Welcome to my final blog post in English 100 its been a while since I last wrote one of these but I’m back its crazy to think that just 4 short months ago I was doing my first on of these. Now I’m doing a reflection post on what I learned in the course I learned everything for Genre awareness, Rhetorical awareness, my Identity as an author which was one of the most interesting things I found in this course, Theory of writing, and Transfer of writing of future writing situations or GRITT for short. Its still so hard to believe my time in the English 100 class is coming to an end I learned so much in these four months and some of these things will stick with me to be used in the future writing pieces I do. For example My author identity this class helped me find that because in the past I never really just let go and let my hands and mind to all the work I feel like I would always overthink things now in this class I have learned to just let my mind go and let my hands to the writing or the typing for me based off of what I think of and I feel that has improved my writing cause like I said I feel like I would always over think things and worry about is this good enough now I don’t have to worry about if its good enough I can just let my mind and hands do all the work for me and if I see something that needs to be fixed I’ll fix it without being as worried if what I’m putting out is goo enough. Rhetorical awareness is another big one that I learned more about in this class because some of the readings had a deeper meaning and would ask a question and I felt like I was able to identify what was going on and what was actually happening I even tried my best to work it into my research project about the current Covid 19 pandemic by asking rhetorical questions on what could possibly happen during this pandemic itself and I feel that made my research project better by throwing in a question to get people to think while they read it. Genre awareness is so important because it helps you pick up what the author wants to say to the audience aka the reader whether that be to persuade to get them to believe your side of an argument like I did with the research paper and arguing the point of the essence of abiding by the guidelines set in place, to inform and give facts to make the audience aware of an issue by presenting concrete facts also like I did with the research paper that proves following the steps works, or to entertain the reader and keep them interested in your writing by just basically making the piece fun to read without the need to persuade them to your side of an argument or inform them by just making it fun the reader will be able to enjoy the piece that you have written. This course has also impacted how I look at and value writing and the writing process because now I have a better understanding of what all these steps to GRITT mean and how important they are before this class I didn’t know much about my writing identity I just wrote for school and was focused too much on making it perfect, I didn’t really know what rhetorical awareness but I knew like what rhetorical devices were even though I didn’t use them often in prior pieces I am now able to use them more and feel like I’m able to identify them in actual pieces that I read, and genre awareness I already knew about that because I have used it all throughout my writing career but I have a better understanding of how to play with and use the genres more in my writing. I know that these steps will stay with me throughout my future writing career I know in the pretty near future when I am inevitably writing an essay for a class I will try to get back in touch with my author identity and just let my mind and hands do the work and not stress as much as I’m cramming to get the essay done in time, I will try to use more rhetorical devices in my writing and may even try to pick out what rhetorical devices an author used when I read a piece whether that be in class or otherwise and I will no doubt be using genre awareness in my writing if its an informative, persuasive, or entertainment piece for a class or just otherwise but these skills that I have learned in this class some for the first time while others I learned more about will stick with me and help me continue to grow as a writer during my writing career how ever long that will be and I feel that I have grown as a writer and will continue to grow thanks to what I have learned.
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In this week’s blog post I will be taking a different perspective of my last post and what would happen if I had made a different choice than I did in the last blog post of staying for the whole game and essentially rewriting last week’s post but going from a different view point and the reading for this week will help with that those are Rewinding & Rewriting: The Alternate Universes in Our Heads (NPR Hidden Brain Episode), Two Views of the River (Mark Twain) and then two videos will also help Kramer vs. Kramer: Action Scene (Shows/Deepens the Conflict) and Kramer vs. Kramer: End-Resolution Scene.
Original: Flyers, Penguins battle of Pennsylvania outdoors on a freezing cold, rainy night on February 23rd at Lincoln Financial Field this is a game I had been dying to go to since they first announced it a year prior. My dad had gotten us tickets for Christmas and I got myself a jersey they would be wearing in the game so we arrive at the stadium it hasn’t started raining yet but we knew it was going to at some point and that would only make the conditions colder. We get to our seats on the first level and settle in for the game even though it was the eagles stadium there was a lot of orange and rightfully so, the game starts and it starts to rain but not like a downpour rain it was more of an annoying mist rain which wasn’t much better as it was still freezing cold due to the cold weather to begin with. Flyers go up 1-0 then the Penguins answer back at this point the rain had subsided and as the first period ended we had a concert to keep us entertained during the intermission it was a Keith Urban concert which me and my dad liked since we liked country music. He ends his performance and its time for the second period which is when things went very bad the Penguins scored two unanswered goals and it was getting colder by the minute on top of that but I was determined to try to stay. Second period ends and things were looking bleak the flyers were down two and it was just getting increasingly colder and then the rain comes back again to make things worse I say to my dad “ Hey can I have the hand warmers my hands and feet are going a little numb from the cold.” He asks “Do you wanna see what they do in the third and if they don’t do anything leave early.” I said “Yeah that sounds good cause we are down 3-1 and the rain isn’t gonna stop and it’s just gonna get colder.” The third period starts the rain continues but the hand warmers were working I was a little less cold it gets to around 6 minutes left and by this point most of the fans had left because it was still very cold and miserable and we were still down. My dad says “ Do you wanna leave there is 6 minutes left” Now I’m stuck with a problem stay and still be cold and watch them most likely lose or go and miss a comeback if there is one Counterfactual: I say “Yeah lets go they aren’t coming back and it’s still really cold so let’s just go” We leave the stadium and head back to our car and start to drive home. We put the game on the radio to hear the last few minutes of the game tick off with no hope that they get a win. As we are driving on our way home listening to the end of the game we hear they scored to make it 3-2 we were both happy they scored but we thought it was too little too late for them. Then with around 14 seconds left they score again to tie it up with what looked like a game heading for overtime. I say “What did we just do, we left and now they are going to overtime” Still driving home from the game we hear that Claude Giroux the captain had scored to end the game and give us the win in overtime. I said “We really screwed up leaving early that would have been fun to watch” My dad said “Yeah that was a bad decision huh” It would turn out to be one of the worst decisions I have made in my life because I left when they were losing and I didn’t get to see an amazing comeback. Now when I see the ticket and the jersey from the game I think back to what could have been if I had stayed and saw the comeback first hand in the stadium and feel and see and experience the pure joy of having them come back and win against the rivals but I had decided to leave and miss it all due to the intense cold and annoying rain that just made things colder and more miserable because at the point we left I was already unhappy cause we were still losing at the time. So now we still talk about what if we stayed to see it happen and how dumb we were for leaving the game even though they were down and it was miserable because we missed the comeback and those people who stayed would still be talking about but we left so we don’t have the story of how they came back and won and how everyone there forgot how cold they were and just ran off of pure joy and elation that the team had won in amazing fashion in the third period with 4 minutes left by scoring two to even the game up and then go on to win later on in overtime. In the Hills Like White Elephants and in My Name is Margaret (Maya Angelou) the authors use little things that might not mean much to the reader but mean a lot to them for example in My Name Is Margaret the author uses dishware to symbolize that she didn’t want to be treated like a slave anymore and breaking the dishes was like her breaking free and in the Hills Like White Elephants the white elephant isn’t an elephant at all in fact in symbolizes a baby that is yet to be born and the hills are the belly of a pregnant woman so in this blog post I hope to make a similar connection to something in my life that may not mean something to the reader but means something to me. Flyer, Penguins battle of Pennsylvania outdoors on a freezing cold, rainy night on February 23rd at Lincoln Financial Field this is a game I had been dying to go to since they first announced it a year prior. My dad had gotten us tickets for Christmas and I got myself a jersey they would be wearing in the game so we arrive at the stadium it hasn’t started raining yet but we knew it was going to at some point and that would only make the conditions colder. We get to our seats on the first level and settle in for the game even though it was the eagles stadium there was a lot of orange and rightfully so, the game starts and it starts to rain but not like a downpour rain it was more of an annoying mist rain which wasn’t much better as it was still freezing cold due to the cold weather to begin with. Flyers go up 1-0 then the Penguins answer back at this point the rain had subsided and as the first period ended we had a concert to keep us entertained during the intermission it was a Keith Urban concert which me and my dad liked since we liked country music. He ends his performance and its time for the second period which is when things went very bad the Penguins scored two unanswered goals and it was getting colder by the minute on top of that but I was determined to try to stay. Second period ends and things were looking bleak the flyers were down two and it was just getting increasingly colder and then the rain comes back again to make things worse I say to my dad “ Hey can I have the hand warmers my hands and feet are going a little numb from the cold.” He asks “ do you wanna see what they do in the third and if they don’t do anything leave early.” I said “ yeah that sounds good cause we are down 3-1 and the rain isn’t gonna stop and its just gonna get colder.” The third period starts the rain continues but the hand warmers were working I was a little less cold it gets to around 6 minutes left and by this point most of the fans had left because it was still very cold and miserable and we were still down. My dad says “ Do you wanna leave there is 6 minutes left” Now I’m stuck with a problem stay and still be cold and watch them most likely lose or go and miss a comeback if there is one I said “ Games not over yet still 6 Minutes left I wanna see the end of it now” 4 minutes left now the Flyers score to make it 3-2 and now there is hope what was a cold miserable night had turned into something with a little meaning now as what remained of the crowd roared with excitement and cheered them on to will them to get another goal to tie it. Seconds are now left on the clock we were just hoping for a miracle at this point or go home on a miserable night miserable our selves, the puck gets thrown to the net with a prayer and it some how goes it we have a tie game and I could feel the ground rocking from the noise in the stadium now all the cold I had felt during the game had seemed to disappear. In overtime the fans are now trying to will the team to a win. Claude Giroux our captain skated through center ice into the Pittsburgh zone takes the shot and scored we had won the game the fans were at full roar now me and my dad were high fiving each other and complete strangers next to us as well. We get back to the car after the game rain soaked and still a little cold we both look at each other and say “that was awesome.” So now whenever I see the ticket or wear the jersey I wore to that game the joy of being there to witness it and not back out during the game come back to me and the joy I shared with my dad in what I consider one of the best experiences with him in my young life of 19 years also come back to me whenever I see those objects. In this weeks blog post I will be reading and giving you a somewhat of a summary into the writing process and I will also be getting advice from three authors Don Murray as well as Mary Karr and Finally Anne Lamott and they will assist me in my knowledge and yours of the writing process by using quotes from their pieces to help explain it and to set the scene I will be doing it as having a conversation with them via twitter as there is no possible real way for me to met all three authors at the same time.
Everyday when I just want to see what’s going on in the Twitterverse or see what my friends are up to I will go on twitter to hangout and just relax on there and one day after just talking scrolling through the time line seeing the normal sports related stuff, politics and all that I see something rather interesting something I had never seen on the timeline before or even knew it existed it was a page dedicated to the writing process like for example a funny joke or a quote would pop up from some unknown authors who just write for fun but then there were the very few actual famous authors who would add their takes on the writing process and how they viewed it in their writing careers. There were three individual authors that had said something about the writing process that made me want to take a closer look into their careers and those individuals were Don Murray, Mary Karr, And Ann Lamott. So as any normal person on twitter would do I sent each of them a message because I’m just a college student trying to figure out the writing process myself so I figured I wonder if they could maybe assist me and help me understand the writing process so I can use it in upcoming pieces and who better to ask then three people who needed to understand it for a living to thrive. I start by asking Don Murray what I should do to better understand the writing process and how to use it effectively in my future pieces, I scroll through twitter some more and then I get a message back from @realDonMurray and he goes in depth to describe what the writing process means to him he told me “The writing process itself can be divided into three stages: prewriting, writing, and rewriting” so I then asked how long does this process usually take for the average writer to complete and make their work better by using these steps and he replied with “The amount of time a writer spends in each stage depends on his personality, his work habits, his maturity as a craftsman, and the challenge of what he is trying to say.” Then as I am finishing reading his points another account joined the fray @MaryKarrWriting and she suggested that Don was somewhat right in his assessments of the writing process and she shared what she has learned to be true about it as well through her years of work “I’ve heard three truths from every mouth: (1) Writing is painful—it’s “fun” only for novices, the very young, and hacks; (2) other than a few instances of luck, good work only comes through revision; (3) the best revisers often have reading habits that stretch back before the current age, which lends them a sense of history and raises their standards for quality.” I then replied back with so through all your years of writing experience you have seen this first hand and have evolved your writing using these tips. She then replied back with more advice for my writing cause sometimes when I write I’m not entirely sure where it is going so she told me this “Let your mind roam down some alleys that may land in dead ends—that’s the nature of the process.” Then out of no where the third account joins the conversation @AnneLamott so I ask her what I asked the other two authors which is how she used and understood the writing process in her writing and what to do when you write or have trouble writing or how to know if you’re going anywhere with your writing and she replied with her techniques for writing and staying calm and focused when engaged in writing “So I just sit there for a minute, breathing slowly, quietly. I let my mind wander” So basically she just relaxes and lets her mind take over and make the decisions for her about her writing. I then asked if she had any advice for being more confident in writing drafts for the piece because sometimes when I write drafts I am not entirely confident when I write my drafts I just feel like I cant do any more to it but know I should and she gave me this advice on how to approach the draft process of writing “Now, practically even better news than that of short assignments is the idea of shitty first drafts. All good writers write them. This is how they end up with good second drafts and terrific third drafts.” Now Don Murray adds something else to Anne’s point about drafts and he says “Don’t look back. Yes, the draft needs fixing. But first it needs writing.” So then Anne adds one last point into this little mini conversation about drafting your writing and assures me that it is ok to make mistakes in the drafting process and says she has seen many other famous authors do the same thing. “I know some very great writers, writers you love who write beautifully and have made a great deal of money, and not one of them sits down routinely feeling wildly enthusiastic and confident. Not one of them writes elegant first drafts.” And also that the first draft shouldn’t be taken to seriously “The first draft is the child’s draft, where you let it all pour out and then let it romp all over the place, knowing that no one is going to see it and that you can shape it later.” Just when I’m about to leave twitter for the day Mary Karr caps off the conversation by sharing something with me that basically means you should never be satisfied you should always strive to write more and write better. “Every writer I know who’s worth a damn spends way more time “losing” than “winning”—if success means typing a polished page that lands in print as is.” I concluded the conversation by thanking them for giving me this information into the writing process and how I can make myself better and more confident in what I write. So in conclusion what I have learned for this conversation with these authors is that 1) “ Just be you and run wild with your writing its ok to make mistakes” 2) “ That I can just relax and write and not have to worry about messing up cause that’s what drafts are for, for you to mess up during the writing process and learn from it.” And 3) “To never be satisfied with your writing you can always do more or do better.” In this post I read A Fable for the Living (Kevin Brockmeier)
The Theme of A Fable For The Living connects to my letter cause it goes through the authors feelings and thoughts as seen through their experiences throughout life and the good and bad that comes with it and everything life gives you. So I hope that I can convey the same feelings displayed in this piece and take elements from it and add some elements into my future pieces https://www.sabatinomangini.com/uploads/4/5/9/6/4596832/a_fable_for_living_kevin_brockmeier.pdf Dear Michael, Im sorry I never let you run loose and write from within myself cause if you take over your writing is pretty good so far at least to me (you) I just feel like you could do a little better, be more descriptive, let loose every once and awhile and just go wild with your writing and see where it leads it might be one of the best pieces you could make. Just let your inner kid out cause to me you are like a long lost sibling I never knew cause we have never had a connection in writing and just let your writing take over and control everything it can be sloppy it can be messy and that's whats great about writing you can mess up you can be reckless sometimes just as long as you get to where you would like to be with your writing. I know you can do this, you just have to believe that you can let your mind go off and just type or write with no other care in the world and see where it takes you like I said it might be the difference between making a bad piece that you don’t feel confident in and a piece you feel really good about and know it could lead to you being successful. I just wish that you could have found this side that I know is in you and I feel bad that all through school up until now this wasn’t found or you were afraid to just go crazy with your writing and maybe feel more confident in what you write and feel happier with it and not being satisfied if you just barley passed the assignment. If you had connected with me your inner author self earlier in your writing career and I just feel like you would feel so much more confident in yourself and your writing but just know I will always be here as your inner author self to help you and guide you throughout your future writing career. You can just tune out the world and just write and I’ll be there to help you just channel that other side of you within your writing. So just let go and be you because when you can be you and don’t worry about anything else that’s when I think you can be at your most effective when you write or just even brainstorm to write. The three step plan to get this side to be released is one just believe in yourself and your writing, two just relax and tune everything else in the world and just write until you have that spark where you can just pick up and go off to write and add more whenever you can, third and finally like I said many times earlier in this letter just be you and make connections to yourself to make the writing piece better via the connection. That’s all for now from me I hope you take your own hidden advice that can help you in the future and I'll be with you when you need it and I know this information can help you show this side of you. Sincerely, Patrick This blog post is going to talk about and analyze the different ways multi-modal writing is a big part of writing itself and how it is used and this blog post will also help give a better understanding on how each of these are used as well as the elements of C.R.A.P Contrast,Repetition, Alignment, and Proximity
It is somewhat similar because it addresses the basics of writing like writing for a purpose, appealing to a key audience and also the sense of tone which is in every piece of writing, organization is important because you want to a make sure the reader can actually understand your work, every piece has a transition form tone to another tone or from idea to idea, as well as details of the story or work to keep the reader interested and involved in what’s going on in the story. The purpose of this blog post is a questionnaire that is meant to give you a more in depth look into my life and what i find important as well as other things about me while you are on my website the questionnaire is known as the Proust questionnaire and its designed to give you a look into the person or in this case authors life. The Proust Questionnaire.
1.__What is your idea of perfect happiness? Being with the ones you love and just having fun with them and enjoying being around them and doing things with them __2.__What is your greatest fear? The unknown is one of my greatest fears __3.__What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? I would have to say maybe my attitude at certain points __4.__What is the trait you most deplore in others? When other people are rude for no reason __5.__Which living person do you most admire? Probably my parents because I look up to them for everything __6.__What is your greatest extravagance? I would say spending a lot of money on jerseys __7.__What is your current state of mind? Im mostly chill and laid back. __8.__What do you consider the most overrated virtue? __9.__On what occasion do you lie? When I don’t want to get in trouble but most of the time I don’t lie __10.__What do you most dislike about your appearance? __11.__Which living person do you most despise? I don’t really despise anyone because I don’t really have anyone to despise. __12.__What is the quality you most like in a man? __13.__What is the quality you most like in a woman? __14.__Which words or phrases do you most overuse? I use Like and you know a lot __15.__What or who is the greatest love of your life? Those who care about you and like you for you __16.__When and where were you happiest? When Im with my family or friends and just doing stuff with them and enjoying being around them and experiencing stuff with them __17.__Which talent would you most like to have? Any athletic ability at all cause im 6’1 for nothing really I would like to do something with my height __18.__If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? I would most likely change my attitude to certain things __19.__What do you consider your greatest achievement? That would have to be when I found a wallet in 5th grade and the school recognized it as part of their monthly character assembly __20.__If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? Probably a dog because dogs are just made to provide happiness and love so I would say a dog. __21.__Where would you most like to live? Somewhere where I can wear hoodies all year round but still be near a sports town because I love sports and don’t see myself giving that up. __22.__What is your most treasured possession? It would most likely be my jersey collection cause I don’t really buy things of real value other than jerseys and I even kept some jerseys that I have long outgrown because I couldn’t part with them __23.__What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? For me its either when a loved one passes away or as a sports fan when my team loses a big game __24.__What is your favorite occupation? Most likely athletes because I looked up to some of them growing up and I hope to be a broadcaster so I can be around it more and understand the history of athletes __25.__What is your most marked characteristic? I guess my most marked characteristic is my smile __26.__What do you most value in your friends? Just friends who would do anything for each other and care for their friends because that’s how you know who truly has your back __27.__Who are your favorite writers? Robert louis Stevenson comes to mind because I didn’t like reading for fun but I read treasure island in elementary school for a project and I liked it so much I kept reading past the limit that was set for reading each night __28.__Who is your hero of fiction? __29.__Which historical figure do you most identify with? __30.__Who are your heroes in real life? My parents as well as some professional athletes just for the way they inspire me to be the best me I can __31.__What are your favorite names? Patrick, Pat __32.__What is it that you most dislike? When people are just rude to others for no reason because they didn’t do anything to you so why are you being rude to them __33.__What is your greatest regret? Not continuing to play baseball after I got hit with the ball and lost all confidence in myself __34.__How would you like to die? Probably peacefully and around family __35.__What is your motto? Just enjoy everything big or small just enjoy it |
Patrick SullivanI will use the blog to make meaning and explore the messy process writing Archives
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