September 29, 2005
Thoughts on Plagiarism

    Plagiarism is not as mysterious or as difficult to avoid as some might think.  Very simply, plagiarism is claiming another person's ideas as your own.  It may be as simple as not documenting your sources properly.  It may be as complex as taking someone else's hard work and ideas by putting your own name on them.

How Can You Avoid Plagiarism?

        1. Carefully document your notes with all the information about the resource from which you are taking notes.  This includes page numbers, publisher, copyright date, and so forth.

        2. Put ideas into your own words.  Quotations should be saved for only the most eloquent of passages by the author you are reading and from which you are taking notes.  Paraphrase and put into your own words the thoughts from your sources.

        3.  When you are in doubt document your resource!  Using documentation resources such as Turabian or MLA, you can easily footnote or parenthetically notate your resource.

For more help on avoiding plagiarism, follow this link: http://www.writing.northwestern.edu/avoiding_plagiarism.html.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

October 6, 2005
Thoughts on Help

    In our society's focus on doing everything by oneself for oneself, we have lost the generous gift of helping one another.  We have begun to think that asking for help or receiving help means we are somehow inadequate or not as able as others around us.  Being referred for help has a negative connotation from our grade school and high school days where referrals meant we were in trouble at home or in the Principal's office.

The Reality of Help

    In the world of published writing, work rarely goes to print without at least one other person reading and editing the writing.  No one turns in a dissertation to a committee without several people reading it and offering a critique before it goes to the committee for the defense.  Having others read and comment on our work helps us to grow as writers and readers. 

    In the world of business, the best possible thing one could receive is a referral.  This is how business is done.  People refer others to resources and to people for the enhancement of their own business or that of others.  My brother-in-law is beginning a career in real estate.  He loves being referred to others as he grows his list of contacts.  Referrals put the appropriate people in touch with one another.

    Being referred for help with writing does not mean you are in trouble, or you are marked with a scarlet letter.  Rather it is an opportunity for you to be in contact with someone who can offer some help and another perspective on your writing.  It is putting you in touch with an appropriate and available venue. Please take the time to make the most of the opportunity.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

October 12, 2005
Thoughts on the Process of Writing

    Writing is not usually an easy task.  The blank page or empty computer screen is quite daunting.  However, you do not have to feel alone.  I think Gene Fowler said it best, "Writing is easy; all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead."

    The only way to begin writing is to write.  Sometimes gems appear, and other times files are deleted or thrown in the trash.  The routine remains the same.  In order to write one must do the act of writing.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

October 19, 2005
Time

    Leaving time to write is critical.  Most of us, due to human nature, tend to put things off until the very last moment.  We attempt to write the research paper the night before it is due.  We rush through reflection papers hours before they are due, handing them in as the ink is still drying on the paper. One reason we find ourselves in these situations is that we underestimate the amount of time a project will take.  Just as we underestimate how long it will take us to run errands or drive in traffic to pick up the kids.  Then, in our panic, we begin pushing and rushing and become an accident waiting to happen.

    Don't let your next paper or project be an accident waiting to happen!  Think about how long it will take you to write a paper.  Then multiply it be two.  So if you usually allow one week for writing a research paper, then leave yourself two weeks.  Another benefit, other than ridding oneself of anxiety, of working in advance of the deadline is the opportunity to receive feedback on your work, such as helpful comments from an appointment with the writing tutor!  Perhaps a friend, relative or neighbor would look over your work.  Give yourself time for the process of writing to take place.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

November 2, 2005
Everything I Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

    You may have heard of this book or even read it.  There are some kernels of truth in that we learn foundational habits when we are young which enable us to function our whole life long.

    I would maintain the same could be said for writing.  As adults we have become so hooked to linear methods and computers.  We forget about the days of poster sized paper and markers or butcher paper and crayons.  What if we outlined ideas for a paper on a large piece of paper in different colors, representing different parts of the paper?  What if we brainstormed in circles, colors or graphs?  What parts of our mind might be opened or ideas generated that we may not have seen before?  Try something new for your next paper.  You might be surprised by the results!

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

November 9, 2005
Helpful Hints for Library Research

1. "To save research time, plan a strategy."  This is key for not wasting precious time.  Be sure you know your topic and what kind of information you are looking for during your library time.  You can focus on one type of resource each time you go, such as periodicals on your first visit and books on your second visit. Don't be afraid to ask the library staff for guidance.  Explain the parameters of your paper and the topic you are researching to the staff person.  Sometimes just reiterating it aloud is helpful as well as having another set of ears to listen and to offer feedback.

2. "Use the Index."  The index is found in the back of a book or the final volume of a series.  By reading the index some words or ideas connected to your topic may jump out at you that you may not have thought of before giving you new avenues to your topic.

3. "Look in the front of reference materials."  In most reference materials, including dictionaries, the front section usually details how to use it. There are explanations of abbreviations and symbols, as well as how the information was gathered and selected.  This can be valuable information with some religious reference materials, as it is helpful to know the point of view of the authors or editors who selected what is included in the volume.

4. "Look for the most specific items first."  Being more specific will narrow the number of resources you will have to look through in any given search.  Broaden your search only as needed or you may get overwhelmed by the amount of information.

5. "Remember that any specific subject has a corresponding set of specialized reference materials."  These specialized materials can be dictionaries, encyclopedias, journals, etc.  Don't forget to check reference materials that encompass your topic as well as those materials you can check out of the library.

6. "Keep in mind the full range of sources for finding facts."  Don't limit yourself to one type of source.  By searching a full range of sources (reference materials, books, websites, videos, journals, etc.), you will get the most up to date information as well as the most helpful sources. 

7. "Look through nonprint materials."  Explore audio resources such as lectures or books on tape.  Explore visual resources such as videos, DVDs, theater, and so forth.  Interview experts in the field or those with helpful information on your topic.

8. "Other information sources are available outside the library."  Use the library to find outside information sources such as organizations, museums, historical societies, etc.

Tips in quotation marks are from p. 248 in the book Becoming a Master Student (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997).  The descriptions are written by the tutor.
 

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

November 16, 2005
Mozart or Beethoven?

When you write it is a good idea to think about the process.  One way of looking at the process is using the two composers, Mozart and Beethoven, as a paradigm.

Beethoven wrote his compositions in many drafts.  He wrote and rewrote.  He crumpled up old compositions and threw them away.  His process was draft oriented.

Mozart, on the other hand, wrote his compositions once with a few modifications.  He thought out his pieces in his head until they were ready to come out on paper.  He revised and revised in his head, basically writing on paper a finished product.

Neither of these processes work overnight.  Whether you draft or percolate, each takes time after you have availed yourself of the resources and knowledge to begin either the drafting or percolating process.  However, don't admonish yourself for not writing five drafts if you are a Mozart and don't admonish yourself for needing to write five drafts if you are a Beethoven.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)

December 1, 2005
"I hear and I forget. I see and I remember.  I do and I understand." Confucius
"One must learn by doing the thing, for though you think you know it, you have no certainty until you try." Sophocles

Writing is learning.  Writing is doing.   One cannot be sure to understand a theological concept or historical happening without working through it in writing.  Helpful writing is when real thinking is explored. Both thinking and writing are activities; as such they must be engaged as opposed to passively experienced.  "Real learning is an adventure -- and adventure means exploration, risk, and commitment" (Garrison 125).

In midst of the end of semester chaos, please don't lose sight of the adventure of learning and writing.  Don't lose sight of your curiosity.  Use this opportunity to integrate that which you have learned in preparation for your ministry.

Garrison, Roger. How a Writer Works. Revised Edition. New York: HarperCollins, 1985.

Michelle Holley Carlson
LTSG Writing Tutor (2005-2007)