JOURNAL
9/24/18
I definitely procrastinated on my research proposal more than I would have liked. Submitting on the last possible day is not something I'd like to make a habit of. Although, it is better than turning it in late. I do feel like, after all the procrastination, it was easier than I had been expecting. As I just submitted my proposal, I have not yet started working on the literature review. Since I'm still so early in the process, my goals for this week are just to begin gathering sources. I'd like to start with an overview of VR, past and present. Then I'll look at how the technology is currently being experimented with and pushed forward. I'm also going to spend quite a bit of time looking at example of VR in fictional works. I feel that this will be the most time-consuming, as the examples I have in mind are full-length novels and movies. Finally, I'd like to compare the direction our VR tech is going in with the fictional examples I look at to see if any of the possibilities are feasible. I'd also like to look at how fictional portrayals of VR have been involved with VR tech in the past. I'm not exactly sure what a literature review entails. The number of sources Tessa said we should be expecting to have is much higher than I am used to. Upon reflection, I suppose it makes sense; I'll probably be referencing around four examples of VR in fiction, plus articles on how fiction has influenced VR, the history of VR, current VR tech, and how people are trying to improve VR tech, in addition to possibly other analyses of the fictional works I choose. I think the examples of VR in fiction that I included in my multimodal aspect of my proposal are good: Ready Player One shows what I think to be where we expect the technology to go in the future, The Matrix shows a different realization of VR entirely, Sword Art Online is even more futuristic than Ready Player One and includes neuroscience, and Black Mirror is just ridiculously advanced. Lots of research to do.
JOURNAL
10/8/18
So far this semester, I've been putting more effort into my other classes, and therefore haven't been focusing on this class, and my project, as much as I should. I did find a couple of sources that I can use, but I haven't had the chance to read them yet. I think I need to find more sources so that I can choose the best ones for my topic, rather than being stuck trying to use evidence that doesn't quite fit. Movie and book reviews are not looking promising in my search for sources. The SciFi and Fantasy database that were analytical of fictional works that showcase VR. However, the analysis was not focused on the actual VR aspect of the work. I'd like to search a more scholarly database for sources on the history of VR, as well as pieces on current VR technology.
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Types of sources I'm looking for:
history/future of VR
examples of VR in fiction
analysis of VR in fiction
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Proposed schedule for this week:
Monday: gather sources
Tuesday: gather and read sources
Wednesday: gather, read, and annotate sources
Thursday: read and annotate sources
Friday: choose sources to use
JOURNAL
11/7/18
Well, my literature review is past due and I've barely started. I haven't found many sources that I'm happy with. I'm swamped with work from my other classes. Thankfully, Tessa accepts late work without penalty. I'm seriously super grateful for this, because it gives me a lot more flexibility with how I want to balance my five classes this semester. I want to focus whatever effort I can into getting this literature review done, because I don't want to have late work hanging over my head and stressing me out. I had a meeting with Tessa a couple weeks ago, and she was super reassuring about the sources I had. I was worried that some of them weren't what I wanted to be focusing on, but she explained that leaning on one source more than others is just fine. This helped me relax a little; I feel that I tend to get worked up over the professionality/seriousness of essays and freak myself out. I have two concrete sources: Ready Player One and The Matrix. Unfortunately, these are both only fictional examples of VR, and I still need to find other, more academic, examples. I'm not happy with the other sources I have right now, so I think I will focus on finding new ones for now, and worry about writing the actual essay once I have them.
JOURNAL
12/2/18
I've finally submitted my literature review, and it's like a giant weight has been lifted from my shoulders. As with the research proposal, once I got to writing it, it wasn't as difficult as I was imagining it to be. I did the bulk of the writing last week, and gathered my sources the week before. I apologized to Tessa for having it done so late, but to my surprise, she assured me that I was still ahead of many of my colleagues. That was such a relief. I've never turned in an assignment this late in my entire academic career (almost a month!), and knowing I wasn't the only one that behind made me feel a lot better. Overall, I'm happy with the final product. The sources I ended up finding were not what I originally had in mind, but they were effective for the topic. I didn't end up quoting or paraphrasing from the sources nearly as much as I thought I would. The literature review involved more general summary and analysis of each source, as the main idea is to connect, compare, and contrast them. I've never written this kind of essay before, and I actually quite enjoyed the experience. I'm used to the cookie-cutter essays that one typically sees when doing analysis of one literary work: topic sentence, quote, connect to thesis, repeat, repeat, repeat. It was nice to try something different and to enjoy the process.
JOURNAL
12/5/18
Now that I've finally finished my literature review, I've been able to begin working on my final research paper. Tessa was able to give me feedback really quickly for my literature review, so I've applied her advice to the Literature Review section of my final paper. With that section done, I already have four and a half pages of text. My next goal is to turn my research proposal into a workable introduction for the essay. This will take some heavy editing; I doubt I will retain much besides the intro paragraph and research questions. After that, I need to write the Research Methodology section, which is the highlight of this essay. I already have a general idea of what I'd like to propose. Seeing as how I was originally looking for sources that analyzed VR in fiction, but could not find any, I would like to propose that these types of papers be written. I'm not sure specifically how just yet, but I'm sure I'll figure it out as I write. Then all that's left is the conclusion, which like any other conclusion, will summarize the rest of the essay. I'm feeling confident that I will be able to submit a quality product for my final paper.
REFLECTION
Final Thoughts
This class has exposed me to many new ideas that I am not accustomed to seeing in a writing class. First of all, the structure was completely different. It was very loose, which gave me the opportunity to self-manage. I struggled with this a bit, but I think it taught me a valuable lesson, and I believe I would be able to do it more effectively in the future. Additionally, the professor was invested more in us as students than in "the class" as a whole. I had never really noticed this before in my other classes, but Tessa made it clear to us that we were her number one priority. This helped me realize that it’s ok not to be in the exact same spot as everybody else, and everybody has their own rhythm. I feel that this helped me grow personally because I now know that it’s ok to go at my own pace. On another note, I really enjoyed the peer workshops that were presented throughout the second half of the semester. It gave us the opportunity to teach our peers as well as ourselves, and gave valuable practice in presentation skills. I feel that, for me, the practice was highly beneficial. There was also a focus on multimodal techniques throughout the semester, which is something I hadn’t really thought about before. Multimodal aspects are in use in almost everything. I am glad to have studied them a bit, so I can be more aware of how to effectively utilize them. The class as a whole taught me many valuable skills.
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I also grew a decent amount as a writer over the course of this semester. My research proposal was the first essay I’ve written in about two years, so I was a bit rusty at first. I had to look up simple MLA guidelines again, and remind myself of the dos and don’ts of writing. I was able to create an essay I was proud of, but knew I could improve. Thankfully, Tessa provides lots of feedback on each essay, which I was able to apply to my later writing. My literature review was submitted very late, but I think the extra time was beneficial to the final product. I am happy with what I turned in, and think I was able to apply feedback from my first essay effectively. I did see some weaknesses in the writing, but wasn’t sure how to fix them at the time. The feedback that Tessa provided to me on my literature review pointed out the weaknesses and gave suggestions for how to fix them. I even talked with her briefly about changes I was planning on making before writing my final paper, and she was super helpful. Specifically, she helped me avoid vague pronouns and awkward phrasing in my writing. I was able to fix these issues in the Literature Review section of my final paper, which I believe much improved the final product. I applied other feedback I had received throughout the semester as best as I could to produce an essay that I was proud to turn in as a culmination of all my work this semester. I learned a good deal about my own writing this semester, and hope to continue to improve as a writer.
