Consider the readings that you have done for this class thus far. Select two or three parts of these readings that resonated with you and discuss how you have approached or plan to approach your writing differently as a result of what you learned from these readings. Your response should be six to ten sentences long.
16 thoughts on “Blog Post #4: Reading Reflection”
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From the readings we have done so far in this class, the two that have most resonated with me would be “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” by Kate Eickmeyer and “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott. Eickmeyer’s piece about procrastination told me things about myself that I didn’t even realize I did. Such as when she brought up writing papers the night before its due, I used to do this throughout high school. Even when the papers I did the nights before usually didn’t the best grades, I was still unable to break out of that habit. From reading the piece, I was able to take away some valuable information that I am now implementing into my college courses. I am now starting to devote a small portion of my time to write a par rather than extended sit down sessions that burn me out. I started using this method with my literacy narrative, and it helped in many ways, such as thinking more clearly about my writing and giving me extra time to revise and edit, something I never used to do in high school. The second piece by Anne Lamott also gave me better ideas to go about my writing. When she explained that she even goes through the pain of writing something, to delete again, it resonated with me as I now know its common to do this, and not everyone gets a great piece of from their first write up. One thing that I started to do in approaching my writing differently is on my first draft, write everything that comes to mind. The next day come back to it, and usually, with a clearer sense of what you’re writing about, take out what you think is redundant, add on to what you liked and keep repeating the process until you’re finished.
The readings that have resonated with me would be “On Writing a Style and Entering a Conversation” by Lisa Blankenship and “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott. Lisa Blankenship talks about writing it can be difficult because you are writing for someone rather than an audience. Depending on the circumstance. As well as, when writing to love your audience and be honest, take it seriously. I can relate to this because sometimes when I write I tend to write things down in intention to satisfy the reader or what they want to hear besides of implementing what I truly believe in my writing. Which is something I am going to put towards my future pieces and making sure my points are heard while implementing new ideas and styles of writing to prove my points. From the reading of “Shitty First Drafts” I learned that whatever is in your mind write it down. It may not be the best formed sentences or paragraphs but, a reason/idea is present. Later on, we can progress with that idea and make it sound better. The first draft will always be bad maybe depending on who is writing it, there will be mistakes present. This reading made me realize that nothing is perfect. In order to make something perfect or equivalent, it takes time. In my piece of writing or whenever I have a thought I am going to write it down or type it into my notes. Later on, maybe tomorrow or a couple of days from now I will come back to it and try to progress with the idea to make something out of nothing.
Throughout all the readings the one that resonated with me the most was probably was “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process”. Eickmeyer’s piece really clicked with me because I and probably most of us have procrastinated very heavily. Like when she talked about doing big assignments/writings the day before made me in a way flash back through all the times when I was up until 3-4 maybe even until right before school would start doing papers because I was too lazy, but more accurately I had no inspiration and didn’t know how to start. Another reading that I really took away from was actually not one in particular but the first set we did where we read about basically what we would be doing in this course and just more about how we would work on our skills. While there was no major takeaway it gave me a new kind of hope for improving my writing skills and actually getting better at language not just English but of all kinds overall.
From the readings, the two that resonated with me the most was “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott and “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” by Kate Eickmeyer. In the reading of “Shitty First Drafts” I learned that you should just write down first whatever it is that you find interesting and that even good writings have a terrible first draft and that you have to start somewhere. Anne Lamott talks about how when she goes to restaurants with her friends she would listen to what anyone says thats interesting and funny and write it all down. Something I liked that she does is that she uses colored pens to take everything out thats not needed. The reading “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” has showed me the steps I should take when writing. Her first step was fully understanding the assignment and I really like that first step because not understanding the assignment will make it more difficult to complete. I also liked her last step which was focus on the topic instead of the writing because most of the times when I write something I am always trying to get it done and think about how long it is, or how much more I have to write but this step shows that when I am writing I should just focus on the topic of the assignment.
From the readings done this far, I have resonated the most with “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott and “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” by Kate Eickmeyer. These two readings have opened my eyes regarding how I will approach my writings in the future. From the first reading, Lamott discusses the purpose of what a writing draft is supposed to do for writers who simply want to get everything on a paper. It dawned upon me when I related to what she said regarding that it was upsetting and annoying at first to come up with different ideas, but she pointed out that the purpose of a first draft is to simply pour out all the ideas good or bad. I found this very resonating and such a great idea to do because it makes a lot of sense and I think of it as somewhat connecting a puzzle together. From the second reading I found it to be relatable on a personal level of getting anxiety from assignments and having to be forced into a situation to organize myself whether I want to or not. The reading made me get into a mentality that I am not used to and so I found it resonating for a change in my writing. I want to be more organized and discover different strategies on how to approach assignments. Yes, I will probably procrastinate again, but I will change myself for the better good.
The two readings that resonated the most with me was, “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott and “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” by Kate Eickmeyer. I learned a lot from, “Shitty First Drafts” because normally, I thought a first draft was just what your final draft would look like but people editing it for grammar and spelling mistakes. Lamott talks about jotting down anything you can think of and writing it down and I find it very interesting. I would have never thought of doing this because my teachers in the past actually graded the first draft as an assignment of how good you wrote so I can’t really do that but I think I can start doing that now and see if will work for me. Eickmeyer’s piece really resonated with me because I’m probably the biggest procrastinator I know. Sometimes I do work the period before it’s due and sometimes I do it in the class when the teaching is collecting. Reading the piece brings up a lot of memories of my past self but it talks about how college would be harder and I will need to write longer essays and will require me to do more research. I’m aiming to fix my procrastination and plan my time and it has been working pretty well. Hopefully, I won’t procrastinate again but knowing me, I know I will.
“Suffer Less: On Writing as Process” would be a reading that made me felt resonated me the most. I am not the type of person that usually save all the work until last day, but many people around me are. In my high school years, my friends usually ask me the answers of homework or project where the next day is due. Some of them are even bolder, they do the work just before the class begins. When I asked them why do not finish your work early and enjoy yourself with no burden, they always replied me with a lazy tome: “why to torcher yourself to done work so early? one must enjoy itself”. So when they asked me for answers before the class begins, I usually say no and replied with” you have already enjoy your time, now its time for me to enjoy mine”.
“Shitty First Drafts” made me felt just as the first one, it teaches me to treat my work with care. Before I had read the shitty first draft, I usually just write and hand it in. Never thought about to shorten the sentence, to add or delete, and reread the work.
Two of the reading that resonated with me the most is “Suffer Less: On Writing as a Process” and “Shitty First Drafts.” Like what Eickmeyer said most people procrastinate and that is what i do when I was in high school. I would usually do my homework or any writing assignments the night before. I would try doing it earlier but it just doesnt work. you know you still got time so you get lazy and do it the night before. You know you can push it any further when you do it the night before because it will be due the next day so you have to do it. Like she say you will get A’s sometimes but it dont always happen, and I agree with that. From the reading, a stragety I would apply to my literacy is break it down and spend some times reading the assignment as soon as I get it, this way I can do it bit by bit and not wait till the night before it due. From shitty first drafts, she talks about the pain of writing the first draft and then when it comes to the final draft it starts all over again. This is why I usually dont do first drafts in high school but the idea i got from this is that you should just just pour all your ideas out in the first draft that why it call shitty first draft. Then you would have a chance to reedit it in the final. From this reading I plan to go back and edit my work and see if anything is missing.
The readings that resonated with me was, “Shitty First Drafts” by Anne Lamott and “The Maker’s Eye: Revising Your Own Manuscripts” by Donald Murray. “Shitty First Drafts” helped me understand what a first draft really is. In high school, for essay assignments, it would never be split up into multiple drafts, rather, there was only one due date for the entire essay. This accentuated the idea that Donald Murray states so perfectly, “when students complete the first draft, the consider the job of writing done.” This also made it as if the first draft had to be perfect. Perfectly written, with a clear and precise idea or message. Though, after reading those two readings, I started to understand writing as a process rather than a one-time effort, and that through the process we can better our first, second, maybe even third drafts overtime.
“On Writing as Style and Entering a Conversation” by Blankenship was the piece that resonated with me the most. After reading I turned to my draft and tried to analyze what was MY writing style. Blankenship made it clear to the audience that the more you understand what is being asked for the more power you have over the piece. Blakenship states that one should not write just to get to their word count requirement. Which I often as a bad habit, I should more thought and effort and think less about “words that do little.”
I resonate with Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts” because it depicts trial and error. Sometimes, my thoughts are not clear enough for myself to begin typing and I hesitate to begin, all at the time when my eyes are glued to the screen, afterward. Thanks to Lamott, at the beginning of my writings, I will immediately begin typing any thoughts that come to mind in order to better progress. In “Shitty First Drafts,” Lamott explains how she “trusts the process” and how her draft’s cycle. This shows me no writing will ever be perfect. Not the first, not the second, and not the last. “No Words” by Manson has adjusted my process of writing in the context of dialogue. Often, I trouble with creating some sort of purposeful dialogue between characters in writing. Manson’s last paragraph on pg.88 perfectly shows how describing feelings or thoughts can create a more effective piece than using words when words are difficult to synthesize in a piece.
“Suffer less: On writing as process” is the first reading that resonated with me the most. Because I had the tendency to procrastinate before I read the article. After I read the article, I got myself a diary where I would put all the stuff that needs to be done. Every day I would go through the diary and make sure that the work for that day is done. The second reading that resonated with me is “The Maker’s Eye: Revising Your Own Manuscripts.” I’m planning to reread my narrative aloud first and try to find mistakes that need to be corrected. Secondly, I would try to get some constructive criticism from the writing centers and my peers.
The one that most resonated with me was ” Suffer less: On writing as Process” which was about procrastinating. I do not procrastinate only on my writing but also on the majority of the homework I get. When it comes to writing I do cram myself to the last minute because the ideas do not flow until that moment. Was the thought process I had before I read the passage by Kate Eickmeyer. Now I am trying to force myself to start a few paragraphs before so I have time to revise them. This worked for the first couple of paragraphs but then later on I realized I was rambling on in my analysis and it didn’t make sense. Which then I got stuck and left it alone to the last minute again. The second reading “The Maker’s Eye: Revising Your Own Manuscripts” by Donald Murray is about revising. I usually start rereading after every paragraph I write until I think is good. Then when I come back to it and write another paragraph I reread both of those paragraphs to see if they flow together. I do not think I would be able to finish the first draft and reread it considering I am too impatient for doing that but I to revises each paragraph at least 7 times while I am writing.
The readings that have resonated with me are “suffer less: On writing as a Process” and “Caught between Two Worlds” In the reading of “suffer less” I can very much relate to this topic because I procrastinate a lot on my assignments. I can proof this right now by finishing this assignment about 2 hours before it is due. I can very much say it is not the best idea, but the tension and the anxiety that comes with it fuels me to do it quick and knowing what to write more easily. I do want to work on this problem because, I am starting to realize that in college it is very much easier to do the assignments as soon as we get them. Also its best to do it as soon as possible because other things start to accumulate with it, causing even more anxiety which isn’t the greatest feeling. I can also relate to “caught between two worlds” in the sense that I participate in two very distinct cultures. I love the American everyday life, but I also live in a Colombian culture. People are generally surprised when they hear my accent in Spanish, unlike Lucia Ku in which people are surprised, when she speaks English. I plan to work on this by speaking the Spanish language more often.
After all of the readings as of now, a part that has resonated the most with me is in the reading of Shitty First Drafts by Anne Lamott. In the reading she said “The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.” When I read this I realized that I can write down as much as I want with no limits. That despite most of what was written not being in the final draft, a lot of it will help me lead up to my final piece. Another piece that greatly resonated with me was in Suffer Less: On Writing as Process By Kate Eickmeyer. She stated “it’s not the adrenaline that gets you over the hump, but the permission you give yourself to focus on writing at the expense of everything else,” and when I read this it felt like my third eye had opened. I had always thought that I was getting an adrenaline rush to do the work but in reality I was just excepting the fact that I’m going to finish the work no matter what. If I can learn to get in that mind set whenever I need it then I don’t always have to wait for the last minute to start. Rather I’ll be able to do it the first time hearing about the work.
From all the readings I’ve done in this class, the two reading that resonated with me the most are “Shitty first Drafts” and “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process”. For “Shitty First Drafts”, it resonated with me because I’ve always treated my first draft as something I should do as flawless as possible therefore I’ve always made very little changes to my first draft. This reading taught me that first drafts should be where all of my ideas go into, which is what I’ve done to my first draft of literacy narrative. The second reading, “Suffer Less: On Writing as Process”, also resonated with me because I procrastinate as often as I can and this reading helped me get a new look at procrastination by shattering some of the surrounding it. Now I always think of what the reading taught me whenever I try to procrastinate.