It’s no secret that writing is a huge part of college, and we hate to tell you this, but your choice of major won’t exempt you from that. There will be a lot of assignments, such as discussion boards, essays, research papers, thought journals, and self-reflections. The thing is, however, that writing isn’t always as easy as just letting your heart bleed on the page—especially when it’s academic writing with a looming deadline. So to help you with your future writing endeavors during the 2014-2015 school year, we have compiled a list of writing resources on campus.
1. Reading Writing Center
The reading writing center is willing to help students on many different levels. They serve as a test audience for your work, and it doesn’t matter what stage of the writing process you are in. You can bring them anything from an idea to a final draft, and they will teach you about the writing process, rhetorical awareness, reflective practice, and the ability to transfer these skills to other disciplines. All students are welcome to visit any of the three on campus locations for the reading writing center, but you must schedule an appointment. Find more information here.
2. The Southeast Review’s Writer’s Regimen
Photo credit: Southeast Review
The Southeast Review is the English graduate school’s literary magazine. They offer a Writer’s Regimen program, which is especially great for poets, essayists, and fiction writers. If you sign up (it only costs $15.00) for the Writer’s Regimen, you will receive 30 days of emails which include writing exercises, reading-writing exercises, a quote of the day from a famous writer, podcasts, and more. Plus, you will receive a free copy of their current issue, and the opportunity to examine the writing of others always helps to improve your own. Sign up by October 1st to receive the newest Writer’s Regimen! Find more information here.
3. Research Assistance
Sometimes you have to spend hours on end doing research before you can even get to the writing portion of the assignment. This can cause your writing to suffer, because the amount of time left before the due date becomes considerably smaller. In order to prevent this from happening, you can visit research assistance in Strozier (on the main floor). Research assistance “provides Florida State University students and faculty the opportunity to receive one-on-one help with their research needs” (source) so you can focus more on your writing. You can schedule a consultation here.
4. Your Professors
Don’t underestimate how helpful talking to your professor can be! They are the ones assigning you this written work, and they know what they are looking for. So if you have a question, ask! They are always willing to help you because they truly do want you to succeed.
5. Your Peers
They may not have a degree in English, but your peers can certainly tell you if something is awkward, if something doesn’t make sense, or if something is just plain awesome. Most of the time, you know what you are trying to write, so it’s easy for you to miss a mistake on your own paper. Any second pair of eyes will do.
Good luck with your writing, collegiettes! We know you will rock those papers!