The "Art" of Writing

            Writing as an art form is spoken about constantly: show don’t tell, show and tell, details, mystery, etc. This is commonly discussed in English courses, both writing and literature based. Recently I learned a lot about writing from a course I never thought I’d get tips about the “art” of writing from: Marketing Management – Neeley Fellows, Honors.

            One of the many sources of abnormality that I possess is my opposite interests: Math and Writing. Somehow this has turned into an Accounting degree (I won’t lay out here the formula I created to help me decide that), and an accidental Writing minor. Writing is a real passion of mine, and it has definitely lead to some teasing from some students in the Business School as well as some questions about my interest in Accounting. Let me say it plain here: I want to be an Accountant – a Forensic Accountant specifically. However, I also want to be a writer. The two aren’t mutually exclusive. Keep this information in mind – it’s key to understanding the experience.

            So, last semester in two of my business classes I learned a valuable lesson: in business classes details aren’t desired unless asked for. In my business plan I turned in, some adjectives were circled and points were taken off because they were details and thus unnecessary. I thought that was just good writing, but I made a note, and tried again. The next time my grammar was too good, so points were taken off. I pulled up Meriam-Webster’s online to show him that I had even looked up the rule, and he said it didn’t matter. It didn’t read like he thought it should, so the point deduction remained. Then on an essay I was told my answer was "too thorough" and that I should have just answered the question asked and only that – again, points deducted. I took note of this: English classes remember to have good grammar and details as needed, Business classes simply answer the question asked more with minimal details. I would not take grade cuts in the next semester – I had learned my lesson.

            Or so I thought. This semester I took my first purely essay based exam in a non-English course. Marketing, Fellows style. On this exam I consciously thought about the lessons I’d learned last semester. The first question was posed and I thought, “Perhaps I should outline all the phases in the last 100 years of marketing because I know them, so why not? Why not? It takes up precious time, that’s why not. You got points off last semester, that’s why not. If he wanted that information he would have asked for it, that’s why not.” Let me let you in on a little secret, friends: I found out why when the tests were returned. The details that had been my friends for 15 solid years of literacy and creative writing had been feeling neglected for a whole semester, and now – when their presence was desired most – I had not used them out of fear.

            Fear. “There is nothing to fear, but fear itself.” Thanks, FDR. While some books start out pointing out the hurt that was created in some lives by that quote, I will begin this paragraph commenting on the hurt that was created in my life by not remembering the moral from that quote. I should have not feared the consequence and went with my gut – my gut said, “Write the information,” and Fear said, “Remember last time?” Oh, Fear, well played this time. But I shan’t let you remain triumphant. I shall prevail. Writing is an art form – it’s a point that I’ve argued against many an Art and Business major. I am an artist with a pen, not a brush. But learning Business writing is proving to be rather difficult. There seems to be no hard and fast rule. I’m told one semester that my details make it inefficient and unprofessional, and the next semester I am told that writing is an art form that is more difficult than I think. I'd heard of Fear hurting writing and impeding the message. Guess I understand it fully now. Wish it hadn't affected by GPA, but still. Small points off on a GPA represent lessons learned, right? Maybe?

            Mistakes, mistakes. Writing is natural for me – even more so than breathing (I’m heavily asthmatic). But I believe my non-writing classes may be giving my writing a new kind of challenge: fitting into a undefined box that it has fought it has fought for years to be free from.

Dr. Langlinais Interview: Recap and Takeaways

     Dr. Langlinais is always a great professor to talk to so it is no surprise that our interview with her went so well. She has an especially unique perception of the world and writing. She is very visual – she values art, drama, and poetry – so her view of writing and inspiration for writing is considerably different from what we might call the “typical” writer.

     One of the initially interesting things she shared during our interview was the amount of interest she had in the actual publishing process. When she published her chat-book of poetry with a friend of hers, she explained how intrical the process was to the thought and message of the chat-book itself. The publisher literally strung the pages together to create the book, after Dr. Langlinais and she had discussed the possible options as far as color and print of the book. She said that handcrafted-ness of the chat-book created part of the meaning that would be lost if the poems were simply posted on an eBook.

     If there were indeed a concrete range of people ranging from complete adaptation of eBooks (10) and only using traditional books (1), Dr. Langlinais is on the latter end of the scale. While she realizes that eBooks are becoming more and more common, she says there is just something about holding the text and thus interacting with it. It brought up memories for her of her childhood. When taking her class, I remember her strong desire for everything to be printed out for her to grade or to read. She says that it depends on what she is writing as to if she writes by hand or on the computer initially. Generally she uses the computer when working on poetry, because you can move the poetry around the page and visualize it better. However she has plenty of paper journals from friends who know she writes, so she likes to use them for fiction or little ideas – but each has a specific, organized purpose.

     Dr. Langlinais is rather relaxed about writing. She even says something to the effect of “I know I should write every day at a certain time, but I just don’t.” She admits that it’s more of an on-a-whim basis that she writes than regimented. This contradicts one of the most well-known given pieces of advice that you should set aside a certain time every day that you write.

     The interview with Dr. Langlinais (1) inspired me to write more and make my “accidental” English minor into a more pre-meditated action, and (2) to understand better from the writer’s point of view. I had questioned how writers felt about their novels moving from print to eBook, and while Dr. Langlinais’s was only one opinion (and most may conflict with it), I understood how it would be a different experience for an author to see their book in print rather than on screen. For my way of thinking, I can see my writing now on a screen even as I type. What I have always dreamed of is the solid binding, the smell of the crisp page, and the pliability of the page as your index finger runs the length of it to turn it. For some writers, it is just the fact that the book was published. For Dr. Langlinais and I, publishing is so much more.