Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Weekly Post #9: Dear Writer
You've looked at opening and closing lines. You've looked for patterns, things you dislike, and fun sentences. You know your writer well. So well I want you to write a brief little note to your writer. The note should include some praise, what you like/dislike about the work, and at least one piece of constructive criticism. What could this writer improve upon? Is there an issue the writer should take up? Do you have any questions for your writer? This would be the time to ask.
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18 comments:
Dear David Brooks,
Where have you been? You haven’t written in forever, and I don’t know why. And it is sad, because I enjoy reading your work, and wish that there was something more recent that I could peruse. It is interesting getting a more conservative view on events, and you make you’re points concisely and clearly. One thing I wish you would refrain from doing is using so many quotes. Other writers aren’t as clear or concise as you, and some of the time their views muddle your own. Also, I think you could hook people better with more exciting opening sentences. Something I wish you would write about is Miley Cyrus, I feel like you would have very interesting opinions on her. Finally, I have a couple of questions. I went as far back as I could in the New York Times’ archives, and you have writing from 1999. If you went back and read your work, would you change anything, or has your writing style and opinions stayed consistent? Also, as a political writer, has that influenced your articles at all, do you feel pressured to sometimes report on specific topics and ignore others?
Thanks,
-Alec
Dear Maureen Dowd,
As I have read through your work week after week, I have realized that you are a pretty cool woman. You cover a broad range of things from politics to comedians to police chiefs and your subtle humor never fails to make me laugh. Your writing is consistent but it would be nice to see a little variety every once in awhile. You could spice things up by trying out a new writing style or something else that is completely new that you have never done before. If you were ever looking for some new ideas to write about, I would suggest finding a news piece that has not been talked about much or is not on the main worldwide news. I feel like you would be able to write an intriguing article about something that is not well known. Two questions I have for you would be, what is your favorite book and why? And if you could have dinner with three people from any era/country, who would they be?
Thanks,
Ruby
Dear Writer,
It has been so very fun following you, or rather looking back into your archives and reading your past posts. I have to agree with my classmate Alec Neal, when I ask, "Where have you been?" Although, I can't really complain when your archives have made these blog posts so easy to write. You use a variety of sentence patterns and vary your writing quite a bit; following you has been a very inspiring journey. My only suggestion is to post better looking and better tasting recipes. I think food blogs are more fun to follow when the recipes are ones the reader would enjoy making themselves. Thanks for the memories!
XoXo,
Tia
Dear Susie Boyt,
Thank you for brightening my week with your witticisms and helping make the financial times a newspaper interesting to someone who hasn't the least interest in anything financial. The stories about your life are interesting and well written but I would implore you to attempt extending beyond your usual structure. Maybe try starting with your current story before addressing a past one every time or talk about a trip you took or your family. Just make things a little more personal in general. I think if you did that it would make your writing a little more vibrant and a lot more interesting to a regular reader of your work like myself.
But what do I know? You're the professional.
I'd love to ask you a few questions also. How do you come up with topics for your weekly column? Where else have you worked as a writer? Do your great-grandfather Freud's ideas ever influence the things you write about?
Let me know your thoughts on this and more ASAP.
Lots o' Love from California,
Chiara
Dear Gail Collins,
First of all, thank you for being brutally honest. Like you, I believe the government is being stupid. It's nice to hear from someone who shares these opinions. You are also hilarious. Can we have dinner together sometime? I think it would be a riot. I often wonder whether you are as funny in person as you are in writing. I hope that is the case!
I've been curious about where you get your information. Not that I doubt its accuracy or anything, but I am curious because you always have so much of it. Is the process difficult? Do you have certain sources that you consistently use or do you like to change it up?
I have truly enjoyed reading your work. You seem to really enjoy your writing. I can feel you having fun and laughing quietly to yourself as you type away on your computer. I'm glad you exist, because your voice is a valuable and strong one that is so refreshing in contrast to the stale reporting that I am used to. Keep up the good work, and are you free anytime soon for dinner? Lunch? Even a mid-morning snack?
-Matthew
Dear Jennifer McHenry,
I have loved reading your posts! I myself love to bake and reading your posts and making your recipes has been really fun. It is inspiring how much time and precision you put into your baking career. I have though a lot about pursuing my passion for baking, and your site has allowed me to see how I potentially could. Not only do I love Bake or Break because it is about baking but also because of the way that you have put the site together. The written part is very thoughtful and personal. I like the way you talk in first person and add anecdotes about memories and experiences baking. I also often implement a baking tip or skill from one recipe into another. The pictures are really beautiful and highlight the recipes. They put a image to the words and ingredients. It is something to look forward to. I also like the weekly ingredient post. It is fun to see the multiple ways to use one ingredient. It is also really helpful to have the ingredient index. This way if I want to make brownies, I can find multiple brownie recipes or if I want to make something with strawberries, I could find a recipe for a cupcake, pie and cheesecake. The one thing I would do to make it better is add posts about general baking tips and info. That would be fun and interesting and could be implemented into all the other recipe posts. Thanks so much!
~Monica Gerber
Dear Nicholas D. Kristof,
I've been reading your work for a while now, and I've really started to enjoy it. You're witty, smart, and thoughtful all at once, and I hope to learn from your writing style. At first, I honestly thought you were pretty boring because of your abundance of uninteresting political pieces, but you have truly outdone yourself by adding some variety to your column.
I noticed that you've been writing for the New York Times since 1984, and you sure have covered a lot of ground. In the past, you've gone on the road to document your experiences around the world, and I particularly enjoyed a past piece you wrote on your travels to Iran. I would suggest taking more trips and getting into some more discovery journalism, if that's possible. You certainly lead a busy life, so I won't hold it against you if you don't have the time.
One thing I've been particularly perplexed about is your name. "Nicholas D. Kristof". Is it really completely necessary to accentuate your middle initial? Like, is there another Nicholas Kristof you need to differentiate yourself from? I don't know, maybe you think it adds that certain "je ne sais quoi" to your public perception, but I'm not so sure. Let me know why you use it!!!
Sincerely,
Becca
Dear Meghan Duam,
I enjoy your column in the LA Times so much. Your posts are so entertaining, and not once have I come across a piece of yours that has bored me. You keep me hooked no matter how unfamiliar I am with the topic. I just love how you begin and end your essays. The bold sentence or two is so unique, and I always look forward to how they'll be phrased. Your wit and strong opinion always have me laughing out loud.
Though the way you craft the tone of your pieces are so hilarious, it is often because you're making someone or something look idiotic and simply wrong. Sometimes you do this to the reader. Though it's powerful and intriguing, and usually done tastefully, there are sometimes when I feel it is a little aggressive or overdone. Just continue to be mindful of the tone so that readers continue to take you seriously and not get offended.
Why have you stopped writing? You have not posted anything new in at least a month and a half! Though I enjoy going back through your past pieces, I am craving something current!
Please post new piece soon!
Hope all is well,
Devron
Dear Gene Wojciechowski,
Thank you for writing great blogs about sport teams; I really enjoy reading your posts. You keep your writing very informal and easy to read, which I appreciate. While I have always liked football, your blog posts have influenced me to watch even more games. I wish you wrote more though. Lately, you have not been writing every week like usual. Also, maybe you could add more of your opinion on the games and analyze more teams in your blogs. Nonetheless, I have really loved reading your blogs, and I look forward to reading more. Thanks again!
-Tessa Bednarz
Dear David Brooks,
First and foremost, I love your well thought out opinions on pressing topics. You take a more conservative approach to issues than I do, but you make your points in such a way that it sheds light on angles I had not considered, without being dogmatic or sensationalist. Your opinions on current issues are missed, though. You haven't written since August and—while I still enjoy your takes on past news stories—I'm itching to hear your opinions on more current events, e.g. Typhoon Haiyan and the fumbled rollout of Obamacare. Finally, I have a question for you: Who is your biggest ideological inspiration, and who is your biggest journalistic inspiration? Your views are unique, and you choose an interesting selection of topics to write on, so I would love some deeper insight into where your ideas come from.
Thanks,
Ben
Dear Rick Reilly,
You are truly one of the best and most exciting writers that I have ever read. Not only do you make it easy for young adults to read but you add your own little twist to things by being funny and adding jokes to your journals. Another thing that I really appreciate is that you don't solely focus on one sport when writing. You focus on multiple sports and subjects like soccer, football, baseball or the occasional fan mail replying. It keeps the reader excited to read what is next rather than knowing what you are going to be writing about next. It would be amazing to meet you and possibly go see a 49ers game at candlestick park because I am a die hard niner fan.
Thanks,
Nick Watkins
Dear Woody Paige,
You sure do love the Broncos, and you might have converted some of your readers (ie me). Although I'd still consider myself a 49ers fan, your writing has only inspired me to follow the Broncos a little more closely. You approach sports writing with a light heart and I can imagine you chuckling to yourself as you write each one of your articles. The combination of statistics and comedy is fluid and goes unnoticed.
I first found you on ATH, and the first thing I noticed was the chalkboard quotes. Any way you can incorporate those into your writing for the Denver Post? I love the outright humor and puns, which can be lacking in your written work. How about an article written only in puns? I'd love to see a more overt comedic approach to an article.
Also, Have you ever considered branching beyond sports? There are hints of popular culture here and there, but what about an article not about sports (or not about football)?
My final question is how does ATH compare to writing? What's the difference between TV work and written work? Which do you prefer?
Anyways, I've enjoyed your writing and am looking forward to a 49ers vs Broncos Superbowl.
Thanks,
Josh
Dear Meghan Daum,
It’s been my pleasure to read your work for the past few months. I admire your ability to be able to write on wide range of topics from politics to parenthood to everyday occurrences with depth and humor. You have always found a way to engage the audience on a personal level regardless of the topic. You are clever and witty in your writing, especially with your titles and closing sentences. You are a bold and honest writer. Although, I think at times your tone can be aggressive or too sarcastic. In the end, you stay true to yourself which is what I admire most about you. I noticed you haven’t written in a while. I hope you come back to writing more articles.
Thank you for sharing your words with me.
Sincerely,
Alyza Garcia
Dear Gail Collins,
You continue to amaze me with your informative, yet engaging writing. Your humor makes reading your articles an enjoyable experience. At one point you were writing about a variety of things, but now all you write about is politics. I wish you would mix things up a bit. What interests you about politics? What makes you want to write about the latest things happening in the government? Other than that I would say keep up the great work and stay in touch with your humorous side!
Thanks,
Destinee
Dear Michelle Slade,
I really wish you would continue writing. You make it very clear that you have a love for sailing and I would love to here more about it. Like, where are the Kiwis now? But anyway, I still love reading your posts because you make it so interesting. There are some sailing blogs that are just so hard to follow. Things get very dry and boring. However, you have been able to keep my interest while getting information across as well.
Sincerely,
Nathalie
Dear Mark Ogden,
It has been a pleasure reading your work. I am truly excited every week to see what issues concern you the most. Each article you post is truly interesting and gives me knowledge on something I knew nothing about. This is great for me, being a football fanatic, to learn about more events that I normally would have no idea about. Although sometimes, I feel like your not personal enough in your writing. It is rare that you include humor or personal insight in your articles. This would enrich your writing so much more by adding another element.
Yours truly,
Eloi Vasuqez
Dear Dylan Desimone,
The main thing I love most about your writing is your attention to detail and how statistical your writing is. You analyze everything about the 49ers and I love that. You never miss a single key play or key stat of any game, and then you go into further detail on how it could impact the team. The one thing I think you could improve on is your paragraph structure and having better closing sentences. Your structure sometimes is all over the place because you usually talk about many parts of the team. When you do that, your transitions between paragraphs are not very smooth and it also causes the piece to be a little all over the place. I also think you should end with a better closing sentence because usually when you end a piece, you end with a new statistic where as I think it would be more powerful if you end with a strong analysis of previous statistics.
Colin
Donny O'Neill-
Whatsup dude! I have really enjoyed reading and writing about your writing over the last few months. I have really been able to see you define your writing style very well and I have tried to somewhat do the same with my writing as well. Along with all the awesome interviews and other pieces you've done recently I really liked all the film and contest reviews that Ive seen you put out. Your writing is full of style and I feel like you never say too much and never say too lithe. It is concise an to the point yet goes in depth when necessary and uses detail and imagery to really put the reader in your shoes and see the content from your perspective. Keep doing what you're doing, it's all looking great!
Ben
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