4.4 Going Public with Writing: Publication and Circulation

Going Public with Writing: Publication and Circulation

At this point, you might be wondering about the most important part of public writing—the act of publishing or circulating your writing. Some students go through the motions when it comes to public writing assignments, but ultimately don’t do anything beyond submitting their writing for a grade. Ashley Holmes encourages you to follow through by “going public” with your writing to reach the audiences you have worked so hard to persuade. Of course, how you go public with your writing will depend on all the pieces of the rhetorical situation puzzle you have already planned for: audience, genre, purpose, and context. When Holmes teaches public writing through business letters, she hosts a letter-mailing party in class where she brings envelopes and stamps (and cookies!). Students fill in the addresses, sign their letters, and mail them off. Whether it’s via “snail mail,” email, a public flyer, or a blog post, Holmes challenges you to circulate your message and reach your public audience.

Of course, circulating your writing within certain public spheres could be risky, and you should think about the implications of going public with your writing. For example, maybe you have taken up the cause of LGBTQ+ rights in your public writing, telling a personal story of your coming-out experience to be persuasive. If you are not yet ready to tell your family about your sexual orientation, publishing your writing on Facebook may put you in a tricky situation. Many of us have become cautious about curating our social media audiences, but you have to be equally mindful in other publication venues—maybe your editorial in the school newspaper stating your views about the death penalty will cause you to lose credibility or friendships. In some cases, you may feel so strongly committed to a position that the rewards of publishing outweigh the risks, but you should always take a moment to assess the ways your issue, audience, genre, and publication venue are all interconnected within the complexities of your public rhetorical situation.