INTRODUCTION
For the second portion of our professional writing project, I was given the opportunity to meet and interview Melody Gee, a continuing lecturer here at Purdue. During our meeting, I was able to learn about Ms. Gee’s educational background, her experiences in professional writing and her opinions on rhetoric and communication. We also discussed the types of tasks involved in her job, as well as the skills needed to work efficiently in a professional writing environment.

BACKGROUND
To begin, Ms. Gee earned her Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of California Berkley. She spent her undergraduate years studying literature and language. After graduation, she went on to earn her Master’s degree in creative writing from the University of New Mexico. When asked if she had any specific professional interests or specialties, Gee replied that her focus is on rhetoric and composition. She also mentioned that she has an interest in Asian American literature and is currently working to have some of her own text published.
Prior to working at Purdue, Gee was involved in copywriting and graphic design. She said that her main reason for coming across the country to Purdue was to follow her fiancé, who is working on a PhD in rhetoric and composition here on campus. Gee currently works as a continuing lecturer, teaching freshman composition as well as business and technical writing. She stated that as a continuing lecturer at Purdue, her work involves tasks such as planning lessons, writing prompts, and organizing syllabi. Moreover, she must also communicate with her students, expressing expectations and answering questions.

PERSPECTIVE ON PROFESSIONAL WRITING
During our interview, I asked Ms. Gee what aspects of professional writing initially interested her. She responded that she liked the idea of “preparing different people from different backgrounds for different careers.” In teaching freshman composition and rhetoric, she must communicate techniques and ideas about college writing to people whose academic interests do not necessarily concentrate on rhetoric. Gee stated that the focus of her work revolves around getting to the source of “what college writing is.” She went on to say that aspects such as analysis, formatting, and handling different genres are key in the comprehension of writing in general. Moreover, she also emphasized the importance of managing various rhetorical situations. As a professional writer, a person must have the ability to research and gather information, as well as communicate information to others, thus it is imperative that a person gains experience in using rhetoric under different circumstances.

CONCLUSION
In the conclusion of our interview, I asked Ms. Gee if she could offer any type of advice or suggestions to someone who has just entered the professional writing field. She responded that one must realize that professional writing is “not just translating”. She said that is important to have a thorough understanding of rhetoric and how to efficiently utilize it. She also stressed that is important to have some subject matter expertise in order to proficiently communicate to an audience. Interviewing a subject matter expert like Ms. Gee allowed me to gain a better understanding of what professional writing involves and to view the field from a new perspective.

Arrika Dedmond

Appendix:
1. What is your educational background? Where did you attend school?
2. What did you study? (Did you start out your college career as a professional writing major?)
3. What about professional writing interested you? Did you have any influences?
4. How did you come to be at Purdue?
5. What is your official position here?
6. What kind of work do you do? What sort of tasks does your job involve?
7. Did you have any other experience in a professional writing field before you came to Purdue (internships, other jobs, etc)?
8. Do you have any specific professional interests? Do you specialize in any particular area?
9. What do you consider the most important aspects of professional writing?
10. What sort of advice would give someone who is just entering the professional writing field?