My experiences taking English 1101 as a freshman have been a

rollercoaster to say the least. Coming into college, I was a wreck

because English has never been my strong subject and I have always
had trouble struggling here and there. If high school English was hard, I
could only imagine how difficult college English was going to be. My
grades with English essays have always been mediocre and I have
never felt good enough when it came to writing these horrible essays.
However, I somehow managed to pass but that required me to do so
much work on my part. My other friends never had to work as hard as I
did when It came to writing essays but in the end it did pay off. I was
very tentative about this class because of the struggle I went through
in high school but I couldnt let the fear of essays get in my head. My
friends and family would give me endless speeches on not psyching
myself out and to always put my best foot forward and to come into it
with a positive attitude. Well, that is exactly what I tried to do because
lets face it, family is always right in the long run.
As I read the syllabus of the overall course, I did break a sweat
and panicked. I tried to calm myself down and kept telling myself that I
could do it as long as I put my mind to it. As long as I dedicate a good
amount of time to this class as well as balance my other classes, I
should manage and do okay. I fairly knew how to do the basics of
writing. For example, I knew that every essay has its own topic
whether it be narrative, persuasive, etc. The way you write depends on

the audience you are trying to entice. A narrative piece is when the
writer writes about a personal experience. It is one of the best ways to
gain insight on who you as a writer are and it will open your eyes to
many new and different experiences that you never would have
thought of. Persuasive essay is where the purpose in writing is for the
writer to convince or persuade the reader on a particular problem or
issue. After reviewing my background in English, I felt somewhat
confident to take on this course with nothing but positive thoughts.
As my first paper came along and I read the topic, I thought it
was going to be a breeze. The topic was to write about a digital history
narrative. I decided to do it on one of the television shows that I used
to literally live by which was Keeping Up With The Kardashians. I was
not so scared about this piece of writing because it was a narrative
about how something portrayed and affected me in my life. I felt very
confident writing this paper and was not so intimidated anymore by
this class. When the grades came out, I got a C on my paper. I was in
awe and that grade just shot my self esteem down so low. My main
issue was being able to stay on topic that was provided by my
professor. I also found myself not putting enough of my own personal
thoughts and opinions. Rather, I put more factual information about the
television show which was not the purpose of the assignment. Aftter
going over the paper with my teacher and going to the Reading and

Writing Center, I was able to organize my essay more efficiently and

accurately.
I was determined to do somewhat better with my second paper
and use what I learned with paper 1 and use my knowledge with paper
2. With this paper, I had trouble meeting the word count and keeping
my organization in tact. With this paper, I would put more of my
opinion into it rather than actual facts that would support my
sentences. I did the opposite of what I did with paper 1. I again was
very stressed with this paper because I did not do as well as I expected
to do. I ended up changing around the paragraphs and organizing it
better so it can overall flow better. I had to do research prior to starting
my essay in order to have less errors with the writing process. What I
have learned from this paper is to process my ideas before writing the
actual draft of the paper. This will lessen the amout of errors to be
displayed on the paper when turning in the final draft in for grading.
When you map out the writing process, it is a lot easier to stay
organized and concise. This will also make it easier for the reader to
read and follow along.
Last but not least, the third and final paper of the semester. At
this point, I was very discouraged because I have not been doing good
at all in my papers and was afraid I wasnt going to pass this class with
the grade I wanted. When this grade came back and as I read over the
comments, I got mad at myself. I saw that I kept making the same

mistakes as I did In my first paper. I did not learn from my mistakes the
first and second time. With this paper, I had to pick an advertisement
and myself create an anti ad that will show the positive not negative
side of the advertisement. As I was writing, I wrote more about the
original ad and all of the negative effects it has on the public and ways
to change that view. What I failed to do was elaborate on my anti ad
and why I chose to bold certain words or use certain colors and what
not. I had to take out huge chunks of the essay that were considered
fluff and replace it with more factual evidence and sentences that
related more to the topic to the essay.
In the end of my career in this English 1101 class, I have learned
many lessons that I will keep and cherish for my future years to come.
Having good writing skills is key to succeeding in life. Without good
communication skills, you will not get anywhere and will be frowned
upon. Overall, my main issue was organization and staying on topic.
These are two key factors that you have to keep in mind when writing
an essay. I have learned to always write my thoughts and ideas on a
separate sheet of paper before actually writing down in paragraph
form. When ou have ideas and have a map of what you are going to
write, it makes it that much easier with the writing process. After
expressing my ideas on paper, I will then proceed to writing the essay
in paragraph form. This also saves you from having random ideas
dispersed all over the essay, which will make it confusing for the

reader to follow with what the topic of the essay is. I have also learned
that depending on the style of writing the essay requires, it will require
you to write in a certain manner. You also have to keep in mind the
audience you are trying to entice. Depending on the audience, you will
use certain structure and formatting of the essay. You will also use
certain vocabulary words that the audience will be able to understand.
I have taken everything that I have learned and will make sure to
implement in my future classes of writing. My family was right in the
end. Coming into this class with a positive mindset really helped me
get through the class. A negative mindset will not let you grow and
concentrate which in turn will reflect in your work. If you think positive,
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