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Public Essay Submission Guidance

To submit to The Coloradoan:

You should register for membership at Coloradoan.com. Once you've logged into the main page, look for the section titled "Your Voices and Views" and the link "Share stories from your community." That link should bring you to the "Submit Your Article & Photo" page (uploaded to drop.io as a PDF).

• Fill out your contact information
• Briefly summarize your article in 3-4 sentences
• Fill out the "Your Article" box with your Public Essay text (roughly 1000 words, using line breaks between paragraphs instead of indentations since the box does not allow you to format the text in MLA style)
• Select which category and neighborhood your article fits
• Attach your Visual Rhetoric file (it could be one photo, but consider adding text or combining two or more images, as appropriate)
• Recalling our discussion in class, compose a caption for the visual rhetoric and a byline (your name)

You should submit a printout of the submission confirmation page as proof of submission, along with a hard copy of the essay in MLA style. Again, note that you won't have a Works Cited page, since you'll be making (appropriately brief) in-text references to sources, as we did in our Open Letter assignment.

To submit to The Fort Collins Rabbit:

Follow guidance in the latest Rabbit issue, which includes the e-mail address fortcollinsrabbit@gmail.com. That's where you should send your Public Essay and Visual Rhetoric as attachments, along with an e-mail pitching your text to the journal (the essay itself should not include references to CO150). Submit a printout of the e-mail as proof of submission, along with a hard copy of the essay in MLA style. Again, note that you won't have a Works Cited page, since you'll be making (appropriately brief) in-text references to sources, as we did in our Open Letter assignment.

To submit to Wolf Boy:

Follow guidance at WolfBoy.org, which includes the e-mail address octabeck@yahoo.com. That's where you should send your Public Essay and Visual Rhetoric as attachments, along with an e-mail pitching your text to the journal (the essay itself should not include references to CO150). Submit a printout of the e-mail as proof of submission, along with a hard copy of the essay in MLA style. Again, note that you won't have a Works Cited page, since you'll be making (appropriately brief) in-text references to sources, as we did in our Open Letter assignment.

To submit to A:

Click on the above handout that provides submission guidance and the e-mail address aliteraryjournal@gmail.com. That's where you should send your Public Essay and Visual Rhetoric as attachments, along with an e-mail pitching your text to the journal (the essay itself should not include references to CO150). Submit a hard copy of the e-mail as proof of submission, along with a hard copy in MLA style. Again, note that you won't have a Works Cited page, since you'll be making (appropriately brief) in-text references to sources, as we did in our Open Letter assignment.

Image Resources for Visual Rhetoric

To use an image created by an outside source in your Visual Rhetoric, you need permission or a license from that source. SXC is one of a few databases that provide an exception to this rule: you must register as a member but most of the images available for download come free of license restrictions. iStockPhoto is a similar resource that provides images for a small fee. Note that captions for images from databases such as SXC and iStockPhoto still need to credit sources--yourself, if you alter the original image artistically, another artist or photographer, or the name of the database.

Calendar Post for December 11

• Please meet in Morgan Library Classroom Two on Friday for our last class session before our final period. We'll discuss options for submitting the Public Essay online or via e-mail, and obtaining proof of submission to include with your portfolio.

• Meanwhile, you should be able to offer comments on two collaborators' second drafts via Google Docs. Check this post for the names of your collaborators and guidance on offering feedback, which we'll work on in class tomorrow.

Final Period Times

According to the Colorado State Registrar's Office, final periods for sections 37 and 44 will both be held Tuesday, December 15. Section 37 will meet 3:40-5:40 PM. Section 44 will meet 9:10-11:10 AM. Beforehand, please review a handout on analyzing and presenting the Local Inquiry/Public Essay, whose presentation and portfolio is due the same day.

Office Hours Update

Tuesday's office hours will take place in the Morgan Library, instead of Aylesworth 268. Raul will be available at one of the wooden tables near the MAPS and TAX collections on the first floor of the library. See our syllabus for more details.

Local Inquiry/Public Essay Assignment FAQ

Question on Mon, Dec 14, 2009 at 12:50 PM:

I still have not gotten any invitations from my group members, and I don't want to be counted off for not editing theirs. I've checked everyday for the past week for their invitations. This is a bummer for me because I'd really like some feedback so I can get a decent grade.

Response:

You won't lose points for not commenting on drafts that don't exist. It's unfortunate that your collaborators haven't offered you comments or posted their own drafts, and they will lose points for not participating. It's a little late to seek outside help on your draft now, but the Writing Center's online service may be a possibility. I know that the Center's walk-in hours have been reduced this week: 10 AM to 2 PM, Monday, December 14th through Wednesday, December 16th. Everyone feels understandably busy this week, but as a last resort you might ask a friend you know to be a good writer to give your draft a quick read and offer some oral comments.

Question on Mon, Dec 14, 2009 at 12:41 PM:

I've searched the blog and drop.io and haven't figured out how and/or when to turn in each individual part. Can you send out a blog post with the answer to this because I feel like I'm not the only one confused.

Response:

The Local Inquiry/Public Essay is due as a portfolio during the final period. Our blog talks about that here:

According to the Colorado State Registrar's Office, final periods for sections 37 and 44 will both be held Tuesday, December 15. Section 37 will meet 3:40-5:40 PM. Section 44 will meet 9:10-11:10 AM. Beforehand, please review a handout on analyzing and presenting the Local Inquiry/Public Essay, whose presentation and portfolio is due the same day.

Additionally, our assignment sheet for the Local Inquiry/Public Essay says the following:

11 or 15 December 2009: In a manila folder, please turn in (1) a Public Essay of roughly 1,000 words in the same condition the text was submitted to your chosen publication; (2) some evidence of your submission, be it an online confirmation form or an e-mail showing your submission; and (3) the Visual Rhetoric that accompanied your submission.

15 December 2009: Please turn in an MLA-formatted rhetorical analysis of roughly 500 words. On this date you’ll also deliver a short presentation summarizing your essay and your analysis during our final period.

Question on Mon, Dec 7, 2009 at 4:48 PM:

The assignment handout says the Public Essay is to be around 1,000 words. How far over 1,000 words is too far over? I have a lot of information I've gathered and really want to do my topic justice instead of slim it down and only report the skin and bones of the situation.

Response:

Although it's tempting to write more the upper limit for your essay should be 1,200 words, as was the case with the Academic Argument. Over-writing the essay and then condensing it is actually a great way to improve your writing's quality. Look for ways sentences can shorten as well as parts that distract from the story's core and can be cut altogether.