Tiffany+Richardson+first+essay

__Good Writing Starts With You __

Writing is a form of communication, and in order to be a good writer, you must be a good communicator. A good communicator is able to relay information, thoughts, and ideas in an orderly fashion that is easy to understand. The same is true in writing. A person needs to be able to write in a way that’s easy for the reader to understand. Good writing must make sense and it must have a purpose. In other words, it shouldn’t be ramblings that make no sense.  My English teacher taught me that the first step to good writing is organizing your thoughts, making sure that all information is included, and to ensure that you have all the components of the paper. You also need a good thesis statement so that your readers know what your writing assignment is about. Good writing is also descriptive and informative. It holds the reader’s attention and makes them want to continue reading. Good writing is not repetitive, it follows a theme but each idea is expressed differently.  My teachers also taught me never to use clichés because they are over used and they show no creativity. Creativity is very important. It gives your writing individuality, it becomes yours, and it helps to challenge you. Good writing also consists of attention getters; those are the statements that grab the attention of the reader. It’s important to get the attention of the reader at the beginning in order to keep them reading and wanting to read more. I was taught to use attention getters throughout my essay, that way if the paper starts to get dull, you can grab the reader’s attention ant entice them to keep reading.  Writing about what you know makes your writing flow easier because you have a wealth of knowledge and it’s easier to organize your thoughts. You are also passionate about what you are writing, which drives you to want to do your best and produce a finished product you can be proud of.  Coming from high school, I had one understanding of writing and with that understanding there were guidelines. After reading chapter 2 in “Writing About Writing”, I came to realize that it’s more than just guidelines and there’s more than one understanding. The writers in chapter 2 showed me a whole different level of writing. They changed my ideas of good writing to where I am more open minded. “Very few writers really know what they are doing until they’ve done it”, Lamott (301). Not only have my ideas change, but5 my feelings as well. Reading chapter 2 made me feel like I wasn’t in this alone, that there were others out there that had the same troubles and frustrations that I have. The writers have changed my idea to where now I know that “writing is a process”, and it takes many trials and errors to get where you want to get to.  One of the student writers that changed my idea about what good writing is was Maria P. Rey. As I read the “Letters to West Port High School’s English Department”, I realize that high school English teachers only give guidelines and rules to make the writing an easy process, but they didn’t realize that their explanation only made writing a difficult process. When I took on the information from Anne Lamott essay on “Shitty First Drafts”, it made me feel comfortable on attempting to write. Lamott said that “Almost all god writing begins with terrible first efforts”. Yes it might be crappy at first, but as you continue to practice, you progress from crappy being better, the better to being good, and who knows, your good can turn into greatness. I believe having this positive attitude will also lead you forward to being a better writer and having a greater idea of what is good writing.  The writers changed my conception of good writing processes, practices, and strategies to something that’s going to help me out as I do my any paper, having less frustration as I write, and making my paper good as a whole. The writers have learned tremendously from all have said that writing isn’t easy and that it takes practice, but they all in some kind of ay have their own ways to start the process of writing and their strategies as they write. This brings me to the realization that writing starts within you. What you are actually writing about may not have anything to do with you per say, but the fact that it was your process that got you through the writing, the many practices you have tried, and the strategies you have come up with that have formed your paper. As of my new conception of good writing processes, practices, and strategies being a part of my idea of good writing, has completely gave me a whole new idea about what good writing is.  What is good writing? It’s a question that has many answers and many perceptions. But good writing to me is a good communicator. You have to communicate with yourself sometimes to form a paper. Who has influenced you to write like you’re writing today? As you read chapter 2, what or who has changed your ideas about good writing, and your conception of good writing processes and practices. Good writing has many explanations, but we should try to ask ourselves and explain to ourselves, what is good writing and what has influenced us to try and be a good writer.