the maker s eye

How does Murray define information and meaning? Why is the distinction between the two terms important? Murray says this about information; “a good piece of writing is built from specific, accurate, and interesting information. The writer must have an abundance of information from which to construct a readable piece of writing”. What I think this means is that anyone can throw some words on paper and call it writing. However to make it a good piece of writing, a good deal of work and research needs to go into it. The writer has to have a lot of information that is pertinent to the topic. They also need to have information that will not bore the reader, it needs to keep them involved in some way. Murray says the following regarding meaning; “The specifics must build to a pattern of significance. Each piece of specific information must carry the reader toward meaning”. What I think this means is that a writer should not get caught up with the small details. Only the details that have a specific importance should be in the writing. This will help keep the reader on track of determining the meaning of the work, especially if it is not clearly laid out. The distinction between the two is important because you are going to use the information to help describe the meaning. You want to have a clear and concise point to your writing and information and meaning is how you will convey that point to the reader.

What are the essential differences between revising and editing? What types of language concerns are dealt with at each stage? Why is it important to revise before editing? Revising is the act of making the paper sound and look better. You are changing bits of it to improve it in one way or another. Editing is the act of preparing the work for its finalization. You do this by checking spelling and length. You will eliminate information that is not needed and so on. Language skills are used at each stage to help clearly affect the reader. These skills help convey the meaning to the reader so it is imperative that the reader understand what is going on in the writing. It is important to revise and then edit because once revision is done, all that is left it editing. Revision is modifying the writing and so you would have to edit again after this to make sure it is still understandable.

According to Murray, when is the writing process do writers become concerned about the individual words they are using? What do you think Murray means when he says in paragraph 24 that “language leads [writers] to meaning”?
Writers become more concerned with the words they have used as they get closer to finalization. This is when they start to read it over and over and even out loud. I think what Murray means is that the language you use is going to help the reader understand the meaning. However I do not think the writer can specifically pin point what the reader will see as the meaning. Murray can write one think meaning something specific, however the reader’s interpretation could be something completely different.
The phrase “the maker’s eye” appears in Murray’s title and in several places throughout the essay. What do you suppose he means by this? Consider how the maker’s eye could be different from the reader’s eye.
I think what Murray is referring to is the writer’s ability to criticize and proofread his work for the ultimate goal of making it better. The writer can look at his work and think it is garbage all the time, however he needs to know when to stop revising/editing because it is as good as it gets. The reader however, only sees the final version. They do not see the mess that is the creative process. Writers are more critical of their writing than most readers will ever be.
What does Murray see as the connection between reading and writing? How does reading help the writer? What should writers be looking for in their reading?
Reading will help improve your writing. You need to read it as if you have never seen it before. Reading over your works can help point out the weaker areas or where rewording needs to be done. You can also find where you should add more information. Writers should be looking for ways to improve their writing. They need to see what changes can be made to make the meaning more clear to the reader.