Ashley Humphries

M.A. Portfolio Proposal

Fall 2014
My time at FSU has been very rewarding because it has introduced me to a myriad of
subjects, particularly the digital media environment through classes such as Digital Convergence,
Rhetorical Theory, and Research Methods. Because of its focus on digital rhetorics, I've
developed an interest in copyright and intellectual property, and as my graduate experience
draws to a close, I find myself attracted to the portfolio option as my culminating performance
because I intend to pursue a profession in law after graduation. I hope that the portfolio can help
me create and simultaneously demonstrate a cohesive understanding of what Ive learned during
my time in the M.A. program. Some artifacts will speak directly and solely to the academic aim
of this portfolio, while others will also speak to my areas of interest in law.
With those duel purposes or audiences in mind, this portfolio should serve to demonstrate my
ability to:
1. Think critically
2. Conceptualize an empirical research project
3. Use collected research in meaningful ways
4. Write clearly, effectively, and with authority
5. Revise thoughtfully in a way that considers higher-order concerns rather than
superficial changes
6. Understand current conversations in digital rhetorics and composition
7. Provide thorough and constructive comments on writing, such as student writing
or peers writing
8. Reflect meaningfully on experiences in order to create knowledge.
To demonstrate these abilities, my portfolio contains the five required pieces: 1) an introduction
to the portfolio, 2) a bibliographic essay, 3) a revision of a previous assignment, 4) an original
conference-style paper, and 5) a final reflection that connects what I've learned in the program to
what I aim to do in the future. Thinking about the direction and desired outcomes of the
portfolio, Ive selected works for this project that have helped to strengthen the bond between the
time in my Masters degreemy theoretical work, the writing abilities that Ive attained, the
interests Ive adoptedand where I want to go in my career. The introduction will be a letter
with contents similar to this proposal, but it also serve as a map of how to navigate what will be
an ePortfolio (see outcomes 4 and 8). For the bibliographic essay, I examine how plagiarism and
copyright play out in fan fiction, as it is a space that defines its own rules and regulations that
do not agree with academic or legal views (see outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6).
For the revision requirement, Ive chosen to revise a conference style paper titled
Unveiling the Future of Composition Studies, originally written for Dr. Fleckensteins Theories
of Composition class. I focus on arguing the necessity for FYC instructors to teach students how

to brainstorm, plan, and create a single document within a group. In other words, I argued that
the future of Composition should not simply teach single-authored compositions in FYC
classrooms, but rather introduce students to composing in groups early on. Looking back and
(re)visioning, I see that a lot is wrong with this piece. It needs extensive revision of content,
ideas, and research. More specifically, I aim to:

Define major terms, as I've conflated a few and neglected to define the others.
Refocus the argument in the paper.
Include assessment in the scope of the argument.
Reorganize and/or restructure the paper to avoid logical or topical jumps.
Remove unsubstantiated claims that are likely not true.
Introduce sooner digital technology as a platform to practice coauthorship.

These projected revisions will be adequate work to both lengthen and strengthen the paper (see
outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6).
Next, the original conference-style paper will be about providing an audience of writing
teachers, who teach multimedia compositions in their classes, with the information and skills that
they need in order to avoid copyright infringement (see outcomes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6). The final
piece will be a reflection that encapsulates how these outcomes, things I've learned in the
program, and this portfolio will help me with my career in the future. This reflection will consist
of smaller pieces of reflection, which target specific sections of the artifact it's concerning (found
on each page), and its own page in the ePortfolio. The reflection webpage will consist of new
content that isnt found on any other page. I do this to emphasize the learning and thought
throughout the ePortfolio and to provide a sense of closure at the end (see outcomes 1, 3, 4, and
8).
As this is a time sensitive project, I've constructed a projected timeline (Appendix 1).
Also attached to the end of this proposal is a working bibliography (Appendix 2). Thank you for
taking the time to review my proposal.

Appendix 1

Portfolio Timeline*
November 2014: Submit proposal to committee
Dec 2014: Finalize and get approval of the portfolio proposal.
March 2015: complete draft of portfolio completed
April 2 2015: defend portfolio

Appendix 2

Working Bibliography
Alemjeld, Jen, and Kristine Blair. Multimodial Methods for Multimodal Literacies: Establishing
A Technofeminist Research Identity. Composing Media Composing Embodiment. Arola. Eds.
Kristin L., and Anne Wyscoki. Logan, UT: Utah State University Press, 2012. Print.
Barthes, Roland. Death of the Author. Image Music Text. N.p., n.d. 142-48. PDF. 29 Apr.
2014.
Berry, David M. Copy, Rip, Burn: The Politics of Copyleft and Open Source. London: Pluto
Press, 2008. Print.
Black, Rebecca. Adolescents and Online Fan Fiction. Peter Lang: New York, 2008. Print.
Bolter, Jay David. The Computer, Hypertext, and Classical Studies. The American Journal of
Philology, 112.4 (Winter, 1991), pp. 541-45. JSTOR. 11 Apr. 2014. PDF.
Bowrey, Kathy. Law and Internet Culture. Cambridge University Press, 2005. Print.
Brussels, Kristina. "Geek hierarchies, boundary policing, and the gendering of the good fan."
Journal of Audience & Reception Studies, 10.1 (May 2003): pp. 73-91. PDF. 11 Feb. 2014.
Copyright in General. Copyright. U.S. Copyright Office, 12 July 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2014.
De Kosnik, Abigail. "Should Fan Fiction Be Free?" Cinema Journal 48.4 (Summer, 2009): 11824. JSTOR. PDF. 11 Feb. 2014.
Dunlap, Kathryn and Carissa Wolf. Fans Behaving Badly: Anime Metafandom, Brutal
Criticism, and the Intellectual Fan. Mechademia, Vol. 5 (2010): pp. 266-83. JSTOR. PDF. 11
Feb. 2014.
FanFiction.Net. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 12 Apr. 2014. Web. 12 Apr. 2014.
Farmer, Frank. After the Public Turn: Composition, Counterpublics, and the Citizen Bricoleur.
Utah State University Press, Boulder, Colorado: 2013. Print.
Grabill, Jeffrey. "Community-Based Research and the Importance of a Research Stance." Eds.
Lee Nickoson and Mary P. Sherdian. Writing Studies Research In Practice: Methods and
Methodologies. Southern Illinois University Press, 2012. Print.
Haraway, Donna. "Situated Knowledges." Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: The Reinvention of
Nature. New York: Routledge, 1990. PDF.
Harris, Cheryl. Introduction Theorizing Fandom: Fans, Subculture and Identity. Theorizing
Fandom: Fans, Subculture and Identity. Eds. Cheryl Harris and Alison Alexander. Hampton
Press, Inc., NJ: 1998. Print.
Hunter, Rik. Erasing Property Lines: A Collaborative Notion of Authorship and Textual
Ownership on a Fan Wiki. Computers and Composition, 28.1 (2011): 40-56. Print.

Icarus. The Line Between Plagiarism & Fanfiction. N.p, n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2014.
imperfectlyweird. Just a Daydream Away. Fanfiction.net. N.p, 17 Apr. 2014. Web. 17 Apr.
2014.
Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: New York
University Press, 2006. Print.
Jenkins, Henry. Textual Poachers: Television Fans and Participatory Culture. New York:
Routledge, 1992. Print.
Lessig, Lawrence. Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down
Culture and Control Creativity. Bargain Price, 2004. Print.
Lessig, Lawrence. The Future of Ideas: The Fate of the Commons in a Connected World. New
York: Random House, 2001. Print.
Lunsford, Andrea Abernathy. "Rhetoric, Feminism, and the Politics of Ownership." College
English, 61 (1999): 529-44. JSTOR. PDF. 11 Apr. 2014.
Miller, Nancy K. "Changing the Subject: Authorship, Writing, and the Reader." Feminist
Studies/Critical Studies. Ed. Teresa de Lauretis. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1986: pp. 102-20.
JSTOR. PDF. 14 Apr. 2014.
Packard, Ashley. Digital Media Law. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010.
Print.
Price, Margaret. Beyond Gotcha!: Situating Plagiarism in Policy and Pedagogy. College
Composition and Communication, 54.1: Sept. 2002, pp. 88-115. Web. JSTOR. PDF. 14 Apr.
2014.
Rodriguez, Pardo J. Copyright and Multimedia. The Hague: Kluwer Law International, 2003.
Print.
Rowell, Rainbow. Fangirl. New York: St. Martins Griffin, 2013. Print.
Schwabach, Aaron. Fan Fiction and Copyright: Outsider Works and Intellectual Property
Protection. England: Ashgate Publishing Limited, 2001. Print.
Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. New York: The
Penguin Press, 2010. Print.
Stopford, John. The Death of the Author (As Producer) Philosophy & Rhetoric 23.3 (1990),
pp. 184-19. JSTOR. PDF. 11 Apr. 2014.
Tushnet, Rebecca. Judges as Bad Reviewers: Fair Use and Epistemological Humility. Law &
Literature, 25.1 (2013): 20-32. PDF. 11 Apr. 2014.

Tushnet, Rebecca. Legal Fictions: Copyright, Fan Fiction, and a New Common Law. N.p., 1997.
PDF.