The context in which your essay is written and read can affect your design decisions in important ways. Think carefully about the resources you can use to write and design your essay. Do you own a computer or tablet? Do you have access to computers at your college or university? Do you have access to color printers? What kind of software programs or Web-based resources can you use, and how well do you know them? If you are working on a deadline, you might have limited time to learn how to use a new software program or electronic portfolio tool. You might have to decide whether the time required to use these resources would be better spent on collecting additional sources or revising and editing your draft.

Think equally carefully about how you will submit your essay. Will you deliver your essay to an instructor in printed form, send it as an e-mail attachment, or submit it through a course management system? Will it be included in a print or digital portfolio along with your other work? Will it be available on a blog or Web page?

Finally, consider how and where your essay will be read. Will it be read in print in a quiet office or perhaps on a bus or train during a commute? Will it be “required reading” — that is, will it get the careful attention an instructor provides during grading? Or is it something that can be put aside in favor of something else, as might happen if it were being read by a visitor to a Web site or blog?

As you consider the contexts in which your essay will be written and read, think about how design can help you adapt to those contexts. You can read more about how you can use design elements to adapt to particular contexts in Chapter 17.