Tag: Digital Writing

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Chicago Tech Writers Visit WRD 521: Part 1

This quarter in WRD 521: Technical Writing, we were fortunate to have four technical writers visit the class to share some of their experiences in the field. The blog has two parts, so make sure to head over to the next post after reading this one. Our first two visitors, Adam Evans and Heidi Colonna—both of whom work as technical writers in Chicago—attended our class on February 6, 2018 to share some of their stories, tips, and knowledge.

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New Library Spaces Present New Possibilities for WRD

Recently, the John T. Richardson Library here in DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus finished a renovation of the second-floor that features a maker space called the Maker Hub, several media studios called 1581 Studios, and a collaborative work space called The Forum. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni are encouraged to use these spaces to create and use many different types of media including video, audio, photography, and computing. In WRD, we are particularly excited about these new spaces, which promise new opportunities for our students and faculty, especially those who are interested in digital and technical writing.

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Recap: Sara Wachter-Boettcher’s Talk on Design for Real Life

DePaul’s Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Discourse hosted a talk on Thursday, May 11th featuring content strategy consultant and coauthor of the book Design for Real Life, Sara Wachter-Boettcher. In her talk, she recounted the many ways our designs can be offputting to users, and how designs can leave some users feeling left out. She also delivered solutions on what we can do to mend and prevent setbacks like this. Many users believe that the term “algorithm” evokes a sort of frigid and unbiased truth that only computers could posses. An algorithm is thought to be born with no natural flaws, unlike

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Recap: Professor Kristin L. Arola’s Talk on Composition and American Indian Rhetorics

On Friday April 21, Dr. Kristin L. Arola from Washington State University visited DePaul to present a talk titled “Slow Composition: American Indian Rhetorics and Mindful Making Practices.” This talk was part of the WRD Department’s Writing and Rhetoric Across Borders Speaker Series. Arola’s described the implementation of a composition theory based on story, what she referred to as “story as methodology.” By using an American Indian lens, Arola discussed our current conceptions of the composing process and opened up new critiques on how to improve. Pointing out the current fast-paced nature of rhetoric in our society, Arola advocated for

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