Peer Review For Mike Duffek

For this blog post I performed a peer review for Mike Duffek in my class, he wrote a standard essay.

I took a deeper look at Mike Duffek's draft of "The Intelligence Community: Breaking Down the Writing Process" . I chose activity #1- make a content suggestion. Mike's essay is very well written, my main suggestion is to tweak the intro in order to effectively show detail and development. I think that the intro can be a lot stronger with some more sophisticated or detailed language and if you introduced the field, instead of in the second paragraph. The introduction of your major sooner will grab our attention earlier on, I think, and can be tied to what else is discussed in your first paragraph (the brainstorming process and writing situations). I really liked Mike's essay body paragraphs, I thought he was super concise and the analysis was easy to follow; I'm worried that my podcast is not as clear and that some things might got lost on my listeners.

Peer Review For Bianca Aguilar

For this blog post, I did a peer review for Bianca Aguilar from section 4.

I reviewed Bianca Aguilar's project for the peer review.

• Rough Cut for peer review

For Bianca's project I selected activity #3- copy editing suggestion:

• One thing that might be of use for Bianca is if she played with language. The podcast needs to be easy to follow, but tone and language make it a lot more interesting. I notice that she says "um," "more," and "a lot" often that are less descriptive and sort of general. This could easily be fixed once music or audio transitions are encorporated. Or- I think her piece could benefit from transitions by certain words, or synonyms so it is smoother and entertaining for the listeners.
• I think my advice can help Bianca have a better grasp on the podcast genre for her project. I, too, did a podcast, and know how hard it was to get across all the elements required.
• One thing I liked about Bianca's podcast was that it was a true conversation, it did not seem super scripted, she was talking to her audience and that made it easier to follow. I feel like parts of my podcast would be better if I sounded less scripted and directly communicated to the audience more, like Bianca.

Editorial Report

For this blog post, I will discuss changes I made in my podcast project. I have an example from my rough draft compared to its re-edited/revised version.

Rough Cut:

Here is what my original transcript had, before I edited it:

"My name’s Veronica Funess and I reached out to four academics here at the U of A, for their expertise in gender and women’s studies, so I could familiarize myself with two specific genres that professionals encounter which are journal articles & novels"

....

"Probably the most common and effective genre to work with in my major is a Journal Article. However, that is not to say that it’s less exciting compared to other genres. It’s very popular for journal articles to be online instead of print; in fact, a librarian told me they moved all of their journals related to gender and women’s studies to e-file format. I asked Dr. Monica Casper what she thought about genre conventions in recent times, where technology is constantly changing the way we communicate and do anything. "

"--**monica’s answer about online articles + difference w feminist wire vs. print**"

Revised:

My intro in the rough cut is not as smooth and I changed and added narration for my revised version.

1. In the revised version, I added music to the intro to make it engaging.
2. I also changed the dialogue by adding more genres to my podcast conversation, which was the essay and art.
2. The dialogue is different again because I ended up cutting out the part on the journal articles from my transcript because I didn't really agree with it anyways, and it kind of took away from other areas that were more important.
3. Additionally, I added a deeper discussion of the essay and journal article genres, talked about social media and conventions, and managed to keep Monica's dialogue from our interview that related to that. 

Editorial Report 2

For this blog post, I will discuss changes I made in my podcast project. I have an example from my rough draft compared to its re-edited/revised version. 

Rough Cut:

Some of my draft that needed to be edited

Revised Version:

In this version, I made some general changes to the audio and form of my podcast that I felt made my podcast come together, and become more of a legitimate podcast in terms of the conventions.

1. I did not have any music in my rough cut

2. In the rough cut, there are abrupt cuts/endings of audio which makes it choppy 

3. I did not have smooth transitions, and pauses were too long in my rough cut

4. The layout of my rough cut had me talking about a genre, an example, and my interviewees, without a friend to ask me questions and lead the conversation. Now, in the revised version, my friend asked me questions that guided the podcast for listeners, and is much easier to grasp and follow.

Reflection on Project 2

I am happy with project 2, although the podcast genre was very difficult to work with for this one, I think I did a good job.

1. What were some of the successes (or, things that went right) during this week’s process work? Explain, with evidence

I think my project finally came together with the addition of music for my intro and throughout my podcast in the background. Music definitely makes the podcast sound more legit, and engages the listeners. I was nervous that the music I'd include would sound cheesy to someone, and that would be a huge failure to me, but I'm feeling confident about it. I'm also happy about my rhetorical analysis for each example, and my intro is very strong- I was told by a friend that my voice sounded very "newscaster-y" and I took that to be a good sign !!

2. What were some of the challenges (or, things that went wrong) during this week’s process work? Explain, with evidence.

I was worried about my transitions, and audio from interviews that I cut off (when the speaker wasn't finished answering a question, but I couldn't use their whole answer) would sound awkward.. I hoped that the addition of music would make it flow better, but we shall see. Also, I am not that happy with my novel genre example by Monica Casper just because I definitely could've made the analysis better by using my own dialogue to explain/elaborate, but instead, I kept a lot of her audio from our interview and I think it's kind of confusing to understand the point.

3. How do you think next week will go, based on your experiences this week?

I procrastinated heavily in some parts, and I hope I don't do that for this next project.. but it might very well happen and I'll have to play catch up, unfortunately. As the semester is coming to an end my motivation sometimes dwindles.

4. How are you feeling about the project overall at this point?

I have to remember that I'm not professional, and it takes practice to really master a genre that you're unfamiliar with. So with that in mind I'm pretty thrilled about my podcast, I just hope it keeps the listener's attention and is at least a little easy to follow and understand everything, like my purpose/project's purpose.

Production Report 8b

For this post I will discuss my outline and some of the content I have in my rough draft.

All of the projects need credibility and authorial control but the podcast has limitations, I need to evaluate how one discusses or presents professionally in the podcast genre. I have to organize audio from interviews, pick which bits are necessary, which can be cut, and which might be a successful addition and conveying specific examples, and messages are difficult when the audience cannot see anything, only hear.

-I was really stressing over perfecting my genre examples. I fell behind because I procrastinated when I realized the project and timing was becoming overwhelming

outline --I had a lot of info from my interviewees that I wanted to incorporate, I decided in the transcript document that I could use Monica's interview answer about online journals to make my intro to journal articles as a genre more interesting--transcript (adaption of outline item, cannot upload garage band audio podcast segment)

here's a part of my transcript, it is my introduction:

Podcast

“Scholars of GWS: If We Write, They Will Follow”

---

~opening music, or a clip that relates to a theme (sends message)

Intro:

2016 Is no short of controversies surrounding gender, race, class and sexuality. Some issues from even before my time are still up for debate. Activism now, and always will, be necessary, proving the gender and women’s studies major to be extremely valuable in the years to come.

• Thesis/Point- Professionals in the field know this to be true. And the work they produce implements new ways of thinking which are required for the desired changes in society.

...My name’s Veronica Funess and I reached out to four academics here at the U of A, for their expertise in gender and women’s studies, so I could familiarize myself with two specific genres that professionals encounter which are  journal articles & novels

In the segment ”__” i will discuss these genres and how they are rhetorically situated

****ADD: “with the help of my friend Tori Varello"

Production Report 8a

For this post I will discuss the production of my draft.

I was really stressing over choosing the "best" genres and examples. I wanted to use ones produced by my interviewees because the audio I have from them is really good. I realized I can't necessarily force my project in a certain direction just because of the info I already obtained, and that I'm going to need to cut things and add things in order to follow the project instructions. Also, the podcast genre is hard to work with for this specific project, but I'm trying to get a better grasp on things.

First, this is some of my outline:

-Introduce the Genre

-Give one concrete example (could be one produced by the interviewee)

-Explain elements of example to show Rhetorical Situation

INTRODUCING JOURNAL ARTICLE GENRE:

Probably the most common and effective genre to work with in my major is a Journal Article. However, that is not to say that it’s less exciting compared to other genres. It’s very popular for journal articles to be online instead of print; in fact, a librarian told me they moved all of their journals related to gender and women’s studies to e-file format. I asked Dr. Monica Casper what she thought about genre conventions in recent times, where technology is constantly changing the way we communicate and do anything.

--**monica’s answer**

JOURNAL ARTICLE EXAMPLE 1: MONICA CASPER’S

- Who the author is then what goes into creating it 

1.the research 2. type of media 3. its purpose 4. the audience

...............

Here is some dialogue from my transcript for the podcast. It is my typed conversation with Alex which discusses my first genre, the journal article, and the specific example article I selected:

Alex: “What specific journal article do you have for our discussion?”
Me: “I chose one by Monica Casper. She is a professor of gender and women’s studies, and the associate dean for academic affairs of the college of social & behavioral sciences. She is also the co-editor of the online journal, the feminist wire, where she published ‘__’ It’s about___ Alex: “What’s Casper trying to accomplish with this piece? Me: “I think Casper’s goal in writing ___ is for people to ___” When I interviewed her about her writing process, she said she tends to write for people who will think and teach about the subjects in her articles…*insert monica’s answer saying “people who can perhaps produce policy that can affect women’s health and their lives…” Alex: “So what rhetorical strategies did she use to get her message across?” Me: “Monica definitely incorporates emotional appeals or pathos in her writing.” Alex “How can you tell that she uses pathos?” Me: “ By giving personal stories or emotionally compelling narratives in her article, she plays on the audience’s emotions” Alex: “Can you refer to a specific part in her article where that’s seen?” Me: “yes, she says, ‘___’ which, given her audience of activists and women, evokes ___ emotion in them. Alex: “Why is it important that Casper and other professionals in your field use the online journal as a medium?” Me: “Overall, Professionals in the GWS field use the journal article medium because of its flexible form and conventions. 1) It can be printed and found digitally across different publications. Online journal articles are more accessible and readers happen to be more receptive because it is easier and faster to communicate on an online platform --Segway for *monica’s answer about how her audience shares and comments* Since there are many controversies surrounding gender and women's issues, the audience and language are crucial for professionals to take into consideration. With the journal article genre, the tone and style of writing can change, such as from academic to personal depending on the writer. The flexibility is important because these professionals “place a lot of weight on their work’s ability to be read across audiences,” as professor Bill Simmons informed me.

..........

The blank spots will be filled in when I mix together the audio

Reflection on production

Audience Questions

What were some of the successes (or, things that went right) during this week’s process work? Explain, with evidence.

What were some of the challenges (or, things that went wrong) during this week’s process work? Explain, with evidence.

I thought I had a good grasp on the project until I realized I was focusing too much on my interviewee's rather than genre examples. I got really stressed with time and I wish I started earlier on the week with the genre examples but I pushed it back because I was sort of overwhelmed and had a lot of work from my other classes as well.

How do you think next week will go, based on your experiences this week?

It will consist of catching up honestly
How are you feeling about the project overall at this point?

Stressed and overthinking. Slightly worried because I didn't know how difficult it would be to make a podcast

Open Post to Peer Reviewers

In this post I link my transcript/outline for my podcast and discuss what I'm anticipating the post-production process to be like after I completed the production phase.

I have been super stressed out with this part of the project because instead of just getting my content completed, I'm worrying about the podcast conventions and form and how my info and audio from interviews will all work together. I need to take it back a step and first make sure my examples and rhetorical analysis are on point before I go any further. 

I know after break I still have production work to focus on and some catching up unfortunately because the time frame just hasn't been convenient for me.

Author Response

• Key information about your particular project that you would like anyone who peer reviews your draft to know

I don't have all of the audio made for the podcast and I need to edit and add, but I have a transcript/outline type of document that organizes my thoughts and shows what I want the podcast to be like

• Major issues or weaknesses in the “Rough Cut” that you’re already aware of (as well as anything you’d like to know from your editors about those weaknesses)

I only have 3 examples rhetorically situated. I need a journal article example, and for some reason have been heavily struggling to choose one because I can't decide on what aspects I really want to emphasize

• Major virtues or strengths in the “Rough Cut” that you’re already aware of (as well as anything you’d like to know from your editors about those strengths)

I have a lot of good audio from my interviews, my interviewees touched a lot on the purpose of their work which I like

here is my transcript of podcast

Content Outline

I spent some time on an outline for my podcast. It was extremely helpful to get it all laid out and toy with the organization of my ideas and content, before I attempted to mix some audio together.

Project 2- Podcast Content Outline

startupstockphotos.com. "startup-photos" 2/13/15, via pexels. CC0 License.

Production Schedule

For this post I made a to-do list that makes sense in my head, I am not the most organized person, and don't always have a straight-forward plan. I tend to make changes to my schedule, but here is what would be ideal for me:

Production Schedule

Reflection on Pre-Production

For this post I'll discuss how my week went, in terms of my successes and challenges.

Successes

- I am so happy that I got in all my interviews, it was ambitious to shoot for 3, but I'm glad I did because I have tons of information now.
- Also, great conversation with two of the interviewees, made me more excited about project
-Audio is pretty good quality and should be easy to work with for podcast

Challenges

- Catching up on blog posts, I was really frustrated with some and didn't wanna write because I just didn't think they were helpful for advancing in my project
-Overthinking!!!

This week

-I'm really busy with things from every class and I leave for spring break a few days before the deadline on March 13th.. I wish I'd have that time, but this just means I need to get a lot done prior.

-I think things are going super well, but there are two directions I can take for the podcast so I just need to clarify some things about the project's task/purpose that came up when I was making my outline