In my time participating in Writing 100 within the Summer Bridge program, I have truly grown as a writer. I have never written several papers in such a short time frame. It challenged me and helped me realize that I need to work harder in college than I did in high school. Knowing the transition from high school writing to college writing can be difficult, Dr. Ferszt provided several writing techniques and practices that helped me improve my writing. For example, she introduced the use of Invention Questions. These are questions that are asked about a specific topic inside of the paper’s main topic that help build the structure of each paragraph. The first time I used Invention Questions was in my paper, Visual Rhetoric Analysis of Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love the Way you Lie.” Within each paragraph, questions were asked about the main theme of the paragraph, in which each answer built up another layer of the paragraph. Invention Questions were very helpful in writing my paper because if I was ever at a loss of what to write about, could look at the questions for inspiration or fill in any missing information that I forgot to add.
Another skill that I learned was the use of rhetorical modes. I had heard of rhetorical devices before, but this was a new way using them. We focused more on the visual aspect of rhetorical modes. Again, my analysis of “Love the Way you Lie” was centered on the visual rhetoric used in the music video in order to transmit the message of domestic violence to its audience. Putting so much emphasis on how a music video affects its viewers helped me to better understand how my writing may affect someone reads it.
Other papers that my class and I wrote were on the novel Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, and the resources found at the University of Michigan. In the second paper, I wrote about the metaphor presented in Grahame-Smith’s novel, Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter that compares the tragedy of slavery to the raid of vampires. This was an interesting topic and was the first time I used a suspended claim, which is a thesis that is stated at the end of a paper.I was excited to learn that after attempting a suspended claim, I did it correctly. My claim stated, “the author is saying that slavery was so bad they their shed blood might as well been sucked up through the fangs of a vampire.” This thesis was based on a certain section of the novel which talks about vampires buying slaves just to feast off of their blood with no repercussions. Lincoln and his friend, Speed, talk about Speed’s father being a part of the risky business: “. . . A way to get rid of a useless slave and make a profit doing so” (Grahame-Smith 180). It was a little bit of a sensitive subject for me, being African American, but if this novel was a way to show readers how bad slavery was, then I did not mind analyzing it.
Lastly, the things that really helped me develop as a writer in college have been the peer editing/conferences and the use of Prior Knowledge, Basic Research, and Academic Research (PK, BR, and AR). In the peer editing sessions, I received the opportunity to hear what my peers had to say about my writing. Criticism is something that must be received in order to get better, and sometimes it’s easier to hear criticism from a peer you may be more familiar with. Also, the use of PK, BR, and AR helped in the support of my papers. None of my claims or ideas would have any importance without the research and knowledge I acquire throughout. It’s one thing to have a strong thesis, and another to have the information to prove that thesis right.
All of the things I have learned and achieved in Writing 100 will better prepare me for writing in college. I am grateful to have had this head start and I plan to use all of my new found skills to the best of my abilities.
Work Cited
Grahame-Smith, Seth. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. New York: Grand Central Publishing, 2010. Print.
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