This article describes a pilot study that suggests writing-faculty workload may affect the pedagogical focus and rhetorical effectiveness of written response to students' essays. To study the relationship between writing-faculty workload and comments that faculty write on students' essays, the author sent an eleven-question survey to 30 English faculty members at six postsecondary institutions. Fifty percent of faculty responded, representing five schools. Eighty percent of respondents provided copies of student papers with comments, including check sheets or rubrics used to provide feedback. While the author's findings--that workload may affect not only written response to students' essays but also pedagogical focus of the response--come as no surprise, they raise important questions for academic deans, English chairpersons, writing program administrators, and writing faculty about effective teaching, responsible education administration, and ethical postsecondary workload policy. (Contains 3 tables.)