Dare to say “I”

Written By Amanda Barusch

Heads up, narrative researchers! Carol Swenson (professor emeritus, Simmons College) has delivered a compelling argument for allowing ourselves to be present in our scholarly writing. Here's the citation for her article:

Swenson, C. (2012). Dare to say “I”: The personal voice in professional writing. Families in Society, 93(3), 233-239.

The article as a whole is a satisfying read, but my favorite section addressed how we might evaluate narrative prose. Here, Swenson cites Laurel Richardson's chapter, “Writing: A Method of Inquiry,” to offer five criteria (my interpretations added):

  1. substantive contribution (teaching something of value)

  2. aesthetic merit (beauty)

  3. reflexivity (presence of the author's self), impact (inspiring the reader to action)

  4. expression of reality (truth and depth).

A high standard. So much of the writing I read, as editor, as teacher, as scholar, fails to meet even ONE of these criteria. This article meets all five. I hope you'll give it a look!

Amanda Barusch

Amanda Barusch has worked as a janitor, exotic dancer, editor, and college professor. She lives in the American West, where she spends as much time as possible on dirt paths. She has an abiding disdain for boundaries and adores ambiguity. Amanda has published eight books of non-fiction, a few poems, and a growing number of short stories. Aging Angry is her first work of creative non-fiction. She uses magical realism to explore deep truths of the human experience in this rapidly changing world.

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