Reflection

As I began researching the keyword project, I was struck by how little I could find for my word that was specific. Style shouldn’t have been too hard right? Well, there are a million and one definitions and uses for that word and it was unbelievably frustrating trying to locate style in rhetoric and composition without steal other classmate’s keywords. Style seemed to always be used in conjunction with another keyword. Style in editing, style in revision, how to do this to style, how to do that to style, but nothing on exactly, 100% what it was.

So, this newsletter was going to be harder than I thought. Something told me I should have voted for creative nonfiction at this rate.

I took a break after the first try feeling defeated and frustrated. The second time I went about doing research, I found information, but no matter what articles I found, they all seemed to be by the same man. This wasn’t good. Sure, Nordquist seemed to have valid ideas and definitions, but I didn’t even know who the hell he was. In fact, this project was more difficult because I have never taken a previous rhetoric class. The only names I am familiar with are the ones presented in this class and in my Visual Rhetoric class. This definitely didn’t give me an upper hand in researching because I wasn’t sure who was valid and who wasn’t.

I made a mental note to pick classes in better order next time.

So on went the research. And grey hair started to sprout.

Eventually, I quit researching and focused on designing the newsletter. Templates? I’m never one for borrowed material. I took a template and shimmied some things around. Then I went back to researching. I wanted to cry, started some articles, and went researching some more.

Needless to say, I’m not happy with the final product. I know I could have done better. However, this flop has inspired me for the remediation of the keyword. A million and one idea popped up and I am happy this time for the looseness of the keyword. Style is applicable to so many things. For the first project, that was horrible, but for the second? Awesome.