I wrote just a minute ago that writing is idiosyncratic and that is true. But
it is also not true. Like literature, there are certain commonalities we all
agree on, and then, at some point, the story speaks directly to the individual
reader. Writing, it seems to me, is like that. There are commomly held
community beliefs about writing on which most would agree. They go beyond
spelling and grammar too, ask any holistic scorer. But beyond that, the
writer's unique personality skews the method and the result. Perhaps that's why
we can write about old topics with fresh insight.
Fred Barton
Red Cedar Writing Project
Michigan State University
bartonf@pilot.msu.edu