I
went to a small private school in Oklahoma City for high school. So, I'd like
to think that I was very prepared as a writer for whatever college was going to
throw at me. Most of my English and history classes had about twenty people in
them, so my teachers were able to give me a lot of personal feedback, which is
what I think it takes for someone to improve in their writing. In particular,
my senior year, AP Literature and
Composition, teacher helped me the most in my writing.
He
did this in a number of ways. First of all, he gave us many different types of
writing assignments-- Short argumentative essays, longer research papers and
even some creative writing. I think each of these assignments incorporates a
different element of writing and communicating effectively. I love to argue, so
naturally, the shorter argumentative papers were the most fun for me. I really
enjoy putting an argument into words, and watching in turn into a coherent
essay. One way my professor challenged me in writing these types of essays was
that he actively tried to find flaws in my arguments. There would be times when
I would turn in what I thought was a great paper, and I would not do very well.
He'd point out that I failed to examine my position from the other side, and
that there was a lot more that I needed to explain or give evidence for.
Regardless, I really enjoyed writing these kinds of papers. On the other hand
though, I hated creative writing. Maybe I was just super self-conscious? For
whatever reason though, I couldn't stand it. Even though I hated writing these
papers, I think they helped me find my voice, and helped my figure out how to
just let my imagination loose. I'll never forget that class, because I think
that it was instrumental in turning me into the writer that I am today.
Fountain Pen, Source: Wikipedia
Next
week, I'll talk about my writing experiences in college!
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