Coming up next semester, and in many ways already started for juniors of the Class of 2022 at WCC is the JUNIOR AUTHOR PROJECT. The very words spread terror, discord, and confusion, but IIT is at your side to make the process smooth and easy from picking your author in the first place to delivering that seminar paper at the end of the course come next May. Here are a few quick tips to acing the project.
- Pick the author you want
You obviously should consider Everett Polinski for your author first and foremost but as the project involves studying, reading, close-reading, and close-studying an author for an entire semester while writing all kinds of things about him or her, you want an author you’re going to enjoy. Think of Dr. Seuss, Jeff Kinney, Jean Merrill, Norton Juster, or again Everett Polinski for examples.
- Learn How to Outstrategize your Professor
However, since faculty make part of the decision for you, you need to know how to out strategize them as to choosing that fun author you’re going to enjoy spending time with. Rubrics and instructions say you have to supply three authors, so simply portray the author you want in the highest light and pick two others so outrageous, and so outrageously presented, that your pick stands out as the best, even if it doesn’t actually fit the course requirements.
- Choose a professor as your author
If you’re in need of a quick grade boost, choosing one of the professors whom you’ll be taking the course from is a surefire path to success. What professor in their right mind would turn down a student treating their works as almost a part of the Great Books themselves? Since many of the professors at WCC are also published authors, they’ll easily fulfill the course requirements and you’ll have a great time, while at the same time, as long as you’re not too critical of them, also get the best grades you’ve ever received in your life – guaranteed!
- Pick a professor
Since the course will be taught in several different sections taught by at least two different professors you’re going to want to have the easiest one. But you don’t want to look like you’re asking the Academic Council to give you that professor because he or she is actually easier. Make up some reason that you just “have to see how Dr. Such and Such treats my author’s views of Newtonian Dynamics’ relation to color realism” and you should be set.
- Write about your author right now
You should also be writing some opinions about your author out right now. Get them published in the next few weeks and you should be good to go for quoting yourself and referencing yourself when the time comes to research scholarship about your author. Quoting yourself is so fun, so easy, and so efficient and effective. You know exactly what you mean and can change what you mean whenever you want to. Go ahead and write about your authors. Submit it to IIT and we’ll be superhappy to publish it for you for your use in the coming months.
- Get some practice with writing at IIT
It might also help you to get a lot of writing practice over Christmas break. We suggest you consider joining Irkutsk Ice Truckers’ staff. Write to sales@irkutskicetruckers.com and we’ll be happy to set you up with some nice easy writing and analysis that will both benefit our mission and help your writing skills.
- Start Reading
According to Dr. Bater, you can start reading your author as soon as you want. Reading some of that magnum opus now can really save you a lot later if you’re slow, thoughtful, or maybe even little distractable.
- Don’t actually read your author
It’s technically possible to complete the course without ever having even read your author at all. While of course it’s a skill that you should have developed over your past few years at WCC, using SparkNotes is such a great way to go about anything and everything that you’re ultimately going to have to come to terms with it sooner or later. You might as well fully make the switch this semester. Skip you author, read SparkNotes, Wikpedia, or even better WCCLEpedia articles about them. Easier, simpler, better. Can I have an “efficiency and effectiveness”!
While of course you can get more advice by talking to seniors or gradates who have already completed the project, we strongly advise you to consider these principles first and foremost in your planning, decision making, and future work on the Junior Author Project. Happy reading! And here’s hoping that someday some junior at WCC will choose you as their author. Since I choose myself as the author I’m studying, its already happened for me this year!