Clayton 1 Trevor Clayton Mrs.

Young English Comp 1 6 December 2013 Things brought along As an incoming freshman this year, I knew I would be learning a lot, especially in my English courses. I wasnt surprised when I learned a lot, but I didnt realize I would learn three very important things that have to deal with my writing. In English Composition 1, I learned how to show rather than tell, prepare for the audiences concerns, and refer back to the thesis in a more fluent subtle way. I know I have learned these skills, because here is the evidence. Through the character sketch Ive learn its better to show the audience how something is rather than telling them directly to their faces. The challenge with the sketch was not saying anything about the person, and instead demonstrating how their personality was through their own actions. I figured that the best person that I could do this with was a friend of mine named Doug, who has to be the most animated person I know. Just by narrating an event his actions showed his personality perfectly. I learned that it was better to say I need the power of the Skittles! he said as he opened the bag and began to pour the candy into his mouth, instead of Doug is a goofy guy who likes Skittles. With the editorial essay, I learned how to anticipate the concerns of the audience of the paper, by knowing the main issues with the topic. I used something my manager had said to me as a way to begin to explain the other issue to the argument by weaving in a quote. I wrote that my manager said,

Trevor, grocery shopping is considered a chore to them, and they only want to get their product and get out. This quote helped lead the direction of the paper where it leads to me addressing the main issue aloud. I then said a personal experience I had with bad customer service to help connect the audience to me. This technique gave me more credibility for my essay

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With the Unlikely Disciple essay, I improved my skill of referring to the thesis throughout the essay. My thesis for the essay was Liberty Universitys educational ignorance is a means of altering the beliefs of the students attending the university which was a bold statement. My arguments were logical and helped support the main thesis. These arguments were questioning their judgment of the homosexual orientation, calling out their bias against the origin of man, and pointing out their technique of winding God into the educational system. Once those arguments were established it was a bit easier to connect my ideas back to my thesis. I found out that it was easier to communicate my thoughts when I had a main idea down on the paper first. Throughout the paper, I referred to the thesis through implication, and not by telling the audience how it related directly. By saying quoting sentences straight out of work books, tests, and articles, I can show how liberty warps the minds of the students instead of just flat out saying, Liberty is corrupt and hates homosexuals. My writing has improved immensely, and I can express my thoughts clearly by reinforcing my thesis. All the more, I would like to say my writing is perfect, its far from it. I learned over the course of the semester that my comma placement is greatly under par. I didnt notice these subtle problems until I sat down and actually revised my papers. My commas didnt match the sentences and made my writing crippled. I wouldnt have introductory clauses enhanced with commas, nor would I separate extra data with them. I learned a nifty trick to help with the problem. Instead of reading the essay from start to end during revisions, go backwards and anylize every sentence on its own. It was like lifting a curtain from a stage and my writing could finally perform the show it could. I still need a lot of practice before my comma placement is par, but its worth the effort to ensure that they are placed properly.

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So, Ive learned these new things, but what does it mean? My tools for writing are sharpened but Im still learning to wield them. However, thats just it. Ive been taught how to use showing rather than telling, referring to the thesis subtly, and anticipating the audience. All of these tools will help make my writing great if I choose to put them into my writing. So, I know now that my writing can flow, because I know these things.