Digital Essay Explanation & Writing Situation Brainstorming

Digital Essay Writer’s Guide

Create 5 sections in your Daybook

1. Digital Essay Notes2. Learning Goals (7)

Things you should be learning or practicing (specific and general)3. Assessment Values (5)

What it sounds like I will be looking for and think is important in your process and final draft

4. Restrictions (8) – Detailed Things you either have to do, can’t do, are warned to avoid…

5. Choices (8) – Detailed Places where you have choice and options either because it’s an open

guideline or it’s something you should be working on

Digital Essays

Digital essays are writing that has been created to exist in a digital rather than a physical space. It is writing is meant for, and designed for, the screen rather than the page.

How you think about composing and what composition means must change too – digital writing is multimodal and multilayered. • It is NOT a paper that you have copied and pasted onto a screen; this is a paper that is submitted online, not designed

using affordances that only exist on the screen. You must consider--

• the rhetorical situation• layout, structure, and genre• multimedia enhancements• personal connections, comments, and reflections• how to compose for public spaces• how to create purpose and authority

Digital Essays

A digital essay emphasizes and utilizes multiple modes. Multimodality “describes how we combine multiple different ways of communicating in everyday life.” While digital writing should be rooted in writing, you will also make strategic use of images and video as well as

various elements of graphic design (headings, borders, layout, spacing, font size and color). A digital essay is a coherent whole.

The elements of a digital essay (images, links, colors, videos, sections, sources, text, graphs) are purposefully and noticeably crafted/designed to work together as parts of a cohesive structure.

A digital essay is intertextual. Intertextuality is “the relationship between texts or a text in relation to other texts.” Digital writing lets you see something about writing and research that is overlooked in print texts… writing is a

conversation, and texts within that conversation are linked. Examples-- Quoting or referencing another text demonstrates how your ideas are based off of other preexisting opinions. Linking readers out to other texts, draws links between your text and others in tangible, direct ways. It is a visual example of how the texts are part of a conversation, how they are related, linked, and interdependent.

The Rhetorical (Writing) Situation

The choices you make have real consequences and real meaning for the text. Choosing to change the size or color of a font or bringing the reader's focus to an enlarged image

changes the meaning of the piece. Choosing the right image, color scheme, or font style can impact the tone.

The audience has moved beyond your teacher and toward a wider public audience and academic community, and a public audience has greater consequences for the writer.

The purpose of the assignment must also extend beyond as completing it a grade--you are essentially becoming published writers of your work. 

Context also comes into play because the composition must exist in a space outside of the classroom—context for history, examples, graphs, videos, terms, and individual sources must be established for an uninformed reader.  Blank slate– Don’t assume your readers know anything about your research or have access to your

other work. Those are now for your use only.

Digital Affordances

COMMON DIGITAL TOOLS AND WAYS TO USE THEM Images: Just like description to replace images to connect with readers when you

don’t have images, images can be used “show” readers what you want them to see, provide extra opportunities for commentary, and to make excellent emotional appeals. Think about where can you use images to “show” readers examples and illustrations that your words cannot do justice? 

Videos: Similar affordance to images; consider events or situations where it might be helpful for readers to watch firsthand instead of reading your version of the events.

Infographics: Graphs and charts either found or created can make excellent visual evidence and can also provide a visual aid help readers connect the dots.

Digital Affordances

Hyperlinks: Hyperlinks can be highly gestural for readers. Essentially, you can guide readers out to places where they can read more about certain issues, terms, people, and events.   Readers can be linked to your sources, to helpful information, and to other

interesting reading. Hyperlinks can be used to guide readers to where you want them to go next for more reading and continued exploration. 

Note: Images, videos, infographics, and sometimes hyperlinks need context (commentary and explanations for the reader about what they are; why they are there; what they mean, prove, or illustrate; or what the reader should take away from it).

Text & Genre Requirements

PURPOSE-- You need a solid and identifiable point that is targeted at an audience that you can describe. This is who you are designing and composing your essay for; it is who you want to reach. Your work-- MUST BE AN ACADEMIC ARGUMENT IN SOME WAY. IT CANNOT BE A OBJECTIVE REPORT. IT DOES NOT HAVE TO ANSWER YOUR ORIGINAL QUESTION. Should demonstrate expertise and nuance regarding the issue with accurate paraphrasing; purposeful inclusion and discussion

of information and perspectives, insightful examples; and personal commentary, analysis, synthesis, and questioning. Should offer readers necessary background info, accurate information, clear reasons, fair consideration of multiple

perspectives, a purposeful organizational pattern, different types of evidence, and smooth integration of outside material.

GENRE-- You have some limitations with your genre. You are writing a digital essay, but word “essay” can be open to interpretation, especially when it’s digital. You can write an essay, compose on online article, create a webpage or website... there are many ways to compose for the

screen. NOTE: If you have other ideas for genres, I am open to those ideas. Your prose can be spoken as long as they are planned and you

submit the planning. You can also create your own videos or visuals to use within the text.     

Text & Genre Requirements

LENGTH-- A strong digital essay should have around 2000 words (about 7 pages). You may go over if you need to, but you cannot compose a strong piece with much less than this.

SECTIONS-- You must have a minimum of 5 clearly distinguished sections (including the intro and conclusion) that are arranged in a purposeful order the focus on different aspects of your argument (background, history, refuting points, making points….). THIS DOES NOT MEAN AT LEAST 5 PARAGRAPHS! EACH SECTION WILL UTILIZE MULTIPLE PARAGRAPHS AND SOURCES AND WILL INTRODUCE THE FOCUS FOR THAT SECTION. MUST BE ORGANIZED POINT-BY-POINT, NOT BY SOURCE. Your intro, body, and conclusion should engage readers with the issue and leave them with something to do or think about.

Intro- Don’t just dive in with bland info; start with something to hook them right off the bat. Conclusion- Don’t just reiterate what the readers has already read at the end. Leave them with a final question, scenario, point,

suggestion… something thought-provoking that would plant a seed or stick with them.)   

DESIGN-- It should be designed with multiple layers (images, colors, layouts, videos, hyperlinks) that considers multiple modes, rhetorical appeals, intertextually, and digital tools. Layers should come together like a puzzle, with all the pieces and strategies working together and creating a coherent, whole

message.  

Visual Examples

Example 1 Example 2 Example 3 Example 4

Example 5 Example 6 Example 7 Example 8

Research Requirements & Options

You can use any information from previous assignments to build on. You should also get whatever new information you need. You must effectively utilize a minimum of EIGHT different sources to make your point. How, when, and

to what degree you use them is a rhetorical choice. You may use more if needed. Anything used for decoration does not count toward the minimum. It must be something discussed within the

text. Remember that you should not make claims without evidence. Be careful of generalizations, unsupportable or

sweeping statements, and other poor logic choices. You must pull from more than one genre and/or type of information to make your point (news, studies,

websites, interviews, expert opinions, graphs, statistics, hypothetical situations, specific examples, etc.) You need to cite both in-text (with hyperlinks, context for the source, and signal phrases) and at the end

using bibliographic citations in the format of your choice.

BrainstormingDIGITAL ESSAY

FIRST THOUGHTSDaybook – Free writeI want you first thoughts on what to say about the issue you have been researching. 5 minutesNO STOPPING. NO ERASING.

USE THESE WORDS/PHRASES TO HELP—I am skeptical of...I understand better that...I believe...I disagree that...I agree that...I was surprised to learn that...

It was important to find out that...I wish people better understand...I wish more people knew about...We could solve _____ problem by _____I changed my mind about…I still support...

FIRST THOUGHTS CONT.

o Read what you have o Underline (or otherwise note) any

good points that may stand out to you as being a starting idea for an essay or a potential argument or point you’d like to make.

PURPOSE

Do you want to raise awareness or concern about something for a particular audience that doesn't know? -- Do you want a certain audience to know more about an issue than they do? Do you want them to care more about an issue or problem?

Do you want to persuade a particular audience to change their opinion about some aspect of your issue? -- Do you want make a point about an opinion or value you have that you want others to adopt?

Do you want to persuade a particular audience to change their behavior or actions? -- Do you want them to take a certain action or adopt a different behavior?

Do you want to clear up a misconception you think an audience might about your issue? – Is there a stereotype or other type of wrong thinking that you might want to debunk or clear up?

Do you want to propose a policy change in order to solve a particular problem? – Is there a solution that you want to propose? Do you want to evaluate several solutions? Is there a current policy you would like to see revised or gotten rid of altogether?

How might you focus your current opinions into a specific message? Read through your opinions and that following options. List and make notes on a few ideas for a specific message.

Audience– Who do you want to write to?

Describe some important characteristics of a potential target audience.

Think about aspects of audience like age, gender, education, knowledge of the issue, values/beliefs, political opinions...

Consider also which potential audience would benefit the most by what you have to say. Who do you think should hear your perspective?

PURPOSES AND GOALS OF THE ASSIGNMENT

THIS ASSIGNMENT BRINGS EVERYTHING TOGETHER WE HAVE BEEN WORKING ON-- PUSH CRITICAL READING & THINKING—Synthesize sources and look for connections. Integrate, evaluate, explain,

analyze, and perhaps even raise new questions. You’re now “entering the conversation” in a new way.

RHETORICAL KNOWLEDGE— Think about the individual writing situation. You’re in charge of your own purpose, your own target audience, and -in many ways- your own genre use.

You have to consider what you want to happen, who you want to target, and how you will communicate it. KNOWLEDGE OF CONVENTIONS— Genre. Genre. Genre. You’ll have to figure out, and pay attention to, the genre you are

using, its conventions and expectations, and how to use them. This means genres of digital writing as well as the expectations of the academic community.

COMPOSING PROCESSES— We’ll be brainstorming and drafting and revising and all of the same “super fun” stuff we always do.

Pay attention to how you go about drafting and pulling your ideas together, and to what kinds of things you do well and also struggle with or need to work on.

CRITICAL REFLECTION – You must review and assess your own work and research in order to examine what you’ve been thinking and learning and to determine what your purpose should be, who your audience should be, and what further evidence you might need.

Groups

1.Complete your Writer’s Guide2.Talk about-–

Any ideas you have right now for purpose or audience for your essay

Any examples that stood out to youAny questions you have about the assignment

Back to BrainstormingDIGITAL ESSAY

Genre Choices

Consider your purpose and audience…What are your first thoughts about how you might want to present your message to that audience? Do you want to write a digitally enhanced academic essay? ***most

common*** Do you want to create a website that aims to raise awareness or get

the audience involved? Do you have another idea altogether for something digital to create (a

lecture or series of mini lectures, a presentation, a documentary, an infomercial, a video to include in a shorter article)?

What Does Your Audience Need?

What specific concerns would this audience have that you need to address?

Which sources have you read that would be the most helpful for communicating with this audience?

What specific information would your potential audience need to understand the topic? (terms, phrases, statistics, events, etc.)

More About Audience, Tone, and Design

What tone should it take? Think about more than just formal or informal. Knowing what tone(s) you need can help you make design and composing

choices. Should your piece be more serious/scholarly, satirical, emotional, gut-wrenching,

inspiring? What tone is most appropriate for your audience? What images or videos do you already know you want to include

somewhere in the piece you create? Do you have any initial ideas for how you want to organize your piece?

Other ideas for design, organization, links, graphs?

Group Discussion--

With your group, go around the circle and share your initial ideas for your audience and get ideas from your group as well.

What do you want to say? Who would you want to say it to? What do you know about your

target audience? What should you create to present your message? What

tone(s) should it take? How do you want it to sound? What ideas do you have to connect to your audience? What

sources or image do you already know you want to include?

HELP WITH ORGANIZING, DEVELOPING, & PRESENTING YOUR MESSAGE

Here are a few tips to help you outline/draft how to present your information-- Start with a hook. Spend some time getting the audience engaged right off the bat. Don’t just dive in. Know what background knowledge your audience will need about the problem. Readers often need a section of the essay early on that

gives them background knowledge or convinces them that the problem exists. (You may consult your proposal for this.) Know what your message or your "take-away point" is (your thesis). Word this as clear as you can on your draft to help keep you focused.

This can come up at the beginning or be left for the end, but it should be clear. Know what kind of claim (your message) you are making. This can tell you a lot about how to organize the information. Know what reasons (list them out) you will need to give your audience in order to get them to accept your message. Use these reasons to

order your essay and create sections. Make space to deal with varied ideas or information. This can be done in a section of the essay or dispersed throughout. If your audience Plan for actual sections (for background information, for each reason, to address other perspectives, for possible solutions, etc.) not just

paragraphs. For well-known issues, it’s usually a good a idea to address other views right off the bat. For issues where you are raising awareness, other views can be handled later in the essay.

Plan for multiple sources to be used within each section. Think about what NEW information, images, videos, examples, etc. you might need to add to your essay. You might need to find a

new piece of evidence to develop a particular section. Remember each point you bring up or section you have should utilize several sources. Think about creative ways to end the essay-- story, question, quote, call-to-action, point.