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Becoming Writers draws on phenomenological and lifespan approaches to writing research, reframing writing as a lived process shaped by social contexts, evolving technologies, and a writer’s own sense of self and agency. It moves beyond familiar binaries and offers a more holistic account of what it means to become a writer today.

Bringing together scholars from across the fields of writing studies and rhetoric/composition to consider the ways “writing” is changing in the twenty-first century, this collection tracks how and why people talk about the various forms of writing they do. Contributors address how younger generations understand the role and place of writing in their lives, particularly amid increasing and dramatic economic, social, and political change, as well as the ever-evolving role of writing in what it means to be human.

Becoming Writers builds on the Wayfinding Project (https://thewayfindingproject.com), a multiyear study of writing development focused on college graduates. Rather than focusing solely on the classroom, Becoming Writers investigates how writing functions in people’s professional, civic, personal, and digital lives. By centering lived experiences across domains, it provides a model of the empirical depth and different methodological approaches being used by scholars interested in writing development across the lifespan.

Would you like your children to grow up bilingual, even if you aren’t yet? Then speak to your kids in Spanish as you learn the language along with them. Becoming a Bilingual Family gives English-speaking parents the tools to start speaking Spanish with their kids in their earliest years, when children are most receptive to learning languages. It teaches the vocabulary and idioms for speaking to children in Spanish and offers practical, proven ways to create a language-learning environment at home.

The first part of the book introduces parents to many resources—books, audio books, music, television, computer programs, childcare workers, school, and friends—that can help you establish a home environment conducive to the acquisition of Spanish. The second part is a Spanish phrasebook that takes you through all the typical activities that parents and children share, from getting up in the morning to going to bed at night. Few, if any, other Spanish study aids provide this much vocabulary and guidance for talking to small children about common daily activities. The authors also include a quick course in Spanish pronunciation and enough grammar to get a parent started. Spanish-language resources, kids’ names in Spanish, and an easy-to-use index and glossary complete the book.

Take the Markses’ advice and start talking to your kids in Spanish, even if it’s not perfect. You’ll learn the language together and share the excitement of discovering the peoples and cultures that make up the Spanish-speaking world.