Isaiah Brown

Ella Frances Voltz

UWRT 1102-026
December 7, 2015

Development of Writing
When I think about reflective writing, it sounds like writing about my growth as a writer.
Reflective writing gives me the impression of seeing how my writing improve. It seeks to look at
the purpose of the writing and whether the purpose was achieved. Reflective writing looks at
how the ideas are conveyed and the organization of various pieces of work. Reflective writing is
only different from other pieces of writing in one way: the purpose of it. It gives the writer a
chance to look back over all their pieces and see how ideas and structure has changed over the
course of time. Reflective writing seems important, although Ive never thought about using to
analyze my writing because it was never required in previous classes throughout middle school
or high school. It seems important because without it, progress cannot be measured. The writer
will not know if they have become better at conveying ideas, building structure or achieving the
purpose of writing without analyzing previous work over the course of time. This becomes
increasingly important when it comes to a writing course such as the current one Im
participating in.
Writing will always be a part of life and an important means of communication among
people. Personally, I see writing as a great way to express your thoughts and feelings. As a child,
my voice was relatively quiet and I didnt say much. I would often write what I failed to speak.
Any emotions left unspoken or any dreams/thoughts I wanted to keep, I would write them down
in a journal for later. On the contrary, when I write with the expectations of teachers or

professors weighing over me with a grade, my desire kind of shuts down and I write what the
teacher expects of me. After so much of writing what the teacher expects and subjects that have
little interest to me, writing kind of lost its value and meaning to me and I saw only as school
work forced on me. Now that I think about it, I guess this course is just educating me on writing
and the different aspects of it. I guess I still have a choice on what I want to write about or the
ideas I want to present. I dont like the limitations of it but Ill have to deal with it because
almost anything has limits when you focus on it and the ideas surrounding it.
To me, inquiry and research papers are so similar that its hard to tell the difference. I
guess inquiry is trying to become an expert in particular field or answering a certain question.
However, inquiry also relies on researching that question or topic thoroughly just as much as a
research paper would? I went over this class 3 times and still do not have a full grasp on how
inquiries differ from research papers. I guess as long as I take something away something I can
use and apply in real life, then I come victorious.
I never was good at planning out a paper of any sort. I find the things I lack most when it
comes to writing papers is preparation and organization. Im a person who tackles the task head
on without too much thought to begin with. Ill start writing the paper with the information Ive
researched and what I know. My organization skills wont come in until I start revising my paper
as I go along. I dont have a writing process, whatever comes to mind just finds its way on to
the paper. I find it difficult to start the paper off because my brain is already putting together the
structure of the body paragraph and working towards a conclusion. I usually get pass this by
asking classmates how they started off their paper or what they did to get their audience hooked.
After that, I overcome the mental block with the introduction and start typing away. If it were up
to me, I probably wouldnt even do a first draft. I do first draft because I see them required for

class. There is one part of the writing process I always make an appoint to include: revision. I
find it very helpful for a classmate to review my work and give me suggestions on how to make
it better. Im aware that half the time I wont catch my own mistakes. Its nice to have someone
point out what mistakes Ive made in my paper. Though Im often afraid to get feedback from the
classmates because I dont like be criticized or looked down upon. I used to get criticized a lot
when I was a child and it would always make me feel sad. Overall, despite the lack of
organization in my paper, the content is very good and my thoughts are clear. The only changes
between the first and final draft are those made by the person reviewing and revising my paper.
The pattern I usually find with my writing process is waiting almost until the last minute.
Its not a really good habit to have, but I do it anyways because I focus on the moment instead of
the future. I think I do my best work when it comes close to the end. If I try to plan out, I will
always second guess myself and ask is this what the professor or teacher wants? instead of
letting my ideas and thoughts flow. I probably would be less stressed and have more time to
complete the paper or assignment but I dont let it bother me that much. The way I see it is, life
wont let a person know when something bad is going to happen or when a situation comes up.
The boss of a company may or may not tell his workers something they need to do within a short
or long time span. Life is part organization but it also relies on people being able to think on their
feet when the moment comes. If someone is too busy planning everything out, they miss
everything that is happening at the moment right in front of them. I look at my procrastination as
being fluid and able to achieve adequate results within a short time. Of course this could just be
an excuse that Im trying to justify but I like to believe my argument has some validity and
soundness to it. My mind is everywhere so its hard to find a reoccurring topic that interest me.
Although, there is one topic that seems to work its way back into discussions I have with friends

and family. I often look at the news and see how they portray certain ethnicities in unfavorable
ways. The public as well as the media seem to overgeneralize a group of people based on the
actions of a few. For example, generalizing all Muslims as terrorist or African Americans as
mostly criminals and drug dealers. These stereotypes, along with peoples expectations of others,
gets my blood boiling and I find myself talking with my family or friends about the subject (if
they bring up a similar topic like gender, ethnicity or religion).
My best piece of writing was the assignment where each student needed to meditate for 5
minutes without any outside distractions. It was my best piece of writing because there was
unlimited freedom on what the subject could be. I wrote down my own thoughts and how they
shifted around in my head. I was writing about me and how my mind was traveling within those
5 minutes. Creativity drives me to write or if my own thoughts become too much to keep inside
then I write them down so I dont forget. If Im to be honest with myself, I think my portfolio
deserves a B. The reason why I think that is because I put so much effort into it and I believe it
shows. I should aim for an A on the portfolio but for some reason I have trouble aiming for the
stars. Im just not as optimistic as I use to be. I try not to get my hopes up too much because
every time I do, they come crashing back down on me. I try to believe I can achieve anything I
want if I work for it but its hard to do when there is so much negativity and limit place on you.