Catherine Lange, Writing Consultant
Have you ever gone to class feeling underprepared? Yeah, I have too. It’s a scary feeling to walk into a classroom and hope that you will not be called upon to talk.
In some ways, a Writing Center session requires preparation, though not necessarily in the same way. When you have a session at the writing center, your consultant is there to help you create the best piece of writing you possibly can. Being prepared for your session helps us to help you. Here are some things you can do to prepare for your writing center session:
- Have the requirements for your piece of writing at hand for the session.
This suggestion helps your consultant know what they should focus on in the session. If your text is due to your professor immediately after the session, then it would be counterproductive to suggest reframing part of the text. Closer deadlines mean that the session is better spent fine-tuning the piece at the sentence level.
Having the requirements for the piece means that your consultant can also help you meet all of the specifications for the submission. Some requirements include multiple objectives, and we can best help you meet those objectives when we know what they are. Class assignments frequently will include specific questions that must be answered in the text, and I have had consultations before where looking at the assignment prompt allowed me to point out where a writer needed to address another part of the prompt.
2. Tell your consultant what you want from your session.
As a consultant, I rarely know what my writer will have when the consultation begins; we assist with written pieces from brainstorming to finalization. With this in mind, we sometimes have consultations where the writer has received a request for significant changes to the written piece and the writer is frustrated. This is a natural reaction to such a request, and it is one that we can help with. However, a consultation functions best when your consultant know what will help you make the required changes. Brainstorming, outlining, and talking through the prompt objectives are all particularly productive ways of addressing feedback to writing, and knowing what you think will help can maximize the efficiency of your consultation.
3. Give feedback to the Writing Center after your appointment.
The Writing Center wants to provide writers with the best experience possible. One of the ways we seek to improve consultations is by adjusting to feedback from our writers. If you have a suggestion for how we can improve, tell us by taking the post-consultation survey. Just as writers become better at their craft by using feedback, consultants give better consultations by using writer feedback.
These tips will help you get the most out of consultations at the Writing Center. Your consultant wants to help you leave your session with writing tips that encourage your development as a writer. From brainstorming to finalizing, we can help you with your writing. Don’t forget to have your writing requirements at hand, communicate with your consultant what you want to achieve during your appointment, and give feedback on your consultation.
University of Louisville Writing Center 