Reflection...

When I started out this semester I believed that it was going to be a breeze. I have been writing stories and many different kinds of blogs and poetry since I was a kid. This class has pushed me towards being a better writer as well as giving me the courage to post on a website. This has taught me that review and reflecting are a necessary part of creating a great piece of writing. This class has taught me that I have to be open to other ideas. I have to be open to different teaching styles as well.

Editing my writing has always been the most difficult part of my writing. I hate criticism even if it makes me a better writer. When I receive it I always take it to heart and what usually ends up happening is after I get it I usually stop writing. I am a perfectionist so when I do something wrong I feel like kicking myself over it. This class has taught me that I need to take it in stride and try and improve my writing when I receive it.

When people give me ideas for what I should write about I usually will take it the exact opposite way of what I think that they meant by it. When I write normally it is only for me. Writing with a script of what I am supposed to do has never been my style. I write what I want to write and how I want to do it and usually that is all that I will do. I greatly dislike when people tell me what I can write. This semester I had to do just one writing that I did not want to do and that was the What’s Wrong with Cinderella paper. That one held absolutely no interest for me which was probably why that was my worst paper this semester. When I don’t want to do something it is impossible for me to do a good job with it. This semester I learned that I have to have some diversity in my writing in order to move forward.

Through out my entire time in high school I was praised for my writing especially from my favorite English teacher Mr. McMeel. He pushed me to use every ounce of emotion inside of me to make me a better writer. At one point in time I actually managed to scare him I think with something that I wrote. It was very dark but even he had said that it was very well written. In all four years of high school I usually had the same response to my writing after my teachers read it so adapting to a different teacher was difficult. After I got the first grade back on my paper I was upset because I had every thought in my mind that I was going to be getting a good grade on it. It was exactly how I wrote in high school with my own personal experiences.

This semester has taught me many different things that I am thankful for. I know that a lot of what I learned will stay with me. This has improved my writing and it makes me happy to know that I have progressed this semester.