At this point, I don't feel like I have much of a research identity. As an employee of the Writing Center, I've participated in some writing center research, and I have attended conferences to present that research as part of a group; however, I'm not sure if writing center studies is where I want to make my research "home." As much as I love the writing center, I have a greater interest in researching writer identity and the creative process as it relates to writing. Other research areas of interest include: teacher feedback and its effect on students; and the relationship between the visual arts and written composition, particularly among student writers.
The idea Dr. Zamora presented about quantifying and validating the independent, intuitive research undertaken by creative individuals also sounded pretty appealing to me. I've always done independent research as a kind of hobby. In first grade I can remember scouring the school library for books about carnivorous plants because I thought the Piranha Plants in the Super Mario Bros. video games were cool. Whatever topic appealed to me at a given time, I would research it extensively. I still do this, but it usually takes the form of reading nonfiction books before bed or conducting random Google searches. On many occasions, this random for-the-fun-of-it research has found its way into my creative and academic writing.
As far as research skills I'd like to learn, setting up a decent study is first on my list. Last semester I had to write a research paper based around creating a study, and I really struggled with figuring out what would generate valid data. I feel somewhat confident in my ability to call upon secondary sources, but primary research is a puzzle to me.
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