Kim Dingess Grad Tutor Newsletter Editor

I can recall being a new tutor. Back then, the Writing Center was on the third floor of Jennings. Room 304, to be exact. We had three half-tables, a computer, a couch, a coffee pot, and a shelf of craft supplies all crammed into a tiny, 8x10ish office space directly connected to the balcony. In fair weather, you could find tutors tutoring at tables overlooking the courtyard. Friends of tutors popped their heads in as they left their English classes; tutors themselves even came in to talk to fellow tutors while their classes were on a break. The Writing Center was a special place.

Now three years and a mess of changes later, the Writing Center looks nothing like it did before. But it's still just as special.

We've moved to the library, added receptionists, and moved appointment making online. But a lot more has changed about the Writing Center than these three things. The attitude seems different.

See, sitting amongst the English Department put us, albeit unintentionally, in an English mindset. We were there to work on your English papers. That was what students thought and how we acted. But that was not who we were supposed to be as a Writing Center. And as the physical space of the Writing Center began to evolve, so did our understanding of who we were as tutors.

Tutoring stopped being about correcting grammar or moving a few commas. It stopped being about the A or the class. Somewhere along the four-minute walk from third floor Jennings to the LRC, the Writing Center became about the writer. It didn't matter if that writer was writing for Nursing, Science, Business, History, or, yes, even English. When you put your focus on the student, you're not bettering a paper, but rather a writer. That's perhaps the most important change the Writing Center has undergone since its move. And as Katie said, it's our honor to be here, to help you with your writing.

While I'm sure there are numerous reasons for this shift of focus in the Writing Center, one reason I believe this shift took place is social media. The use of Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram has helped bring in students writing for classes outside of the English Department. The diversity of students coming to the Writing Center actually helped shape us into the Center that we are, the tutors that we are. Sometimes, we don't work on writing at all. We've helped students study for tests. We've helped international students with vocabulary. We've even lent a listening ear to those who've needed it. These students have helped to make the Writing Center what it is, and with social media, we are able to reach those people more and more. It's for that reason that I believe that the Writing Center will continue to evolve. Into what, I'm not sure. But one thing is for sure: it'll still be a special place. 

Remember when life was simpler? Back

Hannah Fields Tutor, Social Media Supervisor

 when you had to have a face-to-face encounter with someone to know what they looked like or what movies their 14-year old self watched? Or if you wanted to know what someone was thinking, then you would have to stare deep into their eyes and listen instead of staring at an app on your smartphone? Or when knowing what your roommate's sister's boyfriend had for supper last night was never information your brain took up valuable space with?

No? Me neither. (Well, maybe that last one.) So then why do people over a certain age keep judging us for all the time we supposedly spend on our phones? Can you really blame us when we have literally the entire world at our fingertips? If I want to Facebook creep on the cute boy my friend met at work yesterday, I have that privilege, nay, right, as a product of Generation Y. If I get jealous when the boy I am secretly in love with starts talking to another girl, then I should be able to judge her grammar and punctuation on Twitter without feeling guilty. If I want to spend 15 minutes deciding between the only two Instagram filters that magically make me look less like a vampire, then you should thank me for caring enough not to blind you with my paleness.

While I admit that it is nice to make and share memories with friends in the spaces between double tapping my roommate's sister's boyfriend's supper and retweeting Ellen's Oscar selfie, it is also infinitely simpler to share big news with multiple people in one fell swoop (or fail if it's not good news). Being connected with social media makes it easier to keep up with old friends, or avoid them if they weren't so friendly. It is the easiest way to prove that Shaun White and I are soul-mates and to find the neatest little nuggets for Dr. Price.

Without social media, we would have no idea how many truly epic covers of "Let It Go" exist or be able to give John Travolta feedback on the "Adele Dazeem" fiasco. We might never have found a good use for the pound key or found ways to make friends with the click of a button. So go creep on that cute boy you saw at the gym yesterday and post a throwback Thursday of you in diapers without any shame, but don't let it consume your life. Don't let it define your self-worth as a human being, and promise you won't try to steal Shaun from me.

Dr. Steve Price Director

We always encourage the tutors to invest in the writing center, to look for opportunities to be leaders, and to take initiative. And that's what Heather had done, when she launched our inaugural Facebook page.

The page is still there-

https://www.facebook.com/MississippiCollegeWritingCenter-and more active than ever. So, the story has a happy trajectory. At that moment of learning of its existence, though, this social media novice was petrified. I'd heard the horror stories of scandalous photos and unprofessional impressions and unrelenting spam that followed anything online. What uncontrolled virtual monsters were sure to rain down on our still pristine MC Writing Center, I fearfully wondered.

Social media is a perfect complement to what we do in the writing center. It's collaborative in nature. It's interactive. It encourages community. Go and "like" our MC Writing Center Facebook page and follow us on Twitter, and you'll quickly learn who we are. You'll see peers working together. You'll meet the tutors. You'll meet our alumni. You'll see the tutors engaged in professional development. You'll find helpful tips posted. You'll read encouraging posts from friends and family. You'll notice writers thanking the tutors for their assistance.

We invite you to visit us soon in the writing center, in person and online!

It's a black fly in your Chardonnay

It's a death row pardon two minutes too late

And isn't it ironic... don't you think? 

                Ironic by Alanis Morissette 

The definition of irony according to Merriam-Webster is "a situation that is strange or funny because things happen in a way that seems to be the opposite of what you expected." When I think of having Chardonnay, I do not think of the opposite being Chardonnay with a black fly. I think of it as the absence of Chardonnay. Therefore, a black fly in your Chardonnay is not ironic. It is just irritating. 

Also, if one is on death row, wouldn't he expect to die? In this circumstance, he does in fact die. The ironic thing would have been if he were pardoned two and a half minutes earlier than this song suggests. That would be the exact opposite of what everyone thought would happen. This situation has a legitimate lack of humor too, which is included in the definition of irony. It is not funny at all. It is actually pretty tragic.  

Gwen Matuszewski

Who you gonna call?

             Ghostbusters theme song  

English grammar dictates that this read: "WHOM are you going to call?" "Who" is a subjective pronoun, and "Whom" is the objective case. "Who" will be acting as the subject of the sentence whereas "whom" is always working as an object.

Jeremy Hammack 

So if by the time the bar closes and you feel like falling down, I'll carry you home tonight.

            We Are Young by Fun.

This is an "if-then" sentence, although the "then" is understood. The problem lies in the "if" part. The "if" that the person is talking about is "you feel like falling down." There is no uncertainty as to whether the bar is going to close, but there is to whether or not 'you' are going to fall down. So if you feel like falling down-by the time the bar closes-then I'll carry you home tonight. And I bet you just figured out what was wrong-the "and." It shouldn't be there. "If-then" sentences have a progression: the bar closes, you feel like falling down, you're carried home. The 'and', coupled with the prepositional phrase "by the time" disturbs that progression.

Kim Dingess

James Ritchey Tutor

       There is no question that there has been a major shift in our culture over the last ten years. Our society has been essentially taken over by social media. It is likely that if you were to take a stroll around town you would see all sorts of people, young and old, checking Facebook and Twitter on their iPhones. Now, many people see the take-over of social media as detrimental to both social and professional skills. One particular skill that is seen as harmed by social media is the skill of writing. Specifically, critics of Twitter will say that people are becoming so used to writing things in 140 characters or less that they are becoming limited in their writing and are learning to only write about trivial matters. I would argue, however, that the limitation to 140 characters can actually improve your writing, as it requires you to be direct, concise and to the point.

       One of the most frustrating things to deal with as a reader is reading something that just doesn't quite get to the point. You're left wondering, "What is this really all about?" Well, in the Twitter world, the writer has no space to waste. They have to get to their point immediately. And so, if you are on Twitter it will cause you to think more about the best ways to get your point across and be understood.

       Another result of this is mandated directness is the way that it helps the writer think more about sentence structure and grammar. One of the easiest ways to ensure that a reader will miss your point is to use a sentence that is too wordy or is worded poorly. A run-on sentence can distract the reader or cause them to lose interest. With Twitter, a run-on sentence is typically not an option. And poor sentence structure is spotted very easily as most posts are three sentences or less. Thus, the writer must think critically about how to write a well-worded sentence that can be understood without difficulty.

       Many organizations have seen the benefits of communicating via Twitter. For example, for many people, Twitter is their main source of news. They follow sources such as Fox, CNN and NBC in order to see what is going on in their world without having to turn on a TV or open a newspaper. Also, car dealerships, restaurants and all other sorts of corporations advertise through the means of Twitter because it allows, or in some cases forces them to communicate in a concise and direct manner.

       But it does not stop at corporations and organizations. Political figures including the President and congressmen communicate their stances and plans through Twitter. And pastors and theologians even find ways to discuss deep theological concepts in 140 characters or less. Scientists discuss their findings, artists their artwork and musicians their music by writing in the Twitter sphere. Much of the writing world has become connected through Twitter because much of the writing world knows that Twitter is an effective and powerful means of communicating.  

      Regardless of your stance on the debate over social media, one must concede that Twitter has been beneficial for the writers. For all of the frivolity of much of social media, there is still a large part of the world that uses Twitter in order to communicate things that matter in a concise and direct way.