Graff, Gerald, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst. “They Say, I Say”: The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing : With Readings. New York: Norton, 2012.
Keywords: Writing, Reading, Creativeness, Argumentative
Entering the conversation
Everyone has special skills, but we’re not born with these skills. The ability to do something well is achieved over time, through practice, and repetitiveness. The same applies to writing. Great writers have acquired the ability to write informative and controversial pieces over time by learning the basic rules of writing and also reading many other peoples writings to hone their creative skills.
“Academic writing is argumentative writing”
Being a great writer requires a person be a critical thinker. Critical thinking helps the writer enter the conversation when they express input and beliefs of their own ideas as well as others. A well put together piece of writing has two ways it can be looked at by different readers and raises a strong argument between the two readers. No one wants to hear a person ramble on about what they think and why it is so important because in the end it leaves the reader saying “so what and who cares”. Readers want to be able to see both sides of the argument and then be able to choose their stance on which side they agree with. If your writing is non- controversial and contains nothing but facts that no one can disagree with then it can be considered boring and flat.
“Agree and disagree at the same time”.
This is a very good way to make your writing interesting because you avoid allowing the reader to choose a yes or no response. By using the template “On one hand / on the other hand” you can create a much more compelling argument for the reader. This will also help the writer add quotes to their writing. You can write “So and so say’s”, on one hand I agree, but on the other hand I disagree because”. Templates like these are the foundation for writing a great argumentative paper. By listening closely to others who disagree with us and engage with them, in the end it may even make you change your original opinion.
“Do Templates Stifle Creativity”?
Many students argue that using template for writing takes away from their own creativeness and ability to write a good paper. Also students complain that it will make all their papers sound the same like they are some kind of writing robot using the same templates time after time. In fact these templates will do the opposite making their papers sound more original and creative when used. Some of the most creative writings ever written were done using the same established patterns and structures found in the book “They Say I Say”. You as a writer can be as creative as your imagination will allow. The templates are used only as a guide to format your writing and how you say it. Many students will also argue that using templates is plagiarism. Using words that are found in every day conversations like “a controversial issue” and “on one hand / and on the other hand” can never be claimed as a person’s own work. If the works used to fill in the blanks between these templates is not cited properly then that is considered plagiarism.
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