Coming into this course, I felt intimidated and unsure about my writing. I have always been an overthinker when it came to writing, however, I was extremely eager to improve this and learn new things. Over the semester, I have learned how to revise more effectively, use evidence clearly, and express my ideas more concisely in my writing. Through assignments like the Researched Critical Analysis and Exploratory Essay, I can see how my thinking and writing has grown and flourished. These few examples have emphasized how I have truly reflected on my development as a writer and on the areas I wish to keep growing in. 

One major area where I feel like I have improved immensely is the use of evidence in my writing. In the Exploratory Essay I feel I struggled profoundly on how to cite quotes correctly and how to input evidence. 

In this essay, I spoke about the symbolism of transformation in Grimm’s Cinderella. As seen in the screenshot, I would insert the quote but not elaborate enough or at all on what the quote means or shows. It was like just being thrown in there with no warning which did not let my writing flow the way it should flow between paragraphs. 

In my Researched Critical Analysis Essay I put much effort into not making the same mistake. I wrote about child abandonment and neglect in fairy tales for this piece of writing. As seen in the screenshot above, this time I decided to include a lead in for my quote to make everything flow better. I also learned how to use the CCNY Library Database and used One Search to gather my reliable sources and citations. This showcases a huge difference from the screenshot above because the quote I decided I wanted to include is not being thrown into the paragraph for no reason. 

Throughout the semester we were required to complete annotations for several readings to discuss in class. This was something else you could say I struggled in at first because I was not used to analyzing sentence structure or word choice. I had never considered these sorts of things before in such a profound way. There was such a bigger picture in everything we read and this allowed me to really appreciate all kinds of different writings because I was able to absorb everything in a deeper way. A specific reading we were assigned was called, “Orwell’s Politics and Language”. It revealed an important and essential truth about what defines a good writer, which really let me reflect about my own writing. This became even more apparent in a free write we had in class about this specific topic. 

  This also let me do the same to my own writing with first drafts which became very useful in becoming a much more thoughtful writer. More so on all of the different types of readings and genres we read. 

When I first annotated this reading by Anne Lamott I thought that my annotations were more than enough because I did not even bother thinking critically about what I was reading. So when I got the grade I got back I could not understand what more I needed to do or how to improve. But after our discussions in class over these kinds of readings and seeing my own professor’s annotations, I started to understand what was being asked of me. I started reading the passages or articles first to form my ideas and then went back a second time to annotate anything I thought was important to note such as exigences’ and purpose. 

The screenshot from above is from one of the most recent assignments we had. There is a clear contrast between the two screenshots because of the difference in thoughtfulness. My appreciation for writing has flourished immensely. 

Overall I feel that I have grown exceptionally this semester, but there are still some things I want to improve on. One of the biggest things is wanting to improve on building stronger arguments and stances. Throughout the semester, I sometimes struggled to fully explain why my evidence mattered or how it supported my main point. I noticed this especially in assignments where I had to analyze a text or take a clear position, because my ideas were there, but I found that I was not always able to elaborate on my ideas as much as I wanted to. Moving forward, I want to focus on connecting my claims and evidence more smoothly so my writing feels more connected and flows better. Strengthening my arguments will help me express my ideas with more confidence and make my essays clearer for my readers.

This semester has helped me grow as both a writer and a thinker. I’ve learned more about how to organize my ideas, use evidence effectively, and express myself with more confidence. Even though I still want to keep improving, especially in building stronger arguments, I can see real progress in the work I’ve done throughout the course. This class and Professor Von Uhl has helped me understand my writing process better and shown me the areas where I’m strongest and where I still want to grow. I’m leaving the semester feeling more aware of my abilities and more prepared to continue developing my writing in future classes.