November 1st Blog

    In reading chapters 17 and 18 in Joining the Conversation, I found that though the information within the reading was mostly aimed to help readers write, cite, and design a formal, written essay, it was extremely relevant when applied to our second writing project.

     In chapter 17, “Using Sources Effectively”, most of the information about sources and how to use them I had already learned through AP courses in high school, but I think that the most important idea that the chapter aims to address is that sources are important for support and clarification. The chapter uses bold titles like “Provide Evidence” and “Align Yourself with Authority”, to focus the ready to the definitive fact that a reliable source constructs reliable and credible support for a statement that an author makes. Chapter 17 states “Aligning yourself with authority shows your readers that your points are supported by a leader in that area-…-and that you are not alone in your convictions. Essentially, this technique allows you to borrow the credibility and status of someone who has compiled a strong record of accomplishment” (Palmquist, 575). This quote explains perfectly how using reliable sources are important in building up you own credibility, which is extremely relevant to Writing Project #2, as we are evaluating the degree of effectiveness of our chosen, thus personal topics, along with the help of sources; as I see it, we are essentially practicing the idea of aligning ourselves with authority within our writing. It is important to remember, however, to” use attributions and in-text citations” (a bold face title, page 578) “such as according to’ or ‘as the author points out- to alert your readers that the point is not your own” (578). This is crucial in any writing piece that you generate using credible sources, as plagiarism is a serious situation that you do not want to put yourself into.

    Chapter 18, “Designing Your Document” had a lot of information concerning exactly as stated, no matter the document you are aiming to create, but I thought that just focusing on the basic Design Principles (page 596) would be beneficial for our writing project. As we basically have a layout that we are required to follow for this project, the principles can apply mostly to the annotations we create for our maps, which is still important as the document you create needs to appear as professional as your argument: “A consistent design can also convey a sense of competence and professionalism to your readers, increasing their confidence in the quality and credibility of your document” (596). As the design of a document is just as important as the purpose, this chapter reminds the reader that “One of the most powerful tools writers have for accomplishing their purpose” (597) is setting a solid tone. If you can establish your tone, credibility with your sources, and finish with implementing a design which engages the audience, you can elicit a better response from your audience, especially on important or pertinent subjects.