7 ways the Miller Writing Center is like Game of Thrones

1. Six kingdoms in Westeros                                 Six Writing Center

                                                                                  locations

Kingdom of the Riverlands                                        Athletics Complex

Kingdom of the Vale                                                  Multicultural Center

Kingdom of the North                                                RBD

Kingdom of the Rock                                                 Forestry

Kingdom of the Stormlands                                       Architecture Library

Kingdom of the Reach                                               Learning Commons

2. We forgot the Kingdom of Dorne? Well, you forgot we work with

Creative writing, engineering, science reports, research papers, etc. Not just English essays.

           

3. There are nine major houses in Westeros... And we see at least as many types of writing:

Unfinished Outlines

History essays

Theses

Research Papers

English Papers

Creative Writing

*Dragons

Dissertations

Engineering Reports

4. The Night's Watch must fight daily in the cold and dark to keep the wildlings from breaking past the wall and overwhelming the South.

The embattled consultants of the Miller Writing Center fight daily in the well-lit warmth to keep theses and deadlines from breaking past the bounds of students’ sanity.

 

5. Each house has its motto. “Winter is coming,” “A Lannister always pays his debts” and “We do not sow.”

At the Miller Writing Center, our mottos are “Improving the writer, not the writing,” “Reaching every writer” and “We do not edit.”

 

6. Maesters serve kings and rulers across Westeros, helping lords get messages out to both kings and others around the world in a coherent manner.

Writing Center Consultants serve the students of Auburn, helping them get messages out to both professors and the writing community just as clearly.

7. The cast of the Game of Thrones television show is a group of attractive, photogenic actors who are extremely good at their jobs.

Enough said.

*The Writing Center is not responsible for the feeding or care of any live dragons brought to a session.

 

~Reggie P.

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Meet the Staff Monday

Consultant: Courtney Hewitt

 

Major: French and German.

Year: Junior

What do you like doing best in your spare time? I love to bake all the amazing recipes I find on Pinterest! And watch foreign films

What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you about writing? "Just write." I'm one of those people who tries to write the sentence perfectly the first time, but one of my high school professors told me to just write everything that came to mind and worry about making it sound perfect later. So I always get a brief outline written, and then word-vomit. And edit later, of course!

What has been the most rewarding part of your job at the Miller Writing Center? Repeat appointments! It really feels great when people come back over and over again- it shows that 1) you're a pretty cool person and 2) you're really helping them out!

Is there anything challenging about your job? If so, what is it? The hardest part of my job is balancing it with my 20 credit hour week of classes and my other job at SI. Time management is one of the most difficult skills to master, but it's great practice!

Hidden talent? I'm pretty good at lucid-dreaming...where you realize you're dreaming and then can control how the dream plays out.

Any good book recommendations? Well, it's a classic, but East of Eden is possibly my favorite book of all time.

If you want to visit Courtney for writing help, she is available from 9AM-12PM on Tuesdays in the Multicultural Center in the Student Center!

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Top Six with Scott: 6 Reasons You Absolutely HATE writing

You hate writing. You hate every writing assignment you ever get. You probably have a paper due tomorrow and you are reading this to procrastinate. Don’t worry—I already know why, and I’ve got something to say about it, too. So, grab a snack and enjoy; here are the top six reasons you absolutely hate writing.

1. “This author died before the founding of America and/or the invention of Hot Pockets.”

I get it: “nothing they say is relevant.” And yes, if Jane Austen could only have written essays about the need for a college football playoff system, it might make for a more “modern” read. But don’t fall into this trap. After all, as all college students know, expiration dates are only a suggestion. Sure, Jane Austen may not know anything about football. But she does know (and did write) something about fierce competition between men. Maybe write a paper comparing two male protagonists, how each asserts his masculinity in different ways, and then prove which type of man ol’ Jane preferred. All this to say, even though the content of your readings may not be relevant, the ideas they discuss can certainly apply to your life.

2. “My teacher doesn’t make sense.”

This I can relate to. I’ve often had teachers that I don’t understand, and yes, it’s extremely frustrating. However, stop and be thankful you get to write for a grade, and aren’t stuck in an ever-increasing stack of blue scantrons! When writing, you get to write about what interests you and what you understand. If you didn’t understand your professor’s discourse on the rhetoric of twentieth-century British biographies, then by all means, don’t write about the same thing! Even within the limits of rubrics and prompts, there is always room for a little flexibility in topic.

Of course, there are always some great external resources available: your professor’s office hours, us, or dare I say – another book?!

 

3. “Grammar is the love-child of Miley Cyrus and Parking Services.”

Yes, yes it is. But in our constant quest to look intelligent in contrast to that school in Tuscaloosa, we must abide.

4. “This assignment is boring!”

I have two responses to this. One, I once had to do an eight page analysis of three sentences in a coming-of-age novel by an obscure author from South Africa (Your assignment can’t be that boring!). Two, I’m sorry. Sometimes it happens. Sometimes there isn’t time to change your topic, and you’re stuck writing about something that just doesn’t interest you. But that’s okay. Because it’s making you a better writer and a better person. And in a couple years when an employer or graduate school asks you, “When’s a time you’ve had to overcome adversity?” then maybe that boring paper will finally become useful.

5. “I’m majoring in nuclear bio-astrophysics engineering and minoring in prime numbers.”

I know you’re smart, curing cancer, building rocket ships, and making my iPhone run faster (and thank you for doing it), but writing is always important. Why? This Forbes.com article gives you the facts. Employers value things like organizing, effective communication, and solving problems—three crucial aspects of writing a good paper—above “technical knowledge related to the job” and “proficiency with computers.”

So, keep on writing, regardless of your major; it’s for your benefit. Oh, and just so you know, some of our tutors build rocket ships, too.

6.  “This is hard. Like, literally.”

We know it is. But don’t worry, we’re here to make it easier, more exciting, and relevant. Come in and see us – we don’t bite, we can relate, and we like Hot Pockets, too.

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A letter to you from the handsome and pleasant-smelling Theodore C. Plunkett Pennywaithe

Begin dictation. Drexel! Are you writing this? Keep up, or you’ll be back to being my footstool.

To the Royal Miller Writing Society,

That insufferable Puffenstuff! Of course I must concede that his pet theories are supported by all reputable pedagogues, naturalists, and, indeed, empirical fact, but there are plenty of other explorers out there to write about, to make no mention of the more handsome, wealthy, well-dressed, and pleasant smelling ones. Myself for example! While I ever so briefly hesitate to tinkle on my own clavichord, I’d like to humbly suggest that my recent work with ethos, pathos, and logos, those lovely persuasive appeals, is not just groundbreaking, but will fundamentally alter our perception of reality at large.

Drexel! I see you laughing. Another smirk, and you’ll lose eye contact privileges for a month. Where was I? Ah, yes. My enduring and glorious legacy.

Why just the other day, I managed to unearth a specimen of purest ethos:

My fellow Americans…

The implications are simply astonishing! Imagine how useful it could be for a politician from that grotesquely egalitarian republic across the Atlantic. They’d be able to establish a common ground between themselves and their general public audience, thereby presenting themselves as a likeable, credible speaker. Why, they’d be able to put it in the first line of a speech. With appeals like this, they might even be able to get the greasy plebs to put them in office!

And that, dear friends at the Royal Miller Writing Society, is why I am the brightest luminary of the century, rather than that execrable Puffenstuff. Not that I’m bitter, mind you. I have remained as impartial as I am magnanimous, despite his disgraceful comportment at the 203rd Polo Tournament last month.

Regards,

Theodore C. Plunkett Pennywaithe

End dictation, Drexel. Good show.

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