My Final Reflection
Cadet Max Liebl
5/1/15
Help Received: Mrs. Mattie Q. Smith
As I reflect on my writing over the past year, I notice some distinct differences in my planning and execution of my essays. In my first year of college, I’ve become more mature in my writing style and process. Before coming to college, my level of writing was at the standard high school level, very basic with little unique structure. I never fully respected the writing process and never went in-depth into the editing and peer review process to further enhance my writing. This is the most important factor that has changed since high school. I’ve come to be more open to other people’s suggestions and put my own personal bias aside. As a result, my essay scores increased and looking back, I see distinct differences in style and the flow of the overall essay. I have also used my experiences so far in my college career at VMI to bring a unique personal style to my writing. I will be utilizing select essays in chronological order and note certain differences that reflect my progression in writing. My writing style has changed dramatically since the beginning of the year, I’ve become more comfortable and more organized in my thoughts to be able to effectively communicate what I’m trying to convey to my audience through taking my time throughout the writing process to edit and revise what I’m trying to say.
The past year has been one of much change and new experiences. I’ve grown in my academics and as a person in ways that I would never have imagined. As a writer I’ve come to incorporate much of my personal experiences into my writing which adds a unique personal style to my work. In the beginning of the year, I reflected many times on my experiences as a Rat going through the trials and tribulations of the Ratline. Writing during the Ratline became my avenue of escape from it all. I had so many thoughts running through my head at the time and I quickly found it easy emulate those thoughts onto paper. In my first essay, Ray Bradbury Reflection, I write about certain key traits or characteristics about my life many of them coming from my experiences in the Ratline. In the first body paragraph of this essay I use a simile to describe conformity and how it plays an important role in life as a Rat. I felt comfortable and more able to answer the prompt in the form of a narrative and in looking back, I can see how my ideas flowed and how I supported my claims. “One simile I take away from that first week is, “The world is like a steam roller, and it will flatten you if you’re not ahead of it.” (“Ray”, 1). In this statement, I create a simile and tie it back into my first week at VMI. This is one example of how I added a personal style to my writing. Though the essay has a unique and personal style to it, it lacks proper adherence to organizational guidelines which I tried to improve on in later essays by taking more time in pre-writing and preparation.
The next essay I am going to examine titled, Reflection of Time, has some of the personal qualities as Ray Bradbury Reflection, but it also has a better structure and organization. Again, I tie in elements of the Ratline and personal emotions felt throughout and connect it back to the main theme of time. In one example, I explain how I would look at the clock and the hour hand would be would forever be stuck on the “3” or the “9” (“Reflection”, 2) and how time would seem to just stop at the worst moments possible. By using my personal experiences I was able to more effectively support my thesis and relate better to my topic. I felt more comfortable in writing this piece since I had had more time to prepare and get used to the pace of college academics. This was the first essay I took my time on and went through the peer review process completely. The result was a more put together piece that displays my thoughts well and in an organized manner. This essay set the tone for how my future essays should be written and the time and attention to detail necessary to produce a solid final product.
Another factor that I improved in my writing was the use of descriptive language and syntax. Working to improve my sentence mechanics and creating a steady flow from one idea to the next so that I create an effective argument for my audience has been one of my greatest challenges to overcome. What most of my previous essays lack is use of descriptive language to create images of what I’m trying to convey to the audience. Creating pictures in the mind of the reader is an essential trait to any essay since that is what defines the tone and how you want the reader to perceive the message you are trying to convey. I felt like I was able to hone my use of descriptive language in the Virginia Outdoor Writers Association (VOWA) essay titled, The Climb. In this essay I took the same approach in using personal experiences to answer the prompt, but I also took the time to focus on my sentence wording and transpose the pictures of the event in my head onto the paper. In this example, “…the Sun was beginning to peep over the mountains in the distance and break through the thick purple fog that had engulfed the Shenandoah Valley overnight…” (“The Climb”, 1), I describe my first morning at VMI and how the Sun would burn off the fog that would roll in overnight. My goal was to create an image in the readers’ head and see what I was seeing on that day. This is just one example of my use of descriptive language and syntax, but in every essay I wrote after this I took the time to focus on sentence structure and effectively create the image I am trying to convey onto paper.
This year I took a different approach to my pre-writing work and how I revise and edit my work. When it came time to write my science essay titled, Solar Powered Flight: A Reality, I wrote about the comparison between a science-related article to be used for mass consumption and a peer-reviewed article intended for an audience in that particular field. For this essay I needed to read in-depth both articles and have a firm understanding of the subject matter to gather support for my comparison. The research process allowed me to practice and refine my pre-writing techniques. I revised and refined my essay multiple times and the final product is one that I am very proud of. I tie in multiple sources to support my claim and my extensive research of what key elements separate a peer-reviewed article from a science-related article are clearly identified and supported thoroughly. In this example, “…information needs to be shared in a way that makes sense for the common reader because once an idea is established in magazines such as Discover, it’s up to the people to take it further in development.” (“Solar”, 3), I describe the important role that science-related articles play in society and how a science-related article differs from a peer-reviewed article. This essay gave me the unique opportunity to research a topic that I enjoy learning about and refine my synthesis skills in gathering information from multiple sources to support the main topic of my paper.
This past year has been a year of changes and improvements to my writing. My time in ERH-101/102 has opened my eyes to writing and helped me recognize my true potential as a writer. I’ve seen a steady progression in how I write and the steps I take in pre-writing and as a result, each essay built on the next as far as quality. The variety of essays I was able to write this year allowed me to focus on certain elements of writing and improve in specific areas. For me, I saw the most progression in my level of preparation and my style. After discovering this new found respect for the writing process, I began to notice a steady increase in my grade because I was paying more attention to how I write and how I deliver the message I’m trying to communicate to my audience. I feel more comfortable now about personalizing my essays and being able to effectively establish my credibility. Overall, I am impressed when I look at the progression my writing has undergone. I am now a more confident and proficient writer and I will take the skills that I have learned and mastered throughout the year and apply them to future endeavors.
Works Cited
Liebl, Maxwell A. “Ray Bradbury Reflection.” Ed. Maxwell Liebl. Lexington:VMI 2014.
Liebl, Maxwell A. “Reflection of Time.” Ed. Maxwell Liebl. Lexington:VMI 2014.
Liebl, Maxwell A. “The Climb.” Ed. Maxwell Liebl. Lexington:VMI 2014.
Liebl, Maxwell A. “Solar Powered Flight: A Reality.” Ed. Maxwell Liebl. Lexington:VMI 2014.