[Louis]

1) Writing to me involves a mixture of a social process and personal critiquing. When I write something, I usually look over and proofread what I wrote on my own to clean up some parts. Then I would bring my draft, have other people read over my writing, and communicate with them as well as receive constructive feedback on what to fix and tweak as I write again. Writing may start out lonely sometimes because its just you alone building and placing your thoughts on paper by yourself, but once you incorporate peer editing, it’s no longer you fixing your work by yourself. Other people are giving you advice on how to edit your work.

2) A section from “Responding–Really Responding–to Other Students’ Writing” that is interesting/memorable to me is in the third paragraph, which states “Look to help this friend, this roommate writer – okay, this person in your class – to get a better piece of writing. Point to problems and areas for improvement but do it in a constructive way. See what you can do to push her to do even more than she’s done and stretch herself as a writer.” This part of the text stuck with me because it shows me that in order to truly help critique someone’s work, I need to effectively show them their weak areas, how to strengthen them, and motivate that person to outmatch what they wrote last time around better by far. I need to have a balance between good and bad criticism, and they all should go towards helping that person in their next attempt of editing their work.

[Edward]

1. I feel writing can sometimes feel like a social process because when ever I have to write a paper I like getting feed back from other students or even my professor. Because it gives me ideas on how i want to map out my writing. I don’t ever feel like writing is either isolating or lonely because when people write they are trying to connect with other people and are trying to send them a message, this is what i try to do when i write. Writing is meant to connect with all kinds of people that the joy of writing.

2. The quote I picked is “Not like a teacher. Not like a judge. Not like an editor or critic or shotgun. (Wouldn’t you want someone who was giving you comments not to sound like a teacher’s red pen, a judge’s ruling, an editor’s impatience, a critic’s wrath. a shotgun’s blast?) Sound like you normally sound when you’re speaking with a friend or acquaintance. Talk to the writer. You’re not just marking up a text; you’re responding to the writer. You’re a reader, a helper. a colleague. Try to sound like someone who’s a reader, who’s helpful. and who’s collegial.” The reason i picked this sentence is because its true when ever you are critiquing a peer’s paper you want it to sound like a friend but also a colleague. You want to make it so they understand you. And you have to be honest when you are writing because the more honest the better because it gives the person a sense of where they went wrong and how they can improve.

[gamanya10]

1) Writing really feels like a social process to me because it always changes. The first draft may never be the last.
Writing can feel isolating sometimes, when I don’t mind anything and anyone around me. I stay deep in my thoughts and write everything that comes to mind.

2) “It’s not yours” I picked this sentence because it summarizes the fact that I am just trying to help the writer as a reader to improve and make it better. I am not trying to judge or change anything because it’s not mine.

[Pema Choesang]

Writing does not feel like a social process to me unless it is being done through group discussion where you have to have other’s opinion to add on writing. I would say, writing does feel like lonely and isolated because I write alone and I also prefer it to be. I believe, being lonely and isolated allow you to be more focused and get your assignment done faster than if you were surrounded by others.
The sentences that captivated me is “friends don’t let friends think their writing is the best thing since The Great Gatsby
and they don’t lead them to think that all is fine and well when it’s no .” I found this to be justified because when a friend reviews each other works for correction, they tend to give good feedbacks rather than bad ones which not only affects your friend’s grade but more importantly resist them from being improved.

[Haifa Mahmoud]

Writing only feels like a social process to me when I know someone else is going to read my work or critique it. I have always felt that writing is personal and a process that is only meant for me. Writing does feel isolating to me because it is my own thoughts and no one else is involved in it but myself. Writing is comforting, it allows me to express my thoughts freely.
One sentence that I found interesting from “Responding – Really Responding – to Other Students’ Writing” was, “You don’t take on the role of The Nice Roommate or The Ever-faithful Friend and tell her what she wants to hear.” I found this interesting because I have always thought this when dealing with friendships. I think it is important to be the friend who can honestly critique or suggest something to their friend without feeling like you are being rude or disrespectful. If anything, you would be a bad friend if you can’t be honest about their work. As a friend, you want them to do better, in writing and all aspects of work.

[Justin Andrew]

Writing feels like a social process to me because when I write, I feel like I am communicating to someone in real time. That is why I try to take more time om choosing my words and how I say it. I don’t see the act of writing as isolating because to me, writing allows me to communicate with myself and explore my inner thoughts and analytics. Writing even feels less isolating when I am writing an argumentative essay because I often play devils advocate with myself and try to look at things from different perspectives. Doing this just allows me to open up and see different situations from various viewpoints; revealing a totally new world.

As I read “Responding–Really Responding–to Other Students’ Writing”, one sentence that stood out to me was “The paper is not yours; it’s the writer’s. She writes. You read. She is in charge of what she does to her writing. That doesn’t mean you can’t make suggestions.” This phrase stood out to me because it shows that while responding to other students writing, we aren’t supposed to try to override and make drastic changes to how they write. This statement highlights that we are all writers and have a uniqueness to our writing. Our job as the responders is not to make their reading a mirrored image of ours, but it is to help guide the writer to possible changes that they could make based off of our reading experience.