question all the time.