Intro/Goals of the Study:
I am a female 16 year old college student enrolled at the University of North Georgia who is conducting this self-study to improve as a writer through self-awareness. The goal of this study is to record and analyze my writing process as it is in my natural writing environment, and help me become a better writer through analyzing my writing habits. This will help me prevent future bad habits and distractions and focus on good habits. This study will record my writing process as I talk aloud so that I can analyze how I write and consider this in the future. With the results of this study I should be able to note my downfalls in writing and make a better plan of action in the future. This study was inspired by Sondra
…show more content…
Perl’s work The Composing Processes of Unskilled College Writers and Carol Berkenkotter’s Decisions and Revisions: The Planning Strategies of a Publishing Writer. Methods: This study took place in November of 2016 in my home in my typical schoolwork area. This study consisted of me recording myself while writing a short essay, transcribing the audio, and coding the transcribed audio. The code was created in class with the rest of my classmates. To prepare for this study, I got a recording application for my cell phone to record audio while I wrote on my laptop and narrated my thought processes. The total length of the audio was a little over two hours. To allow for hopefully minimal distractions, I enclosed the room I was in and notified my family members that I should not be interrupted. The essay was a little over 600 words and based on the following prompt. Quick Reference Guide • Word count:600 words • Stance: Your choice • Topic: one of the prompts below • Format: MLA or APA format • Audience: An older adult you respect Using the Grant-Davie and an additional reading of your choice, sketch an argument for why our Honors English 1102 prepares you for the writing you anticipate doing for your major or career.
While you might not write formal essays again, you will certainly find yourself in many more rhetorical situations where you have to create text in response to audience, exigence, and constraints. Explain to an older adult who you respect how a specific reading from our class will prepare you for future rhetorical situations.
Results:
The coded categories that my narration fell into and their number of occurrences were the following:
• 7 Planning [P]
2, 9 Commenting [C(+); (C-)]
• 2 Interpreting [I]
• 0, 2 Assessing [A(+); A(-)]
• 5 Questioning
…show more content…
[Q] • 10 Talking leading to writing [T->W] • 5 Talking and writing at the same time [TW] • 0 Repeating [Re] • 2 Reading related the directions [RD] • 4 Reading related to the source material [Rs] • 5 Reading one sentence or a few words (Ra) • 5 Reading several Sentences together (RA-B) • 2 Reading the entire draft (Rw1) • 5 Writing [W] • 3 Organizing [O] • Editing • 2 Spelling [ES] • 3 Mechanics [EM] • 4 Syntax [ESy] • 3 Content [EC] • 12 Non-writing activities [NWA] See appendix A for full transcription and location of codes. Data Analysis: One notable occurrence was that a significant amount of time near the beginning of writing tended to be filled with more distractions than the later portion. In the earlier portions, I frequently did things such as got a drink, snack, or checked my phone. I also noticed that once I was distracted it became harder for me to regain focus completely for a few minutes. I became aware that one distraction often led to another which consumed much of my time without my immediate realization. This was especially evident after I was interrupted by my mother for various reasons even though I had requested peace during my writing. Though these distractions negatively impacted my writing process, they help give a clear picture of my typical writing process because I seldom can write with no distractions. However, after noting that a significant amount of my distractions involved my phone or the need to get up to get something, much of my distractions could be cut out by the removal of my phone from my writing area, and the preparation of my writing area with things like water and tissues before I begin to write. The distraction of the phone was also prominent in this particular writing because of the fact that I used it to record my audio and therefore was always turned on and next to me. This increased my chances of distraction when I could see notifications. Another interesting result that caught my attention was the fact that the second half of my paper took a significantly shorter amount of time than did the first half of my paper. As I was distracted more frequently during the first half, I was unable to let my ideas flow in an unbroken chain. Later in my writing I could focus on my writing; consequently, losing sight of distractions and writing continuously for some time. However, during this time I often forgot the distraction of talking aloud and wrote in silence which is unfortunate because this may damage my analysis of my writing experience. However, this experience tells me that once I am free of distractions or “in the zone” as I have dubbed it, I am a much more efficient writer and my writing flows much more naturally. In this aspect of my writing, I found an interesting contrast between Tony’s style of writing and mine. In Sondra Perl’s work Composing Processes of Unskilled College Writers Tony constantly interrupted his writing flow with editing while I tend to write large portions of my writing without editing or revising until I have finished a section. Perl said of Tony’s repetitive editing, “While editing fit into his overall recursive pattern, it simultaneously interrupted the composing rhythm he just initiated.” (PAGE 624) My writing style appears to contrast this; however, this may also have drawbacks because of less editing in general. The small amount of time spent on editing is also notable.
I seldom need to correct spelling errors because of the spellcheck on my laptop and therefore the small amount of spelling corrections was to be expected. The mechanics editing is similar, but tends to require a bit more personal editing. The area where I noticed my editing lacking the most was in the areas of syntax and content. Due to my tendency to write large portions of text at a time without simultaneous editing, I believe I neglected to properly edit my ideas and logical content as I was editing purely grammatically looking back. Looking back over a fully written paragraph; I find myself hesitant to significantly change the content and ideas while it is simple to edit for textbook grammatical errors. The syntax editing was lacking for similarly, but not as much because when I reformulated sentences it typically left the meaning intact and therefore was not a large stress on the logic of my paper. The willingness to look critically and edit the content is something that I need to prioritize going
forward. The fact that I only read the whole draft of my paper a few times is another issue. Not reading the whole draft more can cause me to miss inconsistencies in the flow and content of my paper. I believe this is because I normally read the whole draft after I have finished most if not all my paper after I have written in a focused manner without editing as previously noted.
This assignment is a testament of growth and contributed to my outlook on strategies towards improving my writing through the importance of understanding how crucial, each component of the writing process is and how in depth you should take each process. Lastly, this reflection advocated how editing is the principal task of every good writer. “To write is human, to edit is divine,” Stephen
Several people have trouble writing college level essays and believe that they are unable to improve their writing skills. In “the Inspired Writer vs. The Real Writer,” Sarah Allen argues how no one is born naturally good at writing. Sarah Allen also states how even professional writers have trouble with the task of writing. Others, such as Lennie Irvin, agree. In Irvin’s article “What is ‘Academic’ Writing?” states how there are misconceptions about writing. Furthermore, Mike Bunn’s article “How to Read Like a Writer” shows ways on how one can improve their writing skills. Allen, Bunn, and Irvin are correct to say how no one is born naturally good writers. Now that we know this, we should find ways to help improve our writing skills, and
Thinking about a topic to write about is not always easy, and sometimes the process of writing can end up being difficult. Jennifer Jacobson discusses strategies to overcome the struggles that young writers can encounter while writing. I was interested in her book No More “I’m Done!” Fostering Independent Writers in the Primary Grades because I feel like as a future teacher this could be a frequent problem among students. From reading this book, I hoped that I would learn useful strategies that I could use to help students overcome their problems with writing. After reading this book, I do believe that Jacobson has provided me with plenty of methods to use. I was surprised at the depth that she goes into in her text. There is a vast amount
The very first chapter we read of Mindful Writing changed my perspective to see that anyone and everyone can be a writer. Brian Jackson, the author of Mindful Writing, wrote, “In this book I want to convince you that anyone writing anything for any reason is a writer…Writing is not something we do just in school. It is a vital means of influence in all facets of life.” It was through that very first reading that I began to think about writing as more than just a dreaded part of school, and I began to think of myself as more than just a student forced to write. Our very first assignment, My Writing Story, helped me to reflect on my identity as a writer. I realized that I was a writer every time I wrote in my journal or captioned an Instagram post. Throughout the semester, as I came to love writing more with each paper I wrote, I was able to create my identity as a writer. I learned that I loved research and analyzing others’ thoughts and ideas, but that writing simply on my own opinions, wasn’t my favorite past time. Through the countless readings this semester, I saw which writing styles I loved and which didn’t speak to me. Each day of class, I chipped away at creating my identity as a writer, and I’m grateful for the lessons that helped me shape and realize that
Writing is a process I’ve grown to despise. Ever since grade school, I’ve had problems trying to express my ideas on paper. My writing process involves thinking about what’s being asked and trying to reflect my thoughts the best way I can on paper, but my thoughts don’t always come out as clear as I want them to be sometimes leaving a question not fully answered. My writing process isn’t a consistent set in stone process, but since being in ENC 1101 I always follow some of the same parameters such as revising my drafts, grammar usage and considering context and audience.
As a second language learner I have never expected myself to be a perfect writer throughout the semester. Even If English was my first language still, I would not be a perfect writer. It is not about first or second language, it is about how well I understand the learning objectives. Then organizing and writing with my own ideas and putting them in my paper. I am going to be honest, I am not good at English subject and English subject is my strongest weakness than the other subjects. In this paper I will discuss and analyze my own writing, reflecting on the ways that my writing has improved throughout the semester.
Anyone who is doing any type of writing piece has a process. They may not know it but it is there and it exists. It is one’s approach to their piece and how they go about accomplishing it. It has to do with how you write it, how many drafts you do, as well as your revision process if you even have one. My writing process however has room for improvement. A summation of my writing process consist of heavy planning, one draft, and little revisions. Anne Lamott, Shirley Rose, and Kathleen Yancey all drew attention to major points through their writing pieces that support and dispute my writing process. Through their pieces they have found a way to inspire, inform, and entertain me all at the same time while passing along great information that
Writing can be a very difficult process for those who do not know how to go about constructing
I am sitting in my bed, thinking about my process of writing as I am trying to go through it. It seems the more I think about it, the less I understand it. When I am writing, I don’t think. Which I know, sounds bad. But, I spend every single moment of every single day over thinking, over analyzing, and over assuming every aspect of my life. When I’m writing, I’m free from that for just a little bit. Until of course, my hands stop typing or the pencil (no pens- never pens) stops moving, then I’m right back on the carousel that is my brain. Heidi Estrem says, “...writers use writing to generate knowledge that they didn’t have before.” (Writing is a Knowledge-Making Activity 18). I believe my ability to write without an exact destination
Encouraging writing, Methuen & Co. Ltd, London, U.K. Ferneaux, C. Process writing, http://www.rdg.ac.uk/AcaDepts/cl/slals/process.htm (26.11.01) Writing Development, http://www.english.uiuc.edu/405/Witt/Writing_Project/writing_development.htm (26.11.01)
Why I Dislike Writing When I was younger I really enjoyed writing. English was one of my favorite subjects and I loved to write! Writing was so exciting to me, that I even wanted to be an author. I enjoyed reading and writing fictional stories so much, English class was rivaling my all time favorite subjects of Math and Science.
My writing and reading through college improved tremendously after my study by understanding the concept of not only understanding potential outsider’s views on my writing, but knowing myself well enough to be able to use myself as my greatest tool and resource. “That is the Self. That is the real. That art thou!” (Watts, The Way of Zen 119).
I believe it is important for any student who wants to do their best in a class to take a moment to evaluate their own work to determine the rate their writing is progressing and how they can continue to advance their writing. When I looked through my own work I asked myself “what have I learned this semester?” and “what do I still need to learn in order to improve my writing?”. Answering both these questions will help me with my last step of my self-evaluation, developing a plan to learn new skills.
Over the course of the semester, I feel that I have grown as a writer in many ways. When I came into the class, there were skills I had that I already excelled at. During my time in class, I have come to improve on those skills even more. Before I took this class, I didn’t even realise what I was good at. This is the first class where I felt I received feedback on my writing that helped me to actually review my work to see what areas I lacked in and where I succeeded.
Habits of the Creative Minds is a simple textbook with a particular twist. I began reading the book thinking it was going to be a basic textbook, but the author,Richard E. Miller and Ann Jurecic, changed the tone of the book and put it into a metaphor. This metaphor was about the reader in your writing, or for anyone reading should feel like Alice in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. The reader should be reading, and figuratively fall into the reading, by this the authors means the reader should not want to put that book down. They should be engulfed in the book and read from cover to cover. The attention must be maintained and the best way to do this is by making the writing unique. The authors of this book puts