By Brianna Martin
In the essay “Failure Can Be an Important Part of Writing Development” from Naming What We Know, Collin Brooke and Allison Carr explain the impact of teaching students how to approach failure. Brooke and Carr emphasize that deciphering failure is equally as important as rewarding success in writing. Writers should understand that “good writing” is typically the product of considerable amounts of editing, revisions, and even failure. Therefore, to write successfully writers must be able to learn from those failures. Frequently, in academic settings, students will avoid taking chances when writing out of fear of earning a poor grade. When grading is related too closely to the final product students simply write what they believe the teacher wants. Teachers can reshape their curriculum to allow students the opportunity to explore and try different methods in their writing, without risking their grades. This method of teaching allows for further writing development, as well as creating an understanding that failure is an opportunity for growth. Learning how to handle failure is an essential skill that a person will find useful throughout their lifetime.
A keynote speaker explaining that “the only failure is not to try” perfectly encapsulates Brooke and Carr’s teaching of failure as an opportunity for growth. Meaning, not trying would result in never evolving in your writing.
Brooke and Carr’s analysis of how failure should be handled in writing for academics should be the rule, not the exception. Far too often, in my own writing experiences, I have found myself avoiding taking risks out of fear of earning a poor grade. Brooke and Carr explain, “[Students] must have the opportunity to try, to fail, and to learn from those failures as a means of intellectual growth”. Writers will encounter a variety of new writing situations throughout their lives, teaching them how to deal with failure is a skill that they will use for the rest of their lives.
Therefore, Brooke and Carr have shifted the perception of failure into an idea of necessity, rather than something to avoid at all costs. When done in a constructive way, implementing tactics to teach writers to analyze their failures gives them the opportunity for growth. Carr and Brook note, “The ability to write well comes neither naturally nor easily; the thinkers we praise and admire are not the lucky few born with innate talent. Rather, they are the ones who are able to make mistakes, learn from them, and keep writing until they get it right”. The life skill of learning to accept failure, learn from it, and better yourself will encourage growth in all life settings.
Elizabeth Gilbert explains her journey of success, failure, and learning how to appreciate writing in both scenarios. Gilberts analysis of appreciation ties well with Brooke and Carr’s explanation of failure, as Gilbert goes through the process of learning that neither success nor failure define her worth. However, Gilbert discusses how she was paralyzed with fear when writing another book because she thought she may fail. Similarly, Brooke and Carr observe that student writers will often avoid taking risks out of fear of earning a poor grade. Brooke and Carr emphasize that we can aid a writer’s success “by treating failure as something all writers work through, rather than as a symptom of inadequacy or stupidity”. The point that Gilbert, Brooke, and Carr all drive home is failure is a part of life, and if we can learn from it, we will reap the benefits.
