process writing - last assignment

I usually make a mind map for teasing and bring out my ideas. The words in the mind map helps me to get inspired after thinking about each word for what to use or not to use in my writing. It is kind of a playful creation process, and I freely write what I feel, think, and observe about certain topic that I set up by using the words in mind map. After writing, I go over through my first draft which is probably not that great and revise it, which is process writing.

For writing reading response, of course, I made clear connections between texts and my writing because I needed to write about what I read and expand my thinking on the texts. I made a connection between my last writing piece and The Omnivore’s Dilemma for penetrating the thinking of perfect meal.

It was frustrating for me when I had to revise several times for fixing poor transition between paragraphs and make the piece more coherent and well-flowing. I was also frustrated for taking up so much time and energy to revise something that I didn’t expect that there would be a lot of errors or things that can be improved. Writing for the first time for a piece isn’t that hard because it’s more like free-flow writing for me. Oppositely, some find revising is easier than coming up with ideas, stories, or narrations. I think it is hard to write actually well and thoughtful with less grammar errors than writing new things without worrying about syntax, grammar, structure, and coherence of all the ideas. My breakthrough was to read my draft as many times as I could. I felt actually accomplished by making my writing better!

Throughout the quarter, I realized I’m really bad at keeping my writing concise but good. It was hard for me to keep it shorter, because I have a habit of writing a lot. Except my last main assignment, writing and participating workshops two other ones helped me to think through what’s important to put or not important to put. It was great process to sort out my thinking to make my writing more effective.

As I said before, I love to do mind mapping while I’m creating new ideas based on my memories and observations about certain topics. I always think back and try to see the evidence of past events (photographs/talking with others who experienced same thing as I did). Readers’ comments were always helpful in a way that they (our awesome classmates!!) really contributed their efforts to read my writing and try to give me many feedbacks. They also taught me what I missed that I wouldn’t know only through my perspective. They gave different perspectives for my writing that made it richer and better. From this course, I learned that I have a hard time with journalistic/nonfiction writings that I never really encountered in my life. I didn’t know journalism, especially narrative journalism, is so deliberate and needs carefulness from the writer. It has to be truthful and sincere so that readers can believe my story and have trust to the writer. It was nice to learn skills and techniques for journalistic writing especially by actively learning from each other through workshop.