Joshua Stone
Dr. Hall
English 1121
With the semester finally coming to an end, I’m still left with a question: have I improved as a writer? This class has definitely been one of the enjoyable courses I took. I learned a lot, met some interesting people, and definitely developed some writing skills. Dr. Hall has taught me that no one is perfect at something. I’m not a perfect writer and I know that for a fact. While, I learned my weakness and strengths, and how to exploit them. The biggest weakness that I have is that sometimes I don’t take my time doing things, like in this class writing as fast as possible just to finish the assignment; this only got my writing worse than it was before and I had to adjust my attitude of rushing my writings.
In Unit 1, I was talking about my graduation. When I reread my paper, I was actually surprised how much things I either did incorrectly or completely missed when writing. I was honestly perplexed on how much problems I found. But then again, I was that because I never claimed to be a good writer. However, I never said I was a terrible one either, so I was still kind of ticked off at the end result of my paper.
In Unit 2, I made a paper and video on one of my favorite artist,XXXTentacion. My main goal was to explain how he inspired me in a positive way while he was misunderstood and received negative criticism. However, the video I made didn’t really establish the point I was trying to make. I ended talking more about how XXXTentacion was an inspiration rather explaining the fact that he is misunderstood more. But even still, I’m more than confident when I say that the video carried my paper. I feel as if the video explained what I couldn’t put on paper much better.
In Unit 3, I made a video and paper again, but this time about the MTA. Once again, my video did a way better job explaining what I couldn’t put on paper. At this point, I’m just shaking my head at what I’m been putting on paper. I’m really in awe about how I haven’t really improved in writing. I’ve really been relying on the videos I make to cover my paper.
Overall, the only I was able to gather from Unit 2 and 3 is how much I rely on my video editing skills. And even my video editing skills are mediocre at best. But I can’t really beat myself up too much. With every unit, I suppose my writing skills have gotten better. I may not have noticed it then but I can kind of see it now. Dr. Hall has pointed out my weaknesses and has tried to help and it definitely has paid off. If there is one thing I learned from this course is no piece of writing is perfect. There is always room for improvement, even if you think your work is flawless. I see that now and can’t really too hard on myself when it comes to writing. Looking back now, I can see that errors are completely normal and that they can be improved on. Even you have to reread your work or have someone else read it, you can find what you did wrong and fix it. This course taught me that firsthand, and I’m grateful for it.
