Kuroko workflows: Process over product in translingual reading and writing

This article examines the reading and writing processes of Akari, a self-identified bilingual in Japanese and English, as she completed Ph.D.-level tasks. Central to the article is the concept of the kuroko workflow, which emphasizes performativity, agency, and behind-the-scenes actions of multilingual writers, as they tie together tools within and across languages. The study provides granular insight into the everyday, academic workflows and kuroko workflows that Akari used within and across English and Japanese. The findings indicate translingual reading and writing processes are systematic and part of everyday practice for Akari. Additionally, the findings point to specific tasks that lead Akari to encounter porous boundaries between Japanese and English. This research can improve direct instruction for multilingual students to navigate planning, reading, note taking, translating, formulating, and revising across tools, tasks, languages, and unforeseen disruptions. Additionally, the study demonstrates fluidity of languages, contributing to a deeper understanding of translingual practices. • Kuroko workflows granularly investigate multilingual/multimodal literate activity. • Workflows demonstrate technology's shaping role in literate activity. • An untranslatable word resulted in visibly translingual practice. • Explore multilingual spaces, allowing translingual writing to emerge. • Discuss and explore writing workflows in classrooms.