1) What assignment/document was most useful to you during this process? Explain your answer.
I think that the peer review assignments were the most useful. The other blogging assignments were useful as well, but to be able to read a classmates paper and physically see where he/she was in the writing process gave me a sense of ease, that i wasn’t alone. It also made me feel like i could make a difference with my input, not suggesting that i’m a expert, because i’m not, but hearing criticisms of my own paper helped me see things i didn’t catch on my own.
2) What was the most helpful feedback you received at any stage – why was it helpful?
The most helpful feedback that i received was when Kyle peer reviewed my paper. He said that he wanted to see more of me throughout the introduction. As I read over it i realized that I was writing an autoethnography and the main subject of the research was me. It didn’t hit me that i needed to make this more personal until Kyle pointed out that there wasn’t enough of me in the paper.
3) What was most difficult for you during the drafting process? Easiest? WHY?
The most difficult part of the drafting process for me was organizing my information in a way that i wanted the reader to understand it. it was hard for me to find my audience. I kept writing but i wasn’t sure who i was writing for. I’d hoped that one day i was going to be writing and it would just hit me. It didn’t happen.
The easiest part of the draft process for me was actually picking a topic to write about that i was passionate about. Because the experience was so personal i felt that i could offer information about the events leading up to the surgery and the surgery itself that no one else could. each person has a different experience and i wanted to share mine with everyone. at first i was kind of ashamed but as i kept writing i felt liberated.
4) Where does your final essay best show your ability as a writer?
I feel that my literature review best shows my ability as a writer. i can take information written by someone else and summarize it in a very understandable and sufficient way. i think that this was the main focus of a lot of my english classes in high school therefore i’ve developed a strong skill.
