You may also use factual information from books or articles you previously read on your topic. If you do not know an answer, use your own opinion to speculate, or guess. As with Mariah when she explored her writing topic for more detail, it is OK if you do not know all the answers. Then read each question and use your own paper to answer the 5WH questions. The questions are often called the 5WH questions The questions that reporters and journalists use to gather information for their stories and that writers use in the writing process: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?, after their initial letters.Ĭhoose a general topic idea from the prewriting you completed in Note 7.9 "Exercise 1". She asked herself the questions that reporters and journalists use to gather information for their stories. To see how asking questions can help you choose a topic, take a look at the following chart that Mariah completed to record her questions and answers. Her purpose was to refine media into a topic she felt comfortable writing about. She then decided to explore that topic by asking herself questions about it. She realized that the topic that interested her most was the one she started with, the media. When Mariah reread her freewriting notes, she found she had rambled and her thoughts were disjointed. All these idea-gathering techniques will help you plan for future work on your assignment. You may also discover aspects of the topic that are unfamiliar to you and that you would like to learn more about. As you choose your topic, answering these questions can help you revisit the ideas you already have and generate new ways to think about your topic. Asking these types of questions will also help you with the writing process. You seek the answers to these questions to gain knowledge, to better understand your daily experiences, and to plan for the future. Who will be my partner for the project? When is the next meeting? Why is my car making that odd noise? Even the title of this chapter begins with the question “How do I begin?” Who? What? Where? When? Why? How? In everyday situations, you pose these kinds of questions to get more information. She used this freewriting exercise to help her generate more concrete ideas from her own experience. The instructor allowed the members of the class to choose their own topics, and Mariah thought about her experiences as a communications major. Freewriting may even lead you to discover another topic that excites you even more. Your flow of thoughts can lead you to discover even more ideas about the topic. Once you start writing with few limitations, you may find you have more to say than you first realized. Allow yourself to write freely and unselfconsciously. When writing quickly, try not to doubt or question your ideas. Quickly recording your thoughts on paper will help you discover what you have to say about a topic. Doing this may lead your thoughts in interesting directions. Remember, to generate ideas in your freewriting, you may also think about readings that you have enjoyed or that have challenged your thinking. Writing often comes easier when you have a personal connection with the topic you have chosen. If you get stuck, just copy the same word or phrase over and over until you come up with a new thought. Instead, write as quickly as you can without stopping. Try not to worry about grammar, spelling, or punctuation. During the time limit, you may jot down any thoughts that come to your mind. is an exercise in which you write freely about any topic for a set amount of time (usually three to five minutes). My audience: _įreewriting A prewriting strategy in which writers write freely about any topic for a set amount of time (usually three to five minutes). Write your purpose and your audience on your own sheet of paper, and keep the paper close by as you read and complete exercises in this chapter. The first important step is for you to tell yourself why you are writing (to inform, to explain, or some other purpose) and for whom you are writing. You will also be planning one of your own. In this chapter, you will follow a writer named Mariah as she prepares a piece of writing. and its audience The individual(s) or group(s) whom the writer intends to address. A good topic not only covers what an assignment will be about but also fits the assignment’s purpose The reason(s) why a writer creates a document. Sometimes your instructor will give you an idea to begin an assignment, and other times your instructor will ask you to come up with a topic on your own. In addition to understanding that writing is a process, writers also understand that choosing a good general topic for an assignment is an essential step.
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