Notes: How Does Writing Work? Theories of Writing

Key Concepts

  • Writing is personal: there is no universal formula; it works differently for everyone.
  • Develop a personal theory of writing and test it against what you’ve been taught.
  • Prior knowledge can help or hinder; the goal is to become your own authority.

Your Theory of Writing

  • The course helps you become aware of how writing works for you.
  • Test ideas; don’t take others’ theories at face value.

Prior Knowledge: What You've Been Taught

  • Common ideas people share about writing (e.g., outlines, audience, thesis-first) may not work for you.
  • List what you’ve been taught and evaluate what actually helps your writing.

Theory #1: Writing is a Product

  • Focus on form and modes (e.g., persuasive vs. personal essays).
  • Understand the structure: introduction, body, conclusion; sentences form the whole.
  • Content matters insofar as it fits the required form; style and argument quality depend on form.
  • This view emphasizes how to build the text more than what you say.
  • This theory is popular in textbooks but increasingly questioned by scholars.

Theory #2: Writing is a Process

  • Emphasizes what writing does: discovering meaning and figuring things out.
  • Start with content; use freewriting to generate ideas without judgment.
  • Produce a lot to find your voice; then shape it.
  • Distinguishes two processes: writing and editing; best when separated.
  • Writer-centric but benefits from reader feedback to understand reader impact.

Theory #3: Writing is Actually Rhetoric

  • All writing aims to persuade or influence reader reaction.
  • The rhetorical triangle: writer, text, reader.
  • Recognize that writing decisions shape how readers respond; nothing is objective.
  • Effective writing requires understanding audience and how text interacts with readers.

Course Plan: Applying Theories

  • Throughout the semester, compare the three theories and see how well they describe your writing.
  • Reflect on what has worked for you and why.
  • Use these theories to analyze and improve your own work; you may develop your own ideas.

Takeaways

  • You should become your own authority on writing by testing ideas and embracing what works for you.
  • Writing becomes improvable when you understand your own process and its fit with reader needs.