Throughout this semester I learned valuable writing and research skills that I have used

to improve my writing abilities. I learned how to research effectively and to find credible sources
for my writing. I also learned how to format and organize my papers more effectively in order to
improve my arguments and provide clarity for potential readers.

Paper #1: Memoir

In my memoir, I focused more on attention to detail than any other writing strategy.
Adding more detail helped add to the story and made it easier for readers to understand why the
event was significant. For this paper I was able to use strategies that I had learned previously
from writing narrative papers throughout high school. One thing that I struggled with was adding
too much detail. In order to combat this I wrote down everything I wanted to say first and then I
went back and read through my paper. I read through each paragraph and took out information
that didn’t add to the message of the story which allowed me to cut back on the amount of detail
incorporated into the memoir. I didn’t have many revisions for this paper aside from some
general grammar and punctuation errors. Overall writing this paper helped me realize my
strengths as a narrative writer and I was able to use those strengths in my later writing.
When I first began writing this paper I wasn’t entirely sure what the purpose was. I knew
the experience had been a fun one but I hadn’t determined what the significance of the event
was. This writing subject allowed me to look at events in my own life critically and realize how
things that may seem insignificant have profound effects on our lives. It also helped me learn
how to express these internal realizations through writing and reflect on their significance.
This paper was a reflection of my own life experiences so I didn’t write with any specific
audience in mind. I wrote about what happened and why it was important to me as an individual.
However, I want readers to take away the same thing I did and realize that even small events
can have significant impacts on us as humans. I used an immense amount of imagery and
detail and a significant amount of pathos to achieve this goal. My voice in this paper is reflective
of me and my everyday voice because it is about me and my everyday life. When readers look
at a memoir, or any narrative piece, they expect to read a story with characters and a plot. They
also expect a moral, an explanation about why the story means something to the writer, and I
believe I fulfilled those expectations.
Throughout the writing process for this paper I realized that I have many strengths in
narrative writing. I have a good sense of attention to detail and I am able to clearly define the
plot and purpose of the story. However these strengths also serve as weaknesses in the sense
that I am prone to incorporation too much detail when writing narrative pieces and it makes my
writing overbearing and redundant. I believe these strengths and weaknesses are significant to
this paper because they account for a large portion of the content of this style of writing. My plan
for revisions is to modify my writing and ensure that only the necessary details are incorporated
in order to allow readers easier reading.
Paper #2: Annotated Bibliography
In my annotated bibliography, a majority of my attention was focused on the research
aspect of writing. This process allowed me to retrieve strong evidence towards answering the
topic question being discussed. For this paper I had to learn new skills regarding research, as I
had never had to find peer reviewed sources before. I had to learn how to find credible sources
and incorporate those sources into my writing. However I was able to use previous knowledge
of citations and annotations to format and organize my paper. One problem I faced at the
beginning of my writing process was finding sources. I started out with a topic that was too
narrow and I was unable to conduct effective research regarding that topic. I broadened my
topic question and this allowed me to discover a wider range of credible resources to
incorporate into my bibliography. Some sentence/word level revisions that I had to make
involved changing nouns to gender neutral variations. For example, one of my annotations
contained the word “Englishmen,” which I then revised to “English,” in order to maintain proper
formal writing style. One thing I learned about myself as a writer is that I very much enjoy the
research project and I have very strong research skills that have proven to be very beneficial in
my writing this semester.
The topic I chose for the paper was “Why do we eat turkey on Thanksgiving?” This
proved to be a very difficult topic to research because it is not entirely clear where the holiday
originated from. Many different sources describe different variations of how the holiday came
into existence and I had to cross reference several different articles before I could provide a
supported answer. This paper showed me the importance of thorough research and allowed me
to gain experience in cross referencing and fact checking different articles. It also helped me
learn how to effectively search through resources in order to filter out the information that I need
from the rest of the information on the subject.
Due to how broad my topic question was, I wrote my bibliography for a broad audience. I
intended for this paper to be more informational than persuasive or argumentative in
accordance with the genre style. I wanted readers to take away the information and reflect on
how it answers the question being asked. Although the main purpose of the paper was to work
on citations, it was also supposed to answer a topic question using examples and anecdotes
from credible, peer-reviewed sources. I hope that my sources and annotations help add to the
credibility of my information for the readers. Compared to my voice in my first paper, my voice in
my bibliography was more formal and efficient. I stated the facts and evidence without a lot of
ethos or pathos. I took a risk in choosing a topic with no definitive, recorded origins, but I
supported my points with evidence from multiple types of sources and I explained each point
with credible evidence, which is what readers expect from this genre of writing.
I discovered I had significant strengths regarding effective research and incorporation of
sources, however I struggled a little bit more with my citations and it took me a little bit longer to
correctly cite my sources with the appropriate information. These are important strengths and
weaknesses because they directly affect the quality and the credibility of the writing. Citations
are also necessary for maintaining academic integrity and avoiding plagiarism. My plans for
revision are to review citation formatting in APA style and ensure all of the correct information is
present in each of my citations.
Paper #3: Argument
In my argumentative paper, I used a combination of research and argumentative
strategies to write my argument. My research skills allowed me to produce credible and strong
evidence to back up my claims and my argumentative skills allowed me to organize those
sources in a way that strongly supported my claim and persuaded readers to listen to my
argument. For this assignment I used skills I had learned from writing argumentative papers
before and combined them with my newly acquired researching techniques from this semester.
My biggest problem with writing this paper was incorporating a counterargument. I had a firm
belief regarding the topic and I had to do extensive research about the opposing argument in
order to provide a fair and unbiased counterargument. As far as major revisions, I was short of
the required word count for this paper so I incorporated some extra research and additional
evidence in order to provide more content. In this paper I learned that I am very strong with
argumentative writing and organization but I tend to neglect detail when writing in an
argumentative genre and merely state the facts and evidence rather than analyzing it.
The subject that I chose for my argumentative paper involves more morals than
statistics. Hunting is something that is accepted on an individual basis and therefore there is a
lot of controversy surrounding the topic. This made it difficult to argue one side of the argument
while still acknowledging the other side and providing an unbiased argument. While writing this
essay I was able to learn more about the opposing arguments of the topic and gained a better
understanding of them. This helped me to develop a new perspective on my stance regarding
the topic which made my argument more trustworthy and fair. I started the writing process with
no understanding of how someone could oppose the idea of hunting. But as I did research and
began composing my argument I shifted my stance to the opposition of trophy hunting
specifically, allowing me to provide arguments for both sides and provide a fair analysis of the
issue. Choosing to write about this subject taught me the importance of researching all sides of
an argument before writing an argumentative paper. Doing proper research for the other side
will sometimes alter your stance or strengthen your understanding of the topic.
With such a controversial topic, keeping the audience in mind was crucial to maintaining
a fair and unbiased essay. While I was writing I had to not only think about readers who would
agree with my argument, I also had to acknowledge those who would not. Therefore I was
careful to argue both sides and provide a combination of rhetorical devices to support my points
and to counteract those of the opposing side. My overall goal in writing this paper was to
express the issue of trophy hunting and provide a sound argument for the immorality and the
costs of allowing the practice to continue. I wanted readers to absorb the information and
persuade them to support my stance. A majority of my argument was centered around the idea
of pathos, using emotional responses to get readers to understand the importance of the issue.
My voice was formal throughout the entire essay to maintain credibility and trustworthiness. I
took a risk in writing about such a controversial topic, but in doing so I was able to challenge my
own beliefs and those of the readers and provide a thorough analysis of the topic. When reading
an argumentative essay, readers expect to find a claim supported by research and evidence. I
provided a clear claim and evidence to support my claim, which is what readers expect to find
whether they agree with the points that are made or not.
I found that I have significant strengths in arguing my points and organizing my
arguments in a way that is persuasive and easy to read/comprehend. However I discovered my
weaknesses in argumentative writing lie in my ability to provide a counter argument. These
strengths and weaknesses play a critical role in the process of creating an effective
argumentative essay. In my revisions I plan on analyzing and improving my counterargument
and ensuring that I provide evidence for the opposing side and refute those arguments with
credible sources and evidence.
 Paper #4: Proposal
In my proposal, I relied heavily on my research and argumentative skills that I used in my
previous paper. These strategies allowed me to provide a proposal that was thoroughly
supported by evidence and organized in a way that effectively delivered my message to
potential readers. For this proposal I was able to use the skills I had used in previous
assignments from this semester to produce a sound argument. However, I had to incorporate
new skills regarding costs/benefits analysis and analyzing the pros and cons of my proposal
plan. One problem that I faced while writing this paper was creating a costs benefits analysis
and identifying potential problems and solutions with my plan. In order to solve this issue I
researched different universities and colleges that had implemented similar projects and
analyzed the processes they used on their campuses. Writing this paper taught me how to apply
my research abilities and argumentative strategies to real ideas and proposals. I also learned
how to organize an effective proposal that will be beneficial throughout my college and
professional career.
The concept of a community university garden doesn’t impose much complexity or
competing views. However the arguments made in the proposal are intended to refute
arguments of those who believe that a garden would not be a good idea or that the costs would
outweigh the benefits of the project. I used my own personal experiences regarding the
evidence and concepts in my paper to help strengthen my arguments and credibility. This paper
helped teach me how to incorporate my own knowledge of a subject to strengthen my
arguments and organize a convincing proposal. One of my content-level revisions was adding
some contextualization to my quotes from the Ron Finley TED talk and adding a connection
between the quotes and my proposal. I also included a more in depth analysis of my plan for
implementing my proposal by adding some potential fundraising and financial planning.
For this paper, my target audience were predominantly college level students and I
organized my proposal in a style that would gain interest from students. I want readers to take
an interest in my proposal and get involved with the cause. My analysis of the issue and how it
affects college student’s mental and physical health is intended to persuade students to get
involved with the proposal and make healthier choices. My voice in this proposal is slightly less
formal than my argumentative essay, but it still maintains a sense of formality in order to
establish the importance of the issue while still being accessible to a younger population. Within
my proposal I provided a step by step solution to a problem and analyzed the benefits of
instituting my plan, which is what is expected of a proposal.
My significant strengths in writing this paper was my research and argumentative skills.
Using these skills I was able to conduct quality research that allowed me to back up my
arguments with evidence and produce a more convincing proposal. These skills were the most
significant in writing this proposal because they allowed me to create a persuasive proposal with
real life context and a step by step plan for implementing it. My plans for revision are to add
more context to my evidence in order to help it flow with my arguments and to add more specific
steps to my overall plan.

Conclusion
 Throughout this course I have obtained many new writing and research skills that will
help me throughout my future college and professional career. I learned how to effectively
research topics and how to ensure that the sources I am using are credible and properly cited.
This will help me to maintain academic integrity and avoid plagiarism in my future writing
projects. I also learned how to effectively organize and prepare arguments and proposals in a
way that effectively portrays my message. These skills will help me in my academic and
professional careers and will allow me to write more credibly and effectively.