I’m Back!
I’m excited to be a part of english 101 again. This class was my favorite course so far and i’m so excited to be able to help other students in this course. I used to hate writing and this course made me realize that i have a passion for it and i can write, and well i might add 
It does suck having to get up so early because i’m helping with the 8 o’clock class but it’s worth it. I can’t wait to see what everyone writes and just help. If even one person becomes as inspirred as i was from this class then i know it was worth it. Keep writing and i know it seems like this class is going to be a lot of work, but it’s worth it and once you start writing, it doesn’t seem like work anymore, promise
Final Reflective Letter
Final Reflective Letter
As the semester continued and got closer to the end, I feel that I have grown as a writer. I branched out to different styles and types of essays as well as incorporating outside sources into my work. When I first started this course, I was scared and didn’t really know what to expect. I thought I was ok at writing and I wasn’t really worried about the class. When I received my first essay back with the feedback and the grade, I realized that I am a pretty good writer. I will have to admit that I did want to be a journalist, but I didn’t think I was good enough. I love my major now being interior design, but I am also considering minoring in journalism. I always enjoyed writing in high school but this course made me fall in love with writing.
I am probably the worse speller you will ever meet, but I am amazing at grammar. I loved that spelling had nothing to do with this class and we the students were able to forget about spelling and grammar when we wrote our blogs. One of my favorite aspects of class was peer review day where we got to sit down and edit other peoples’ works. This helped me get a sense of what my classmates were doing and how my essay was either different or the same. I also enjoyed this because I could help my classmates with grammar and to improve his or her paper.
This class really challenged me to become a better writer and I became my biggest critic. I always wanted my papers to be improved and to be perfect. Although this class was hard for me, it got easier and easier as the semester continued. I feel that I am ready to take on any English class the University can throw at me. I feel that I have a good grasp on all the different types of essays and also how to cite and put internal citations into my writing. I also learned that I am very creative. I can take any essay and make it enjoyable for me to write and enjoyable for my audience to read.
I stated in my midterm reflective letter that I think by the end of the class I will be able to evoke emotions from my readers, not just from my narrative essays, but from any other style I choose to use. This ended up being incredibly true. In the first half of English 101, I thought the only essay I could write well would be a narrative essay. I was dead wrong. I learned that I can take any essay style and make it enjoyable and interesting. My favorite essay that I wrote this semester was an expository essay, so obviously I can write other essays that aren’t just narratives.
I absolutely loved my instructor for this course. He made the learning fun and interesting. I loved getting to know myself through my senses and just being about to write what I wanted. He was probably the first person to tell me that I was a good writer and that I had talent in writing, and looking back on this course and my writing, I believe him. I loved how the class was set up. All the students got to know each other and we weren’t just a name on the attendance sheet. All the in class activities really helped me and they were fun as well. The taste workshop, for example, was a fun way to get to know everyone in the class and just be about to experience a different kind of writing.
At first I thought this course was going to be very difficult considering all the essays we would have to write and then the ten page paper at the end of the year. Looking back on the semester, it wasn’t bad at all. I enjoyed writing every one of the essays and although the ten page paper was difficult to write, I feel that it was beneficial to finding out who I really am. English 101 would have to be my favorite course so far. I enjoyed coming to class every day.
What I learned
By having to write the autoethnography, I learned a lot about myself that i would have never found out. I would have never took the time to sit down and try to learn about myself if i didnt have to write this paper. I found out that Love is a big part of my life. In everything i write, love is one of the main themes or one of my inspirations. I have also learned that in order for me to write something, i need to be inspired. For example, on my first essay i was inspired by a picture. The second essay was inspired by the book Style by Kate Spade and my first essay. Essay three was inspired by a life changing event that happened in my like and was also inspired by my mom. How to kiss was inspired by a quote i found in A Natural History of the Senses by Diane Ackerman. Lastly, Love letter was also inspired by an experience i have had about an ex boyfriend.
I have also learned that i am very creative. I want people to be able to read my essays and not get bored. I dont enjoy reading myself so i wanted my essays to be surprising and interesting to keep me interested and my readers to keep reading. I wanted every one of my essays to be different, whether it be a different style or a different take all together. This showed that i can do whatever i set my mind to.
I learned that i am strong. I have been through a lot in my life and I write about it to releave my stress and to just get my story out there. I want to connect with my audience and hopefully they will walk away from ready my writting with a new outlook or with emotion. I am full of emotion and i want my writing to create emotion in the reader.
All in all i learned that i am shaped by my experiences and the people who have touched my life. I am my past, present, and future. I am ever changing.
what??? ten pages?
Right now my paper is only five pages long. I used citations from all of my essays so far. I plan on going back and adding more paragraphs that tell a story about my life experiences and try to tie them into my essays. Also I plan on adding paragraphs on the information that i learned about myself through the essays and experiences and examining it to find out what it says about me. Finally I still need to write a conclusion that will finally answer the question, What is I.
The first step
Outline
- 1.) Intoduction
- a. State thesis: What is I?
- b. Introduce the culture and who I is
- 2.) Literature review
- a. Introduce the sources
- b. Explain the prewriting, blogs, and essays I have written
- 3.) Method selection/Results
- a. Piece through life experiences and explain/ tell the story of a few
- b. Find excerpts from essays, blogs, and maybe prewriting
- c. Find outside sources to help answer thesis
- 4.) Discussion Section
- a. Try and interoperate the experiences and works to help answer thesis
- b. Make a connection to the literature review
- 5.) Conclusion
- a. Answer the thesis question
Final Paper Free Writing
When I look back on all that i’ve writen, i found that all of my essays and writing have a common theme. That theme is love. In my first two essays the love was expressed for my friends and how they play a major roll in who is I. In my third essay about scent, the love was expressed for my mom and how that day really affected me. In the 4th and 5th essays the theme of love was expressed in a relationship kind of manner. In the 4th essay a did a how to essay on how to kiss. In my last essay it was more of a love letter to an ex boyfriend kind of thing. The common theme in all of my writting is love, although used in difference senses, still love.
When i would first sit down and try to begin writing my essays i couldn’t. When i began prewriting or brainstorming there was one common theme with everything that i have writen. I have to be inspired by something to write. for example, on the first essay i was inspired by the picture i had taken and my friends. On the second essay i was inspired by my first essay.
Lets publish!! But where?
Teen Ink
This is a website, book series, and magazine that publishes college essays. I chose this as a place to publish because i feel that all my essays are very identifiable and other students would be able to understand and identify with my writing. I want my writing to touch someone, make a difference in someone’s life, and or just let someone know that they arent alone. If i publish here, other students would be reading my writing and that is the audience i am looking for. http://www.teenink.com/CollegeEssays/index.php
Apple Valley Review
This is an online journal/magazine that is published twice a year, once in the fall and once in the spring. They are very stricked about what you can submit but some of my essays fit this discription. I think this is a good place for me to publish because not that many people will read it and it’s just a stepping stone for me to get my work out there. I like that it’s stricked and has specific guidlines. This will help me choose what essay i want to publish. http://www.applevalleyreview.com/
Chicken Soup for the Soul
This is a series of books that is composed of stories sent in by readers about personal experiences. The stories are supose to be narrative and make the readers feel an emotion (cry or get goosebumps maybe). I chose this publication because i used to read the chicken soup books when i was younger and i really enjoyed them. I know that this is a long shot but i would love to beable to publish my work here. http://www.chickensoup.com/cs.asp?cid=guidelines
Autoethnography…What is it?
An autoethnography is a type of essay style that includes research and personal experiences to learn more about one’s self. An author might review and study his or her works to find a common similarity and characteristics that help to answer the question, who is the author? Who is I? To me an autoethnography is telling a story about one’s life. According to Carolyn Ellis, “stories are the way humans make sense of their worlds”(Ellis 32). By telling stories about one’s life and experiences, a person can learn more about he or she. Sarah Wall stated that “an autoethnography is a research method that alows the author to write on a very personal level, being able to draw on his or her own experiences” (Wall 1).
“In autoethnography, an authors writing is usually about an insight into reality, into our lives and in doing so, the author opens himself up for criticism about how he or she has lived” (Ellis 34). An autoethnography helps the author descover himself and who he is but also helps the reader overcome obsticles in his or her life and helps the reader connect to the authors experiences. Some people might not agree with the author of the autoethnography and his or her thoughts, perspectives, and choices but what the author wrote then is not who he or she is now. The autoethnography helps the author to descover who he or she is right now.
According to Keith Berry, an autoethnography affects the author and his or her audiences (Berry 1). “The goal of such writing is to change the writers life and the life of others, for the better” (Ellis 35). The difference between the reseach for this essay and regular research is that in an autoethnography, one is studying and drawing conclustions from his or her own works and essays. By doing this it makes the essay very personal. It helps the author find learn about himself, find out information about himself that he might not have known. This type of writing also helps the readers connect with the authors own experiences and thoughts. The reader might learn something about himself as well.
Works Cited
Berry, Keith. “Implicated Audience Member Seeks Understanding: Reexamining the “Gift” of Autoethnography.” International Journal of Qualitative Methods Vol. 5 Issue 32006 1-12. 3/23/2008 <http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=6&sid=0f7b0abf-1203-4167-99d6-7813a749e107%40SRCSM1>.
Carolyn Ellis. The Ethnographic I: A Methodological Novel About Autoethnography. Walnut Creek: Alta Mira, 2004.
Wall, Sarah. “An Autoethnography on Learning about Autoethnography.” International Journal of Qualitative Methods Vol. 5 Issue 22006 1-12. 3/23/2008 <http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=7&hid=5&sid=028f1584-61a6-497e-9310-684aaa61b1c7%40sessionmgr3>.
Music #2
So I’m not a fan of older music and this reminded me or the classic rock genre. Not a fan. The singers sounds like screaming little girls with mullets. Not my kind of music. It reminded me of a rock verson of queen and i hate queen.
Music #1
I love the yrics when it says “reminds me of what could have been”. The music is very catchy and has an amazing sound and tune. My favorite part was when the violin played. This song makes me feel at home. I feel like I’m sitting in my circle chair in my room with the rain pounding on my window on a summer day. this would be a song i would listen to when i’m feeling down or just calm, floating through life. This song is different than what i would originally listen to but I’m open to new things.
