Tonight's
class was bittersweet. Although I've been longing for the end since about
midterms, seeing everyone's presentations, how comfortable we all were standing
in front of each other, how supportive we all were of each other made me
realize that we'd grown into a mini family. Facebook updates, chats after class
and during breaks, I realized--as I suspected from the first night of
class--that we are a special group.
I
appreciate now even more the storytelling lens that themed our course. It
allowed us to embrace the human connectivity that Hannah Gadsby talked about in
her special Nanette or what Andrew Blubaugh tried to
rediscover after being attacked as he shared in his independent
documentary, Scaredycat. All the digital media materials were
one of the highlights of this course to me. I loved the use of different
mediums to convey the idea of process, a principle of technical writing.
The
writing assignments were reflective and analytical. They were a nice
accompaniment to the thought-provoking and sometimes controversial (Thanks
Steven Katz) articles. I loved Geoffrey Sirc's "Box Logic" and how we
were able to see from his art of deconstructing and compartmentalizing his
thoughts, and in some ways his very life, the way we are asked to take a
process apart in order to to make it accessible to TW audiences.
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| Logic Box |
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| Hannah Gadsby (Nanette) |
Most of all, I like how this class made technical writing a
creative and inspiring process instead of a daunting and intimidating one.
Bonnie Kyburz, with all of her dramatic flair, eccentricity, and French
overtures infused all of herself into the course--her past experiences working
in digital humanities and in the arts (particularly within the genre of film),
her personal life, her inspirations, her connections to and within the
capacious (thank you for my newest lexical addition) technical writing field.
She laid all her cards on the table and she had a full house.
I want to wish you all great luck on your remaining projects
(unless you're finished like me), a happy and recuperative holiday, and a
successful spring semester if I don't see you again. In the words of Hannah,
you all are "mu peoples."
Ashley, You are awesome! Thank you for all of your help and I am glad to have made a friend. You are so encouraging, positive and a fantastic writer. This three attributes will take you very far. Let's do a talk show/ radio something. You know I good for some great laughs.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Natasha. I too am so glad to have met such a genuine and honestly funny and charismatic person. Your zest for life is infectious. I'm glad we're friends. Let's seriously consider at least a podcast episode. It would so dope!
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