Herman Cai

Writing 2
De Piero
3/16/2015
WP1 Revised
Writing effectively many students would agree that this is the bane of their academic
papers. In order to understand how to tailor a piece to appeal to a certain reader, the idea of
genres must be studied. Genre is, put simply, the categorization of writing through the use of
similar conventions and rhetoric. Any kind of writing can be considered a genre, from letters to
advertisements to even a movie ticket. As long as writings share a common purpose, audience,
and context, it can be argued that they are of the same genre. But to whom and how can studying
genres be useful? Both the reader and the writer benefit from knowing what expect and what to
include in a piece. By using proper tones and moves, a writer can create an effective piece
directed towards his/her intended audience. This essay will use the example of blurbs
specifically the blurbs written by the students of this writing class to support the importance of
understanding genre. It is more effective for bloggers to use conversational tones and an
attractive interface to appeal to the audience because it is crucial in establishing a personal
atmosphere and a friendly connection to their peers.
What exactly is a blurb? A blurb introduces the corresponding content. In this case, the
blurb acts as a biographical introduction to the author, who has the opportunity to provide
personal information and create an identity on the web. Even though three different students
Jennie Pau, Oren Mery, and Sabrina Leong wrote the blurbs mentioned in this essay, they all
seem to share a similar awareness of the proper conventions of a blurb.
The identity of a writer can make all the difference in how the audience perceives a piece
of writing. In academic papers, students generally write as who they are: students. However, in
these blurbs, they must become a bit more personal; they will be writing as uniquely themselves.

Losh and Alexander, two writing professors, support this choice of writers identity by stating
that social contexts matter, and most people wear a lot of different costumes for their different
social roles (Writing Identities, 118). In this case, writer should not try to speak as anyone but
his/herself. They want to appear personal and real, and therefore it would be most effective to
simply write in their own preferred voice/style.
The purpose of a blurb is clear it introduces the writer to the audience without the need
for face-to-face interaction. As a social genre, the blurb acts as a very common supplement to
blogs. Here, writers are not trying to sound formal and proper; instead, they have a chance to
show off their favorite attributes such as achievements and personality traits. Though a blurb
may not seem very relevant to course work, it can be very vital in creating a first impression for
any new readers who do not personally know the writer.
Blurbs are a social introduction; the writer would want to seem friendly and
approachable. Thus, the tone of the blog can already be seen in the first few sentences the
greeting. Student Jennie Pau starts off her intro by saying Hello! My name is Jennie Pau and I
am from San Francisco, home of the San Francisco GIANTS! (Pau, para 1). An enthusiastic
hello with an exclamation point sets a conversational tone to help the reader realize the rest of
the blurb will be similarly written. From here on out, the audience begins creating an impression
of the blogger. A serious or overly formal greeting might show that the writer means business or
does not have intentions of making an appealing introduction.
One of the first conventions upon visiting a blog page is the abundance of pictures. These
pictures draw in the readers attention and let them know that the page is not just a big wall of
text. There is often a photo of the writer placed close to the beginning of the blurb; an example
can be seen on student Sabrina Leongs blog page. This placement may seem small and

unimportant, but it actually immediately establishes an identity of the author. Without a detailed
description, the reader already knows that there is a person a peer behind the writing.
Now that the audience can clearly see that the writer is someone relatable and of their
age, they can feel at comfort knowing that the writer-reader relationship is a mutual one, where
one does not hold authority over the other. If students knew they were about to read something
from a professor, there would be many different expectations such as knowledgeable writing and
a dignified tone. Of course, the writer could have chosen to write with the identity of an
academic student, but they choose not to because they know that their audience consists mainly
of their own peers. Losh and Alexander support the existence of identity choices by claiming that
writing means always changing changing to meet the needs of different audiences (Writing
Identities, 117). In an attempt to appear social, the writer would prefer to give off a sense of
friendliness.
As for the actual content of the blurb, the writers have the chance to introduce themselves
and appeal to the reader by giving interesting facts or stories. English professor Dirk proposes
some questions that a writer can ask while creating a piece: What features, I asked myself,
should go into this essay? How personal could I get? What rhetorical moves might I use,
effectively or ineffectively? (Navigating Genres, 250). The answers to these questions can
determine how well the writer can fulfill the purpose of the writing. Writers ask themselves the
question of how they want their piece to appear when trying to establish a tone and mood.
A serious paper should use appropriate language and refrain from going off topic, whereas a
personal blog can have comical pictures and verbiage depending on the individual. Once a
targeted audience fellow classmates in this case has been established, it is a good idea to use
a conversational tone as opposed to a serious one.

Meanwhile, a more boisterous statement reveals a social or lively personality. Personal

information usually follows the greeting. The writer may talk about where they are from, the
things they have done in the past, or their favorites. Last year I was involved in a program at
UCSB called Scitrek, and it was a really exciting teaching program that allowed UCSB students
to travel to elementary schools in the area and teach them about science (Leong, para 2). The
blogger here brings up a particular program she may have been proud of. Of course not everyone
can say they have participated in such a program, so this sets her apart from other students.
Hobbies and career aspirations are also listed. Im a DJ and ran a very successful business
throughout NorCal while in HS (Mery, para 2). He mentions his pastimes and favorite activities.
These facts help the reader further build on the impression and background of the writer. The
audience can always relate to hobbies and past experiences, which connects the writer and reader
even more.
Communications and publishing writing online to share ideas is inefficient when
compared to face-to-face social interaction. In order for writers to come off as welcoming and
friendly, they use rhetoric techniques to set a light and nonthreatening tone. Despite being behind
screens, students still have the incentive to make a good impression and list off facts that set
them apart and possibly impress the reader. People have done this so often in their writing that
rhetoric is almost used subconsciously. For some, it has been ingrained in the thought process
when figuring out how to tailor a paper. Of course, not every piece of writing requires deep
thought on how to effectively use rhetoric. However, studying genre is never a bad idea as
knowing how to meet the expectations of the audience can go a long way in keeping their
attention and interest.

Bibliography
Pau, Jennie Blurb Blogger, http://w2jenniep.blogspot.com/ January 15, 2015 Web. January 25,
2015

Mery, Oren About Me Blogger, http://orenmerry.blogspot.com/ January 5, 2015 Web.

January 25, 2015

Leong, Sabrina Blog Blurb: About Me Blogger, http://w2sabrina.blogspot.com/ January 6,

2015 Web. January 25, 2015

Dirk, Kerry Navigating Genres Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing Volume 1 2010 Print.

Carroll, Laura Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis Writing Spaces:
Readings on Writing Volume 1 2010 Print.

Losh & Alexander Writing Identities Spaces for Writing Print. February 17, 2015