The Course of Effective Writing - Essay Example

My Address here: __________ _________ of my (complete first and s) of the _______ and Place of the University Dear Prof. Spears, I am happy for having taken this course in which I learned many things about writing effectively. As an honest assessment, I can say that I had made some improvements in my writing ability but I still need some areas to be improved upon because I am not a native English speaker. I have some ideas in my head but the chief problem is how to put these ideas into clear writing. The effectiveness of a writer depends to a great deal on catching a reader’s attention right away. This means the opening sentences of what is written should be suited to the targeted or intended audience in terms of relevant content. The topic being discussed should resonate with the reader in such a way as to provoke a reaction, a response or an action. I will be the first to admit that I struggle when writing, such as putting the words into the introduction. It is what they call as a “writer’s block” in which I have ideas but cannot put them down into writing. This is the same case with my conclusion portion of a paper, how to summarize everything that is to be consistent with the material that went before reaching the last part of any paper. In this regard, I have learned how to use persuasion as one of the writing styles with which to convince a reader of my viewpoint. To do that successfully, I need to use all the three factors of argumentation which are pathos (emotions), logos (knowledge) and ethos (credibility). To do so successfully, I believe I need to improve my English skills so I can put my thoughts into the exact words to what I mean. Because of my limited English skills, I understand I can have a harder time than my classmates when trying to make a point in my paper. However, I believe this problem can be solved if I try hard enough. I also realized a bit late that my tone can sometimes be too neutral when I should have been taking a stand on a certain issue or a topic being discussed. It seems I am afraid to commit my opinion to one side and I think this makes my paper a bit tame and therefore also less convincing. In my attempts to express my ideas, I tend to put so many things together in one sentence which can cloud the whole argument I am making or dilutes the essence of my ideas. The reader can get confused which I understand is not the intention of any writing and so some arguments are not discussed so very thoroughly in a way that convinces people to my side. I am probably good in incorporating some notable quotations in my papers but doing so is not effective at times because I end up not showing my tone and voice in the paper. The preferable method would be to paraphrase a quote so that my own ideas will shine through in the paper and the reader will get the sense that I am actually the one speaking instead of other authors. My sentence structure is not very good which I think discourages some readers to finish reading what I wrote. Additionally, paragraphs lack connective words to make the proper transitions in between newer ideas in the paper. On the next page, I listed some of my strengths and weaknesses when it comes to writing. Strengths: Audience – I always write with my intended audience in my mind so I can adapt the contents to this intended audience and connect with the readers. I think this is empathy but I always try to use all three factors of argumentation to make my point and elicit a response. Critical Reading – I can digest or distill the important ideas of what I read and then put them down into writing them into my own words despite my difficulty with the English language as non-native speaker. Identifying Assumptions – I can easily spot the assumptions of a writer and so is able to respond to it in a direct and accurate manner. In short, I can analyze the critical points in a paper and offer my views. Choosing a Topic – I am proud to say that I have a talent for choosing good topics to develop into a paper. I choose topics based on relevance and interest to the reader and also on available materials. Weaknesses: Introductions – I have a writer’s block quite often and cannot start writing for a long period of time. This is because I always try to have an interesting first sentence to catch my readers’ attention. Conclusions – this is another of my weakness because summing up everything is sometimes hard. I understand it should capture the essence of what went before so I spend more time on this part. Organization – because I have often so many ideas in my head at the same time, my writing tends to be somewhat disorganized. This is due to trying to cram so many ideas into one sentence or a paragraph. Tone and Voice – I am sometimes reluctant or afraid to commit myself to a position, hence my papers can sometimes appear to be ambiguous to a reader. I realize now I must take a side in an argument. Word Choices – as a non-native English speaker, I need to constantly consult my dictionary and also a thesaurus in my native language before I can translate everything into English. This is quite tiresome and also distracts me from writing continuously that would have developed my ideas much better. Staying on Topic – due to the availability of so many reference materials, I can sometimes deviate so easily from my topic. I realize later on that I had discussed issues which are no longer very relevant. It is my tendency to discuss things based on what is available rather than what is relevant to the issues. Staying within Page Length – this is very much related to the above item. My papers often exceed the required number of pages and may contain a lot of unnecessary sentences and ideas no longer useful. Identifying Certain Fallacies – I have some difficulty with distinguish some fallacious arguments. This can make writing quite weak because my readers might be able to detect the wrong conclusions. Sincerely yours, _______________ (My name here) Read More