This semester I have reflected extensively on my writing development over my time in college. I thought it was fun to go over my writing from the past 8 semesters. I found it interesting to see how my writing was affected by the long stretches of time I spent without writing. For example, I didn’t take any writing classes the spring of my sophomore year nor during the summer, so when I returned in the fall of my junior year, I struggled to adjust to the writing assignment expectations of my English class professor.

It was powerful for me to re-purpose the text I had written originally about the semester my grandmother got sick (Αγαπε). I thought it was a nice way to reflect on a situation that I continue to learn from as I get older.

I am a writer who writes when I am motivated to do so. Sometimes it is hard for me to motivate myself to write well even when I want to have a good final product.

My writing has changed over time along with me. Some depth was added to my writing after I had deeper experiences and took the time to reflect on them with family and friends and my practice of writing aided me in doing that.

This reflection led to my better understanding of sensitivities in audiences and I have become more rhetorically aware as I write rather than just at the end of my revision process.

I think good college writing depends on its purpose and place, so good college writing is something that satisfies its goals or what the writers set out to do. To differentiate college writing from other writing, college writing is something that is good if (in addition to my assertion above) it makes the writer proud or pleases her. If it is college writing for a class or academic purpose, it is subjective and depends on the professor who grades it. I have found for myself that I think I have written well academically when I receive the grade I wanted; however, some of my highest graded papers are what I don’t consider good. I much prefer my own way of writing over any assignment a professor gives me. My perception of good college writing is dependent on whether I’m satisfying the goals of the assignment. When I speak about good academic writing in college I must add in that extra descriptor: academic. My definition of good writing as exploring thoughts and ideas above makes room for researched academic papers. My perception of good writing is dependent on whether it evokes the emotions/feelings/thoughts and reactions the writer intended.

To be a good writer in college I think it is important that the student writes in and out of the classroom. I have never found writing for an assignment (when no creativity or introspection is involved) to lead to good writing. It has always fallen flat for me. Good writing explores thoughts, ideas, experiences, and a host of other aspects of human life. All other writing lacks that beautiful meaning that I desire.

Thank you for taking the time to peruse my portfolio using the links below.

Pictures (top to bottom, from left):

• Keara, me, and Sarah at the Computer Science department's annual Quivia (Quiz Bowl + Trivia) accepting the 2nd place prizes. May 2, 2019.

• Briana and me at the football field cheering on WFU. September 2018.

• Me, Sierra, Miranda, Briana, Kalyn, and Lauren at the Celebration of Black Excellence Gala. Winter 2019.