The Writer’s Toolbox

Author: Andrea Marks

The excerpt from the Write’s Toolbox explains how writing can be used in a multitude of ways. Writing is a useful skill because it can be used to help formulate ideas, compose papers, as well as draft stronger public writing materials. Notes, free writing, sketches, and mind mapping can be used to help formulate ideas. These types of writings are the process that encourages lively thinking, which, in the end, gives way to stronger works, anywhere from proposals and project briefs to blogs and comments. There are different types of diagrams one can use to organize their information, such as mind maps. Mind maps are for visual thinkers that allow them to organize data or information in a nonlinear way. Maps are a good tool to use for visuals in communicating an idea, like using photos or drawings. To analyze the mind map, look for certain patterns and relationships that have emerged as well as new concepts that need to be mapped. Concept mapping is similar to mind maps but utilize words to show systematically how things fit together. Free writing allows quick thinking to just jot down thoughts on paper. Brain writing is the same as brainstorming but on paper and usually in a group, like brainstorming is. Just as well, the final useful type of process writing is called word lists. Lists can create a flow of ideas that will stimulate an imaginative and long steak of words that have to do with your selected word. The longer the list, the more words you have, even if they are opposites and have little to do with your actual word, they will still be helpful in your ideas process.

IDEO Deep Dive

 IDEO is a learning design company that created the Deep Dive ideology that involves a more hands-on learning experience and process to achieve the desired goal. Instead of the boss being in control, the workers are put in control of the process and are encouraged to find the answers and communicate within themselves and then as a team to collaborate on the assignment. In corporate America, the mass majority of workers sit in an office all day long and try to climb he corporate ladder, however the status in this company is who has the best idea. Their process helps to achieve the innovation of any item. Fist the group talks about the problem and the initial thoughts on what should be updated or changed or taken special care of when thinking of a new design. There are no titles in the group and no permanent assignments. There is not a group timekeeper, a note taker, or a facilitator, etc., like the norm, because it is not a process that will necessarily give the desired results. Therefore, the group has everyone at an equal level on the playing field and only an overall goal of making the customer happy with their final product. The employees use outside resources to achieve quick, effective, and efficient research and data for their product, often going to the repair workers, immersing themselves into the associated product environment and getting first-hand experience using the product (if possible). This allows for the members to gather ideas for prototypes and improvements to the original product. Their work environment is fun, with music and interesting things to look at, instead of a cubical and a plain, boring work area that only inspires boredom. The essential process and ideology revolves around trust in your teammates and a synergy or enthusiasm for what you want to accomplish. This then creates an inspired atmosphere, with employees’ ability to be efficient increasing as well as expanding their creativity while they work, ultimately enabling a successful company.

Beautiful Solutions

Beautiful Solutions day 1:

We brought in three non-electronic items that we thought characterized us individually. I brought in my planner, a mug, and my clip. I used them all at least once a day everyday. For when my hair gets mess or becomes an annoyance, I just use the clip to pin the pesky hair up and the problem is solved. I use it in primarily town different ways—just to pull the long hair next to my face out of the way, or to clip all of it up in a bun type of style. I love, love, love tea, so a mug was the item that I chose to represent my love. Just as well, I bring tea to class almost everyday in my mug, so it was only fitting. My third and final item I chose to bring was my planner. My planner is my life and I take extreme pride in it. To pick a planner, I partake in a selective process that involves many different types and careful review of each. So to bring my planner to class as a part of my three objects means a lot. We displayed our three objects on our desk, placed a piece of paper, then walked around other classrooms to comment on what we thought others’ objects said about them. I saw a lot of common objects such as a pen, pencil and eraser. Those don’t say much about a person except that they forgot to bring actual objects that they consider characterizes them. When I returned to class, I found that instead of a lot of perceptions, I found more facts. For example: you have long hair, you like mint green tea (still had my teabag in my mug), you like patterns, etc. Rather disappointing actually. We then collected interviews for one of the objects and I chose my clip to be interviewed.

Here were people’s responses:

-use clips to pin up hair (x5)

-to make fun hair styles

-to pin back pages of a book

-to organize things

Process book and Photo book

I've learned a lot, A LOT, about printing. It was very difficult to figure out a way to print my photo book in a booklet format. I honestly could not figure it out so I had it printed at Jayhawk Ink. It looks a lot better than it would have since it was printed at a professional place. I am very, very happy with how it turned out.

The process book: I used reference from Matt Chase's magazine layout from his hallmark symposium lecture. His was of course a lot better, but I tried to use some of his main concepts for the table of contents and general layout options. I stuck with a red theme throughout the book and tried to make each page layout slightly different so it would be more interesting and draw the attention to the material while not being distracting. We'll see if my grade mirrors what I thought I accomplished.

The photo book: I used the red theme in the process book to continue throughout the the photo book. I think it was successful.

Hallmark Symposium

Deborah Luster

Hallmark Symposium

October 15, 2015

Deborah Luster is a photographer who had a traumatic past. Her mother was shot when she was younger and since then, has followed in her mother and grandmother’s footsteps by picking up a camera and capturing images that others may find difficult to see. She thought that photographing prisons would bring back the nightmares of her past but instead they proved to be just the thing to heal her wounds and give her the confidence to capture the pain and real story of the inmates. Her “One Big Self” prison story was centered on the inmates of the Louisiana State Penitentiary which is an old plantation, turned into a prison. She thought it a beautiful, yet sad place because there’s always been one form of slavery on the plantation and harvesting the fields since it’s been in existence. The penitentiary is also known as Angola, named after the country where the African slaves came from. This is also significant when considering a majority of the prisoners today are African Americans. Angola Prison also is the largest maximum-security prison in the United States and holds a large number of death row inmates. Deborah Luster knew this history and photographed some meaningful and iconic photos before prison inside the prison, though the prisoners volunteered, posed themselves and she just took the picture. While photographing, she realized that many were excited to get their photograph back because they didn’t know what they looked like and would finally be able to see themselves for the first time in decades. They got to keep 25 wallet-sized photographs, which she said some were send to family members and other were traded around the prison systems. Some of her most meaningful photographs were of inmates and their stories. One man chose to have his picture taken of his hand holding a picture of his son. He sent his son the picture and a few weeks later, his now 18-year-old son came to visit him. Another was of a man with an elaborate man with a tattoo that said “Real Men Eat Pussy”.  After her project at Angola, she was inspired and started photographing the places around New Orleans that displayed pain and suffering of the homicide sites. One was of store doors where a boy was used as a human shield in a robbery and shooting. By photographing the sites and the victims of the family members, she was able to receive more closure from the trauma of her mother’s death. She gave the friends and family of the homicide victims a chance to be heard and show their pain, just as she needed when she was younger

Process analysis of project

We had proposed what we thought was an easy plan, which was to duct tape the sides but our plan proved more challenging. However, let’s start from the beginning and go through the process. My group set out planning right away. For our first task, we each had to make three small three-dimensional 2 inch letters. The small letters  were surprisingly more difficult than I expected. The letter “I” was the easiest because it didn’t have any bends and in then end, my friends had to help me figure out how to cut the letters out and how to make the bends in the “D” and the “S”. The most difficult small letter was definitely the “s” because it required two sets or curving pieces, but finally late in the evening, I accomplished for the first time, making three-dimensional letters. The next day we compared our craft and letter types and sizes and finally settled on the idea of sticking with the different sizes for our final larger word. After deciding that, we set to work gathering large white paper and tracing our projected letters. One group member, as shown very early on, needed more assertive direction and was often found on their phone or wandering around to other stations or even around the building. And from this, frustrations set in early on that grew through the week and even over into the weekend until the project was completed. Our next task, after tracing the letters, was to cut out the tracings and to trace those onto cardboard. After cutting out the cardboard (and labeling all of the sides), we had to assemble them and finally decorate them. My group voted to duct tape the sides because they thought it would be easier and cheaper than painting as well as get the point across of disruption a little bit more, however, it ended up probably requiring more time and money to accomplish our goal— though it did end up being disruptive to the overall letter. Another challenge came over the weekend when the same group member as mentioned before decided to leave for the weekend, leaving us shorthanded as only a group of three. Even though we were left short-handed, after a very long weekend in the studio, we finally accomplished our goal and completed our task of creating a three-dimensional word.

Other placement options

Some other places we installed our word was across the crosswalk, by a bus stop, inside a bus, and finally disrupting another group's project.

Placement

We placed our word DISRUPT on Wescoe beach during times of 8-about 10:30 am. Along with our word, we added a very annoying sound, as to exemplify our word even more.

I was the one who volunteered to sit on Wescoe beach while my team went around to the other sites to look at all of the other installations. I was a little jealous, but in the end, I was glad I stayed because I got to listen to all of the interesting remarks from people.

Many were more interested than annoyed, however, there were a good number of people who walked passed commenting how they would like to throw the speaker, or how they thought that someone else would ruin the letters. Only one person actually touched a letter though, and he did it as he was walking past, only slightly rocking the "U".

Some people even came up to me and asked how I could study with the annoying noise!

I believe our project was very disruptive.

The Finished Product

After working endlessly over several days for a very good estimated total of over 15 hours, we finally finished our word.  It was tedious and very, very tiring but today, Saturday, we completed the word. The static on the face of our letters is to represent the disruptive static on the television when the channel is interrupted by another cause. The sizes become disruptive to the eye because you have to stop and look at the word to see what it says. In the end, I think it turned out fairly well. Very durable. Our main place we hope to display it is on Wescoe Beach amongst the traffic congestion of people trying to get to class. Hopefully it will go well. Unfortunately, we had to complete the project with about one less person, since Max wasn't available most of the time. But we completed it nonetheless.

Here it is: