A reflection on writing reflections

Dedicated to the celebration of—finally, finally—handing in my last assignment of the semester.

Dedicated to the celebration of—finally, finally—handing in my last assignment of the semester.

Also, this post has not been through my usual religious routine of proofreading and editing, so everything is everywhere. But since it reflects (no pun intended) my current post-final-assignments state of mind, I’ll be this unruly version of me for a while.


For one of our subjects this session, the final task is to write a (compared to the usual 300-level word limits, very) short reflection that is worth 20% of our final mark—no scholarly sources were required, the only criteria were honesty and insightfulness.

That, to me, was the hardest assignment to write in this first half of my third year. It is not the academic rigour that challenges me anymore; it’s original thinking that does. Continue reading “A reflection on writing reflections”

Clicky Clickety Clack (Goes the Keyboard Under My Dancing Fingers)

How I have grown – in the past year – as a student, a researcher, and a writer.

A little more than a year ago, I started typing the very first words of my very first blog post, also the very first words of my very first (BCM111) assignment at a university 7000 kilometres away from home.

Back then, The Specs was still named (after so many attempts) The January Journal, a reference to my birth month, and an attempt at a catchy title. The header image was still a default one provided with the theme, the wording clumsy and bland, the references redundant and irrelevant, and the blog’s owner utterly confused and disoriented.

Two sessions (plus a Summer session) and three writerly subjects (BCM110, BCM212, BCM241) later, The Specs has gained certain acknowledgement by my lecturers, tutors, and my friends. I have grown so much as an independent student, researcher, and writer.

bcms@uow Bloggies
The Specs won best BCM Blog, Autumn Session 2017

Continue reading “Clicky Clickety Clack (Goes the Keyboard Under My Dancing Fingers)”

Chữ trong lòng

Ai sống trên đời cũng là một nhà văn

Mình là đứa ham đọc, và dù không có gu văn học cố định hay hiểu biết sâu rộng về lý thuyết văn học thì cũng đủ tự tin mình có quan điểm rõ ràng thế nào là người viết hay/người viết dở. Cũng không nhớ từ khi nào mình đã ghim chặt trong đầu một điều tâm đắc: Văn chương hay là khi người đọc tìm được trong đó những điều mà chính họ cũng nghĩ tới nhưng chưa thể định hình cho đến khi đọc. Continue reading “Chữ trong lòng”