Liminal Wordsmith

Looking back on my Advanced Composition course, I can see how each reading slowly changed the way I understand writing. We started with Gregory Ulmer, who introduced electracy as the digital age’s version of literacy. That idea alone made me see how much the online world shapes how we communicate. Then we read Marshall McLuhan, who said the medium is the message, which helped me realize that the tools we use matter just as much as the words themselves.

Justin Hodgson built on that by explaining the post digital world. He showed how digital media is not something “new” anymore but the environment we already live in. That made a lot of sense to me, especially when thinking about how TikTok trends or memes spread ideas faster than long essays ever could.

After that, Richard Lanham’s anti textbook approach pushed me to rethink my own writing habits. He made me more aware of how often I try to sound polished instead of honest. His point that rules are helpful until they start limiting you was something I really needed to hear.

Then Geoffrey Sirc argued that writing should feel alive and connected to real life. That idea stuck with me. It made writing feel less like something stiff and academic and more like something active and personal. And finally, Jody Shipka showed how writing is shaped by everything around us. Our tools, our gestures, our habits, even the small choices we barely notice. She made composition feel more physical and human.

When I put all of these authors together, the overall message becomes pretty clear. Writing is not a static thing. It changes, it moves, and it is shaped by whatever world we are living in, whether that is digital, physical, or somewhere in between. This class made me see writing as something flexible, something I participate in, not just something I complete.

And honestly, writing feels more alive to me now than it did when the semester started. More fluid. I think that is the biggest thing I’m taking away from this course.