Yana Shauchuk

1709 W. Woodrow St.

Tulsa, OK 74127
yana.shauchuk@okstate.edu
918-409-6849
30 November 2015
Northern Oklahoma College
English Department
1118 West Hall of Fame
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074
Dear Mrs. Davis
As I reflect on the past year and a half of writing I experienced upon coming to college,
there have been major changes in the way I write, think, and involve myself in my pieces. I owe
my maturity of writing to the different learning opportunities and self-maturity. The pieces
chosen for this collection portray my growth as a writer. It shows my involvement through
personal opinions and experiences, open-mindedness, and the development of more advanced
grammar and writing skills. However, I still have room for growth and further developing my
writing as I continue to write through my college years.
Let me begin by introducing you to my collection My Continuous Growth as a Writer. I
have chosen the next four pieces to allow you to see yourself how my writing has improved since
I came to Oklahoma State University. This collection means that individuals like myself can
improve and get pretty decent at writing with continuous practice. My first piece is Socrates
Innocence. This was the first official paper that I ever wrote for college. I chose this paper for
my collection because it marks the beginning to my writing journey on a professional level. Yes,
I wrote papers in high school, but I didnt put my effort or enough time and research into them.
They were written just to get submitted and for a grade. I wrote what the teacher wanted to see.
Julio vs the Real World my second piece in the collection was written for Composition I. I
connected very easily with this piece due to having done certain projects for preschoolers while
attending high school. In Julio vs the Real World, as an author, I had to choose a sequence of
panels of a cartoon story and expand on the sequence by describing everything that I saw happen
in the panels from the facial expressions to the way the sky appeared. From such descriptions, a
sequence of panels was expanded on and the story became more real.
Also written for Composition I, the third piece, Fifty Shades of Grey A Contracted
Love Affair, involved me having a more of an open mind to writing on different subjects.
Coming from a very conservative background, this piece allowed me to freely voice what would
otherwise be considered a wrong subject. This piece was an evaluation of a recent film and our
opinion regarding it. I enjoyed putting my opinion and feelings into this composition. It made me
feel like I was a part of the paper. The final selection Why Dance was chosen for this
collection because it had my attention, personal opinion, and involved my interest. Why

Dance? explains my passion for dancing. The focus is on Latin dancing because this style is my
most favorite. Although the simplest work out of the five pieces in the class, this persuasive work
of This I Believe In, continues to explain the positive physical and emotional benefits of dancing.
Because this is something Ive experienced many times on myself and believe to work, I want to
convince others to experience such a feeling as well by providing all the encouraging points to
dancing.
As I had mentioned before, my writing skills suffered quite a bit when I came to college
and experienced my first writing assignment. This was partially due to not having a tool box of
great vocabulary or speaking skills. I spoke very simply and wrote very simply. Since my first
writing assignment came from Philosophy class, my literacy and understanding of complex
reading improved significantly since then. In Socrates Innocence, I am obviously struggling
with word choice and getting my point across. I am also too simplistic with vocabulary and
sentence structure. For class assignments, I was forced to read pieces such as Euthyphro and the
Apology which involved a complex thought process and being involved in ones reading because
our papers were drafted from those readings. Although forced and half the time not wanting to
read such complex compositions, the class improved my reading and understanding of what I
actually read. The class also began to improve my poor writing skills and get into the advanced
college writing. Since that freshman semester Philosophy class, the rest of my classes only build
on vocabulary and literacy. Taking Composition I in the spring semester of my freshman year
marked the official beginning to my journey of proper writing skills and the writing process.
I have never considered myself a great writer, but I am on my journey to becoming a
better writer. From taking Philosophy, Composition I, and Composition II, these classes have
helped lay and mold my foundation for developing into the writer I am today. One other class
also contributed to my betterment of writing. I took Speech class over the summer at Tulsa
Community College. I decided to take the class for my Student Academic Mentorship this
semester. As I look back, not only did my writing of speeches develop, my communication more
than improved. Through rehearsal and preparation, I was able to focus on my speeches and not
jumble what came from my mouth making it uninteresting for my audience. However,
Composition II tremendously helped my writing by allowing inclusion of opinion, in-depth
research to support my opinions, and the rewarded opportunities of seeing a tutor. Very seldom
did I see a tutor for any other classes which involved writing assignments, however, through
rewarding points, it allowed me to make time and learn from my mistakes thus, improving my
skills as well as knowledge. Each writing assignment in this class made me use all my tools and
resources that I have learned both from previous classes and this class to construct the long but
meaningful papers.
My writing journey has begun, but, has not ended with finishing Composition II this
semester. I still do not think that I possess all the characteristics of a good writer. However,
through continuous practice whether it be papers for other classes, answering essay questions on
exams and job applications, or interviews, I know that I will gain more solid ground as a writer
and speaker. To speak, one must be able to write well; to write, one must to able to speak well. I

am grateful for each opportunity I get to better my writing even though it continues to be
something I avoid doing if I get such a chance.

Sincerely,

Yana Shauchuk