Reflecting More on My Writing Experiences

In this post I will be reflecting on all of the writing that I have done this semester by providing answers to the 6 provided reflective questions for this deadline.

Beales, Mike, "Reflections." 4/1/2015 via Flickr. Attribution No-Derivs 2.0 Generic.

1. What were the biggest challenges you faced this semester, overall?

Coming into this class and college as a whole, I was very used to a structured and one size fits all design to education that high school drilled into me, but this class was very different from what I was used to. Throughout this semester, I think that the biggest challenge that I faced was the freedom that I had to pave my own learning path. The ambiguity and open-ended nature of almost all of the assignments for this course was frustrating at times, because it definitely wasn't something that I was used to. However, looking back now I think that the freedom that this class gave me to develop myself as a writer and a student really made me more proud of my work.

2. What did you learn this semester about your own time management, writing and editorial skills?

I learned that pushing things off until the last minute only makes me more stressed out and lowers the quality of my work. Also, I discovered that with the right time spent researching a topic I can produce well-written works in a variety of genres, instead of assuming that the lame persuasive essays that I have written throughout my education were the only things I could successfully produce.

3. What do you know about the concept of 'genre'? Explain how understanding this concept is central to being a more effective writer.

I learned this semester that differing genres are like different works of art. All genres are forms of expression, but they all differ in many ways, due to the fact that every genre has its own conventions. Understanding this concept will be crucial to being a successful writer in the future, because when I am given the challenge of writing in a genre that I am not used to, I know that I will have to research the genre and find its conventions, in order to properly emulate that specific category of writing.

4. What skills from this course might you use and/or develop further in the next few years of college coursework?

I think really important skill that this course forced me to develop was my ability to perform research. I now realize that different types of sources-- general websites, scholarly sources, social media-- all offer different insight about a topic. Moving forward I will be knowledgeable of the fact that I will never have to directly use all of the sources that I read, but the insight that I gain from all of the research I do will make me more informed about my topic and help my work in the long run.

5. What was your most effective moment from this semester in 109H?

Personally I think my most effective moment this semester was hitting publish on my blog post containing my final project 3 draft. I think that finishing my public argument should how adaptable I became as a student and a writer because of this class. I started this year with little to no knowledge about what a blog or blog post even was, but after doing a lot of hard work throughout 109H I was able to create my own blog post that I feel is worthy of being placed on a well-respected platform, with a definite target audience in mind. My ability to produce a piece of writing (a blog post for "hip" moms) so out of my comfort zone at the beginning of the semester, really showed my growth as a writer and thus is what I consider to be my proudest and most effective moment.

6. What was your least effective moment from this semester in 109H?

I think that my least effective moment from this semester occurred during my formation of project 1. Throughout my drafting process of my QRG I knew that my research and information regarding my controversy only really acknowledged one side of the issue (the Uber side), but I didn't know how to fix this problem because I didn't have the knowledge that I now have about performing well-rounded and effective research, and I also didn't think I could resolve this concern without removing and re-writing large chunks of my work (something that I have now grown become very accustomed to). Thus, I just left my QRG alone. However, I now see that this was a stubborn and lazy way to deal with my issue and that I should have put the work in to perform more research and careful revision.

Revising My Writing Process

In this post I will reflect on my current writing process and time management skills, by reflecting on two of my earliest posts: "My Writing Process" and "Calendar Reflection".

martinak15, "259/365 Clock Work." 7/1/2012 via Flickr. Attribution 2.0 Generic

At the start of this semester I considered myself to be a writer who fell under the categorization of a "planning procrastinator". Before this class began my writing process consisted of heavy planning, somewhat rushed drafting, and little to no revision. However, I have definitely seen a lot of major changes in the way that I go about writing assignments. I still enjoy having detailed outlines that help me organize all of my ideas and support, but now I can really see the many benefits that dedicating a significant time to revision can bring to my work. Being forced to spend at least a week editing each of my projects--discarding/rewriting large chinks of my work, focusing solely on punctuation, getting feedback on my writing, and providing comments on my peers' work--really showed me how greatly my project could be improved due to careful revision. I now see that every aspect of the writing process is crucial in producing well-written work, thus I feel that I can now consider myself to to be a "Sequential Composer", because I have an equal appreciation for every step of the writing process. Also, I have gotten into the habit of looking over my work as I write, which is another aspect of why I can confidently classify myself into this category of writers.

Clearly, I am no longer a writer who relies solely on detailed planning, but what about the procrastinator portion of my self-proclaimed title? Well, when I wrote my "Calendar Reflection" post earlier this semester I figured out that I had allotted myself enough free time to successfully get all of the necessary work done for my classes each week, but in order to do this I would need to break the habit of saying I would do things "later". This was easier said than done, however. For the first few deadlines of this semester I procrastinated and caused myself nothing but undue worry and anxiety, however as the term progressed I actually started to follow the goals that I set for myself in my "Calendar Reflection". When I began to plan out my days and the work that I wanted to get done on those days (and actually do the work, rather than pushing it off) English 109H and all of my other classes became a lot less stressful. After dedicating myself to getting my assignments done early, the quality of my work work improved, along with my ability to have more time for fun.

Overall, I think this class has really proven the idea that the work you put into something really impacts what you get out of that task. Moving forward into next semester and the next three years of my college education, I will use the many of the skills that this class has provided me with. I will make a conscience effort to never let my old procrastinating ways get the best of me, because it hurts not only my mental well-being, but also how well my final projects turn out. Also, I will remind myself of the fact that every step in a process is important, even though they might not have seemed of great value to me at first, because each of those steps helps me to get closer to achieving my goals, whatever they may be.

Reflection on Project 3

In this post I will provide answers to the nine items on page 520 of Writing Public Lives, in order to reflect on Project 3.

Reimchen, Peggy, "Reflections: Colorful icy layers." 11/7/2009 via Flickr. Attribution 2.0 Generic.

• What was specifically revised from one draft to another?

One aspect of my project that I specifically revised from one draft to another was my attempt at appealing to my audience's emotions. I tried to get my readers to be emotionally invested into my argument by including a personal narrative, and by making sure to maintain a conversational but still intellectual tone.

• Point to global changes: how did you reconsider your thesis or organization?

I reconsidered the organization of my text by including more sub topics.

• What led you to these changes? A reconsideration of audience? A shift in purpose?

I mainly made these changes based on a reconsideration of my audience. I felt as though refuting more arguments against legalization would help to make my argument, which is pro-legalization, more convincing to my audience who will most likely be mothers, since moms typically like to have a lot of support and reasoning before making a decision.

• How did the changes affect your credibility as an author?

Adding more reasons to aid my argument in supporting the idea of legalization will undeniably boost my credibility as an author because these additional justifications will help to prove that I have quite a well rounded viewpoint on the topic. 

• How will the changes better address the audience or venue?

These changes will better address my audience because the audience of my argument because it will show them there are indeed a plethora of benefits of legalization with regards to the youth of America. If my readers are able to see that the many pro arguments that I present outweigh the typically faulty justification for opposing legalization then I have achieved my purpose.

• Point to local changes: how did you reconsider sentence structure and style?

In my drafts I reconsidered my sentence structure in regards to the complexity of my sentences. I made a conscious effort to simplify my sentence structure. I also tried to achieve an conversational, but still knowledgeable and believable style of writing.

• How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

Since I really tried to prevent my argument from seeming to complicated or verbose I helped my argument in achieving its purpose of portraying the idea that the issue of legalization does not have to be so complicated and aggressive, like other arguments make it seem. I want my audience to see that legalization simply must occur, because it will benefit the young people of America tremendously, which is something that my readers would really value.

• Did you have to reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

Due to the fact that I have been writing in the blog genre all year for the many deadlines that we have completed, I never really had to reconsider the conventions of a blog post. However, when composing my drafts I did make a conscious to keep my sentences and paragraphs brief, as mentioned above, because I typically. Besides trying to maintain brevity in my writing, emulating the genre examples that I found wasn't too hard of a task.

• How does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

This reflection process has definitely made me aware of how far I have come as a writer this semester. Before 109H began I had no idea what a blog post even was, but now I have written one that I feel is worthy of going onto a respected site. I now realize that I can do way more than what I originally expected from myself in August, when given the freedom to do so. I now see that I am able to adapt my writing style and my formatting choices, in order to satisfy a specific audience and that I can and must employ many rhetorical strategies, in order to appeal to my readers' decision making processes, no matter what style or type of writing I am working on. It is quite apparent to me that my identity as a writer has been improved substantially, my writing can adapt to different genres and different audiences, and I am happy that I have gained the tools and knowledge to do so.

Publishing Public Argument

In this post I will include a link to the final draft of my public argument. I will also provide a link to a Google Doc containing the information needed to grade my project on the Project 3 rubric.

Anne, "Finish/Start." 7/4/2009 via Flickr. Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic

Click here to access my final draft.

Click here to access my evaluation of my work for grading purposes.

Reflection on Project 3 Draft

In this post I will answer the four provided questions so that I can reflect on the direction that my draft appears to be heading right now.

Plas, Danny, "Reflections." 7/30/2011 via Flickr. Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic

 For the peer revision portion of this deadline I analyzed the drafts of Jenny and Charles.

1. Who reviewed your project 3 draft?

• Jenny, Lauren, and Rachel all took the time to review my project 3 draft.

2. What did you think or feel about the feedback you received? Be explicit and clear. Tell me what helped or what confused you about the feedback you got.

• To be honest, the feedback that I got from my peers kind of made me a little concerned about the direction that my project is heading in. Rachel and Lauren definitely sensed where I want my argument to go, but it was clear that Jenny didn't really see the true purpose of my argument. Jenny clearly didn't understand the refutation argument type that I was trying to employ, which made me wonder if everyone else would feel this same way. However, Rachel and Lauren commented on my draft after Jenny and they seemed to definitely see what I was trying to accomplish. I don't think that I should let one reader make me question my argument as a whole, thus I will try to clarify some of the things that Jenny clearly didn't understand, but I like the overall essence of my piece and don't want to change the overall purpose that I am trying to achieve too much.

3.What aspects of Project 3 need to most work going forward [Audience, Purpose, Argumentation, or Genre]? How do you plan on addressing these areas?

• I think that the aspects of my project that need the most work are genre and argument. I feel that minor changes to the way my project is formatted to fit my genre would improve it greatly. For instance, I could make my subheadings in bold and bigger font to make them stand out, and I could incorporate an image (maybe a table or graph) to limit the amount of wordy statistics my work contains. As for the argument aspect of my project, I think that appealing to my audience's emotions more would be a smart decision. For example, I could incorporate a personal narrative that could make my audience relate to my argument more and make it seem like I have more credibility on the topic.

4. How are you feeling overall about the direction of your project after peer review and/or instructor conferences this week?

• Despite some questionably harsh critique from one of my peers, I still like the direction of my project so far. My meeting with you a few days ago reassured me that I was definitely on the right track. Therefore, I will make the revisions that we discussed at our meeting and a few additional ones, in order to hopefully clarify any concerns that Jenny, Rachel, or Lauren had with my draft. Overall, I am pretty confident in the direction of my public argument thus far.

Draft of Public Argument

This post will contain a link to the rough draft of my rhetorical argument and specific things I want my peers to look out for when reading my piece.

JasonParis, "Hespeler, ON."11/12/2011 via Flick. Attribution 2.0 Generic

Click here to access my rough draft of Project 3.

Dearest Peers,
Thanks in advance for reading my public argument. I just want to remind you that this rough draft is indeed rough. I mainly just want to know if my argument itself seems convincing- if the support I use seems effective and incorporated thoughtfully, also I would like to know if my blog post seems like something that would possibly be published. I welcome your insight and criticisms about my work, and hope you enjoy reading it!
Thanks!

Considering Visual Elements

This post will contain my thoughts on the four elements of visual rhetoric - Design, Salience, Organization & Impact, based on the questions on pages 395-402 in Writing Public Lives.

Bobby, "Row, row, row your boat..."1/2/2012 via Flickr. Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic

Creating Visual Coherence:

• How might I vary the fonts used in my project for emphasis, such as in the title and body of my project?
• I plan on potentially varying the font of title of my blog post to make it stand out on the page. However, other than the title I will keep the rest of my post's body in one uniform font.
• Are the different fonts I use complimentary, or is the combination distracting?
• I think that having a different font for the title of my text would be complimentary to my work and be attractive to my audience. But, I do indeed think that having multiple fonts throughout my blog post would be distracting to my audience and make it seem that some aspects of my writing are more important than others, thus I will keep the body of my text in one font.
• Do the headings for different sections of my argument stand out and break the text up clearly?
• I intend on making my subheadings in a larger font than the the rest of my editorial's body, but not as large as the title. This would help my audience realize that there will be an obvious shift in the topic of my argument. 

Creating Visual Salience

• Does the image inform or emphasize my argument in an important way, or does it seem superficial or unrelated to my argument.
• I plan on including a photograph of some sort at the start of my post. This image's purpose will be to grab my readers' attention and appeal to their emotions in some way, thus it will emphasize my argument, and follow the convention of including an image in a blog post.
• If the image is a graph or chart, does it clearly support a major point of my argument, or is it superfluous?
• I plan on including one or two forms of graphical data to further support my argument. I think that at least on of the charts will be about the addictiveness of marijuana in comparison to other drugs. This chart will help my argument against the claim that marijuana is highly addictive, which will benefit my editorial's overall purpose.

Creating Visual Impact

• Looking back at your images, are they placed or sequenced in the most persuasive way?
• Though I haven't constructed my rough draft yet, I think that the images that I choose will be placed in an effective manner. I want to have an image that gets my readers thinking about the issue of marijuana legalization at the beginning of my blog post, and a chart or two within the body of my argument. I feel like this layout of visual aids will definitely be effective.

Project 3 Outline

This post will include a detailed outline for my version of Project 3. It will contain answers to a variety of questions from Writing Public Lives regarding the construction of public arguments.

Dischner, Zach, "Flying Ninja Man." 3/29/2013 via Flickr. Attribution 2.0 Generic

(I have recently changed my genre from an editorial to a blog post on a site for "hip" moms- The Hairpin.)

Introduction:

• I think that the "Connect the Issue to Your Audience's World View" approach would be the most effective for my specific public argument. My target audience is mothers who may be liberal and willing enough to open their minds to the thought of marijuana legalization. I feel that sarcastically proclaiming that if you love your children you should look down on marijuana legalization would be a good way to start my blog post. This will appeal to my readers' belief that the prosperity of their children's future is important to them, and set the tone for the refutation argument type that I will use throughout my post.

Body Paragraphs:

• Major Supporting Arguments in Favor of Legalization on Marijuana
• bring money to the economy- create job, bring us out of debt, etc.
• less health repercussions/less addictiveness than alcohol or tobacco
• people won't be smoking just to defiantly disobey laws
• will allow there to be funding for education about marijuana
• will allow police to focus/spend money on more pressing issues than prohibition of marijuana
• the black market for drugs will be less powerful

• Major Criticisms Against Legalization
• marijuana can hinder memory and brain capabilities/ activity
• marijuana strands are stronger than they were in the past- could have more downsides
• government must have made it illegal for a good reason
• legalization will promote marijuana use more for the youth- marijuana is a gateway drug
• ending the ban on marijuana will only help those who want to freely use the drug

• Key Support and Rebuttal Points- I plan on organizing each portion of my argument with a proposed downside of legalization, then disproving that claim with support for legalization actually being able to benefit the youth of America.
• Legalization will make young adults more likely to use cannabis/ it will be bad for their mental health and memories- the youth will be exposed to marijuana and other drugs no matter what
• Legalization will only help people who are interested in using marijuana- marijuana legalization will help the economy, which will create jobs for the youth that are struggling to find jobs after college, also the government will get a surplus of money to help schools

• Topic Sentences- I think that I will break up each section of support for legalization with a sarcastic question that encompasses common beliefs that legalization would be bad
• Marijuana is going to hurt the mental development and mental health of the youth, right?
• Won't legalization just help those who already and plan on using marijuana?
• Aren't marijuana strands more dangerous than they were in the past?
• Isn't marijuana an addictive gateway drug?

• Evidence
• What Science Says About Marijuana
• "The Institute of Medicine, the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences, said in a 1999 study that 32 percent of tobacco users become dependent, as do 23 percent of heroin users, 17 percent of cocaine users, and 15 percent of alcohol drinkers. But only 9 percent of marijuana users develop a dependence."
• "The real gateway drugs are tobacco and alcohol, which young people turn to first before trying marijuana."
• "Adding up all the damage, the panel estimated that alcohol was the most harmful drug, followed by heroin and crack cocaine. Marijuana ranked eighth, having slightly more than one-fourth the harm of alcohol."
• "While tobacco causes cancer, and alcohol abuse can lead to cirrhosis, no clear causal connection between marijuana and a deadly disease has been made."
• Colorado’s pot tax for schools sets record in May, crushes 2014 totals
• "In the first five months of 2015, the state’s pot-funded excise tax that collects money earmarked for school construction projects brought in $13.6 million, which is more than it did in all of 2014."
• "Even if modest growth continues through the end of the year, Colorado schools will get the promised infusion of $40 million"
• How legalizing pot could save America's economy
• Ending the prohibition of cannabis will enable American industries--transportation, packaging, retail, processing, and tourism-- to thrive
• "Average annual trade in marijuana is estimated at $113 billion, which represents nearly $45 billion in taxes slipping through our fingers."
• Map of Argument
• Click here to access the Coggle that I have made for my public argument.

Conclusion:

• The "Call to Action" approach would most likely be the best way to go about constructing my conclusion. This would be the most effective approach to ending my public argument because it will clarify the reasons why I want to show my readers how marijuana could indeed help the youth of America. I want to encourage the individuals reading my post to feel empowered to take action regarding marijuana legalization, whether this means voting in favor for legalization if given the opportunity to do so, or to engage in discussions with individuals who may believe in the misconceptions regarding marijuana legalization having the potential to negatively affect children and young adults. 

Reflection:
For this step in my writing process I chose to read and comment on the "Considering Visual Elements" posts by Ann Emilie and Addie. Addie and I are writing in similar genres so most of our ideas and observations about our genres really seem to match up. Ever since the beginning of this class, I have known that blogs need to have short and concise paragraphs, however Addie's post really reminded me of the importance of this. Ann Emilie's post showed me how much thought can and must go into a visual argument. After reading Ann Emilie's post I now see that the images that I chose to include and the colors within them can have great impact on my audience, thus I need to pay close attention to my visual selections. I am pretty confident in my plans for this project!

Analyzing My Genre

This post will contain 5 examples of the genre I will be writing in and answers to the questions about my genre from Writing Public Lives page 342, which will help me further analyze my genre.

Chandler, Todd, "Magnifying glass." 10/6/2013 via Flickr. Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic

Originally I wrote this post with the idea that I was going to write an editorial, however I have now decided to write a blog post on a site called The Hairpin, which is a blog for "hip" young moms. For the peer revision process you need to be provided with some examples of my actual chosen genre... so here are a few:

• Example
• Example
• Example
• Example

5 Examples of Editorials About Marijuana (From The New York Times)

• Example
• Example
• Example
• Example
• Example

Social Context:

• Where is the genre typically set?

An editorial can appear in a variety of magazines or newspapers.

• What is the subject of the genre?

The subject of the genre can vary. However, it typically addresses a well known controversy or debate that is occurring or that is popularly written about that authors have strong opinions about. 

• Who uses the genre?

Any writer who has original thoughts about a topic can use this genre, however getting your editorial published in a well known publication isn't so simple.

• When and why is the genre used? What purposes does the genre serve for the people who use it?

The genre of editorials is used to introduce a debated issue in the media, whenever a large scale event occurs: the passing of a law, a newly elected official, a protest, etc. It is used to give people knowledge on an issue from a more opinionated perspective than an article, thus readers will be able to formulate their own thoughts on where they stand on the topic. 

Rhetorical Patterns of the Genre:

• What type of content is usually included and excluded?

There typically isn't too much background information on the issue. The authors tend to just get right to the point of their specific argument, because the reader is most likely quite aware of the topic at hand. Editorials include the justifications for why the facts and statistics they include are relevant to the text's overall argument, rather than just randomly including them.

• What rhetorical appeals are used most often? Do you notice any patterns in the appeals to logos, pathos and ethos?

It seems that all appeals to emotion (ethos, pathos, logos) are used within all of the sample texts I have looked at, this enables the author to make it apparent to his or her audience that they are a reliable source and constructer of arguments. The texts generally use statistics to appeal to their readers' logic, and quotes or references from other sources to appeal to readers' emotions. 

• How are the texts organized? Do they generally open in similar ways? What common parts do the samples share?

The texts generally open with a simple assertion of an opinion or claim that sets the tone for the rest of the piece. The editorials generally have short paragraphs with a lot of white space, and typically have a lot of hyperlinks used throughout.

• Do sentences in the genre share a certain style? Are they mostly active, passive, simple, or complex? Is there an abundance or lack of questions, exclamation points or semicolons?

The sentences within the editorials tends to vary between a mix of simple and more complex phrases, however there is a consistently active voice throughout, because the topics addressed within are still very relevant and present in society. Periods and commas are the predominant use of punctuation, but questions are sometimes used to introduce a new argument or make readers further reflect on a particular thought.

• What type of word choice is used in the genre? Do many of the words fit in a particular category of jargon or slang? Is the overall effect of the word choice formal, informal, humorous or academic?

The word choice used within this genre, or at least the examples I have looked at have purposeful and easy to understand and slightly sarcastic. Thus, the word choice has an overall effect of being informal and slightly humorous as it pokes fun at the apposing side of the issue at hand. There are really no words that can be considered jargon or slang.

Analyzing Patterns:

• Who does the genre include and exclude?

The genre includes individuals who want to learn a little bit more about a widely debated controversy, who won't be overly offended by reading a work that openly contains an opinion. The genre excludes individuals who are opposed to reading newspapers or magazines in the social media dominated world that we live in.

• What roles for writers and readers does the genre encourage?

The author is supposed to come off as a trustworthy and intellectual source of information for their readers. On the other hand, readers are supposed to be willing to accept or deny an author's stance on a topic, while still learning about the issue.

• What beliefs or values are assumed or encouraged from users of the genre?

The users of this genre value knowledge and either want to be further educated on an issue they feel strongly about or be persuaded about the topic based on the author's argument. Depending on the topic of the editorial or where it is published the values of the readers of editorials can greatly differ.

• What content does the genre treat as the most valuable? Least valuable? 

Works written in this genre are heavily dependent on the use of outside sources to further the claims that their authors are making within them. Visual displays are probably the least important aspect of this genre. Editorials may contain an image or some sort of graphical display to catch their readers' attention, but what the author says seems more important.

Reflection:

For this step in the deadline I read and commented on Lauren's and Annelise's "Analyzing My Genre" posts. Both of my peers and myself all selected different genres to work with for Project 3. However, this doesn't make me concerned because we all have different goals and visions for our projects. For instance, Annelise selected the listicle to keep her argument brief and concise, while Lauren felt like a typical article was most effective because she didn't want to be too opinionated in her writing. My peers made me more confident in my selection of the editorial genre, because they illustrated to me the idea that as long as you know the conventions of your chosen genre and are happy with that genre for the argument that you are constructing, then you can be successful with any genre that you choose.