The description of this blog is appropriating the subtitle of THE HOLT GUIDE TO ENGLISH (a Contemporary Handbook of Rhetoric, Language and Literature) and this first post’s title is a direct quote, as are the following selections:

“The mind is constantly recording, responding, remembering, reflecting. Thinking is a free-ranging process, not bound by time or space. It can at times be concerned with fact or feeling or fantasy. It can come up with the completely unpredictable.”

“The first thing a writing assignment does is bring the writer to a realization that her thoughts have to be brought under some kind of control. [...] once the writer begins to generate her topic, she has a specific advantage if she can go about her job in a disciplined way.”

“In the generative process, one should weigh the possibility of intention. It cannot be said that everything that happens has a purpose. Some things happen accidentally; some by chain reaction. All happenings may have a cause, but not all have a discernible purpose. [...] Even though a purpose may be apparent, a writer can always generate thoughts by re-asking the basic question: WHY?”