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| Base Genres-3 |
Supporting Genres |
Visual Genres |
| Autobiography |
Advice Column |
Book Jacket |
| Campaign Speech |
Advertisement |
Cartoon/Comic Strip* |
| Dialogue |
Announcement |
CD Cover |
| Diary |
Encyclopedia Entry |
Illustration |
| Eulogy |
Eyewitness Account |
Mandala |
| Informative Essay |
Job Application |
Map w/ Legend |
| Narrative Essay |
Letter/E-mail/Blog |
Photo w/ Description |
| Persuasive Essay |
Menu |
Photo Gallery* |
| Interview |
Obituary |
Story Board* |
| Memory/Memoir |
Personal Commentary Editorials |
Travel Brochure/Poster |
| One Act Play-sample |
Resume |
Wanted Poster |
| Poetry-samples Double Voice Poetry |
Song/Ballad |
Other? |
| Stream of Consciousness |
Other? |
Other? |
Generating ideas for your paper, and then narrowing the focus, is a
critical step in prewriting for your multigenre research paper. Your
topic may not come to you right away, or you may have several
possibilities at your finger tips. So where do you begin? Follow the
guidelines below:
Questions
1. Is there a human element to this topic? Could I place myself in
this writing or create a persona who would represent my message?
2. What about this topic is researchable? Or is my topic too personal?
3. Does my topic allow for choice, multiple genres, or even visual/
media?
4. Am I genuinely interested in this topic? Will it sustain me for the
quarter?
Suggestions
1. Limit the setting or location of the piece
2. Focus on an indelible moment or central act
3. Consider point of view
4. Things that are crucial (object, concept, idea—identifies who we
are & what we value)
5. Consider your areas of interest: math, science, technology;
literature, history, language; theatre, arts, dance, music; health
sciences, outdoors, sports; society, social situations, current
events; cultures, traveling…
Choosing Genres
Your opening genre is the most significant because it will establish
the essence of your paper. Before you select the genres from the
table (see page 3), you need to ask yourself how this genre conveys
your message.
1. Will this genre support/enhance my idea? Will it seem forced,
or confuse my readers?
2. Will this genre create an image in my reader’s mind?
3. Will this genre, combined with effective word choice,
powerfully express my idea?
4. How will this genre lend itself to the unity of my paper?
Repetend
The repetend is an essential component of the multigenre paper.
It is something within the paper that repeats or continues, thus
unifying the paper while giving the reader a sense of the writer’s
voice. A repetend can be an image, phrase, voice, genre or even
typography that is repeated.
A multigenre paper is not “main stream” writing and truly requires,
but also captures, your audiences’ attention. As an effective writer,
you must consider your idea development, style, and structure so that
your audience is not confused as they read from genre to genre. The
repetend provides unity and creativity.
