ABSTRACT
I sit up late into the night, capturing my words carefully on the page. I am writing my fi rst novel-which happens to also be my dissertation.1 I translate experiences into words, and seek out the meaning of my inquiry through writing. I have come to realize that “writing is thinking, writing is analysis, writing is a…method of discovery” (Richardson & St. Pierre, 2005, p. 967). As many writers do, I continually question the worth of my work-who will read it? What will it mean to those who read it? Will it convey, eff ectively, the story I wish to tell? And like many scholars, I continually question my ability to meaningfully communicate to audiences beyond the limits of academe. Aft er all, if we hope that our work will inspire dialogue and generate conversation about the subject of our inquiry, can we be satisfi ed with readership that is limited only to other academics? I aspire to be a public intellectual, one who engages conversation in the
public sphere about public phenomena. But the task of such a cause is worthy of discussion apart from performing the task.
