Writing With Identity

How Do You Write With Identity?

When looking to Wardle’s “Identity, Authority, and Learning to Write in New Workplaces” it talks about how to write with identity and authority. When looking at it, as students everyone learns how to write. It’s part of the course. Teachers tell us how to “polish” our language, how to relay our information “clearly”. Though, when we write for our classes isn’t going to be something that will be accepted when working.

Wardle speaks of Etienne Wenger’s theory of communities and practice. What it is, is that it describes workplace enculturation and how it affects written practices. Specifically, Wenger speaks about how certain workplace groups and activities can alter your identity in your writing. Wenger says there are many factors, like engagement, imagination, and alignment.

You must figure out how to engage with other community members, as Wenger said, identity is dynamic. You have to figure out what it does best within the community you’re in, and figure out from there how to incorporate that into your writing. If one fails to figure out social cues and identities, then they will fail to figure out how to incorporate it in their writing and engage the audience.

Authority and Identity Are Connected

Just as before, authority is just as important as identity. When writing with authority, you need to be able to command your words with respect, confidence, and trust of your audience. You have to be writing like you know what you’re talking about, but at the same time make it your own so it doesn’t sound like everyone else’s paper on the same topic.

The idea of authority and identity are intertwined, especially when it comes to writing for someone else, or if many people will be reading your work. If you don’t have authority, then it’s like you don’t have identity either. It could feel bland and basic, especially when you’re not adding anything that could make your paper, article, or even book interesting. It’s extremely important to figure out how exactly to catch the eyes of others and how to make sure your writing will engage others.

Related posts:

How To Achieve and Balance Identity and Authority in The Workplace The Importance of Identity Identity Vs Authority in the Workplace Authority vs. identity, and how these differ and affect one’s writing.