When we look back on writing papers for school, at some point, we have all experienced the feeling that the work is non-transferable. How would that deep dive into The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock prepare us for life? The answer: picking apart a line of poetry—or engaging in any other form of academic writing—teaches us to think critically and translate those thoughts into words on paper. That’s a skill that undeniably serves us well beyond school.
At Turnitin, we constantly seek out conversations about why writing is important. We have the privilege of regularly speaking with teachers and administrators about this topic, but we wanted to create an opportunity for the conversation to be broader, deeper, and even more meaningful. Thus, we were inspired to create The Written Word, Turnitin’s new podcast about writing and the impact it has in our lives.
The Written Word is our platform for interrogating all things writing. We are an educational technology company at our core, so our episodes will feature educators and practitioners; but, writing isn’t confined to the classroom, so our guests and topics won’t be limited to the educational sphere. We selected a podcast because we recognize that meaningful writing doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Rather, it’s a conversation, a series of dialogues with readers, editors, the writers that came before us, and the future writers that will follow. Creating a podcast allows us to take this conversation to the next level, initiating it before the writing even begins.
Our first episodes will tackle themes such as writing about writing, authentic writing, writing in the digital age, and collaborative writing. “Episode 0: What is the Written Word?” and “Episode 1: Writing About Writing” are already live, so have a listen!
We hope that you tune in and join us in our vast exploration of words, writing, and why they matter.