Rhetoric and Composition: ENG 015 007: Blog Response #10

When I write, I like to speak directly at the reader. I do not necessarily hide that, whatever my message is, is written to a large group of people. I want the reader to feel as though he/she and I are simply having a conversation. I try to use words and phrases that I would use as if I am speaking rather than writing. Many writers write and talk in very different ways but I want attempt to close the gap and make the language more realistic. My narrative essay was a great place for me to exercise this technique because talking directly through the reader is necessary. I used phrases such as "For those of you who do not know..." This is something that would most likely be heard, not read. I believe my writing also has an interesting informal quality to it which is directly related to how I make it as though I am talking. Usually when I am speaking it is not the most formal occasion in the world so I do not see why I should change that in my writing for most occasions. I prefer to read an informal text. It lets me relax as I am reading. When I am reading formal writing, I immediately begin to question what the purpose of that is and I am less likely to trust the words on the page. An example of my informal language can be found in my evaluation essay. "The formula of the movie however is straight out of the 1980's textbook. We start with the dorky kid and the smoking hot babe. Oh and of course the dork has an equally dorky friend." Use of words like "Oh" and the phrase "straight out of," is something that you would tend to hear in an informal conversation. I like to incorporate that into my writing so the reader can relate to the text and not be turned off by an unnatural way of conveying the same point.