Beginnings

Humble as this is, this is a new beginning for me.

Moreover, it is a contract that I am making with myself. A contract to write more, and to write well.


My name is R. W. Downing and I am a Writer/Satirist from Arkansas, USA. I am also a writing tutor, and studying to become a professor of writing.

Of course, I am still working towards my baccalaureate degree. My career path is still a long stretch a head of me.

I am building this blog for four reasons:

1. I am avoiding writing a 10 page paper on Mark Twain's allusions of sixth century Britain to nineteenth century America. If you are starting to feel bad for me, don't. I picked the topic.
2. I write in a host of genres. Not only will this give me a stronger public eye than my previous attempts, but I will be able to sort them online with greater ease. It will also make it easier for me to see my path of experience through the genres.
3. As I am working towards my Masters in Rhetoric and Composition, I will need to develop not only my skills as a writer, but also aid others in developing their skills. It is the big reason why I am a tutor (the $7 an hour is nice, too, I suppose - that is, if you are used to not having money). Aside from tutoring, I enjoy building tip sheets to help other writers and other tutors. I plan to post those here as well to test their effectiveness.
4. Humor is one of the most effective tools that I have found in understanding something - anything. Really, it is second only to do-it-yourself work for me (I'm a kinesthetic learner). That is the point of Guerrilla Literacy - The use of unexpected humor to help gain a deeper understanding of literature in general. We scholars are not all Wordsworths or Emersons - though, I'm sure Ralph Waldo Emerson would both enjoy and detest the idea of mocking literature to gain a greater understanding of it.

 
After I make some headway into my Twain paper, I'll post a couple of pieces for the Fiction genre.

Thanks for your eyes,

R. W.