Name:______________________________

Meeting Time:_______________________

Invention Style: Listing & Looping

Part 1: Choosing an issue. Make a list of any current issue that you feel strongly about. This does not have to be an earth-shattering or nationally recognized issue. It simply has to be something you feel strongly about; something that needs to be fixed.

1. 5.)

2.) 6.)

3.) 7.)

4. 8.)

Part 2: Picking a topic. Review you list with your readers in mind. Is this a person that agrees with me, disagrees with me, or is disinterested. Circle the one you think that you can best present and support to this reader.

Part 3: List your reasons. Write down every plausible reason, you can give, to convince your reader that your position on this issue should be taken seriously.

1. 5.)
2. 6.)
3. 7.)
4. 8.)
5. 10.)

Part 4: Choosing the Strongest Reasons: Review your list with your readers in mind, and put a check by the reasons that would carry the most weight with them and are most important to you.

Part 5: Developing Your Best Reasons: Write for three minutes on each of your strongest reasons, explaining it to your readers and providing support for it. The professor will time you. Remember not to edit at this point, simply freewrite. Attach your separate pieces of paper that you write on to this page when you are done.

Part 6: Listing Opposing Arguments: Make as complete a list as you can of the arguments you expect others to make in response to your argument. Try talking to someone in class(or outside) who disagrees with you.

1. 6.)
2. 7.)
3. 8.)
4. 9.)
5. 10.)

Part 7: Argumentative Strategy. Put a plus by argument you plan to acknowledge, a check by those you plan to accommodate, and a minus by those you plan to refute.

Part 8: Augmenting for your tone. Looking at the above list, and considering the tone you want to take, circle which tact you will need to include more of to make your essay effective.

Part 9: Identify your core issue. Complete the following Looping exercise. Your professor will time you.

• Write down your area of interest
• Write nonstop for 5 minutes
• After 5 minutes, pause to rewrite what you have written. Decide what is most important -- a single insight, a pattern of ideas, an emerging theme, a visual detail, anything at all that stands out. To complete the first loop, express this center in a single sentence.
• Beginning with this sentence, write nonstop for 5 minutes.
• Summarize in one sentence again to complete the second loop.

Keep looping until one of your summary sentences produces a focus or thesis.

Part 10: Reflecting on your purpose. First consider you audience. Now why do you want to tell this reader(s) your position. In one sentence write why this paper is important enough to write. Under that write what you want your reader(s) to walk away from this essay with. Once you have that, your professor will start you on another looping exercise.

Part 11: Research. Decide what facts you need to make your argument hold water. Write down any things that you feel you need to know about this subject to convince your reader that your position should be taken seriously. Finally, write down a few place where you think you can find this information.