1219 Joseph Drive
Atlanta, GA 30011
April 26, 2000
Dr. Nancy Reichert
Southern Polytechnic State University
Marietta, GA
Dr. Reichert:
I am drawing to a close my second semester
in your class and I have found that I have grown tremendously as a writer.
As a matter of fact when I began your class I didn't consider myself a
writer at all. In realizing that I am a writer I have also realized that
it is my weaknesses as well as my strengths that define who I am
as a writer.
As I have said before my weakness is
my inability to develop a good introduction for papers that are first person
(because I don't like talking about myself.)
"I guess you could say I'm average.
I always have been. I've never been exceptionally good at anything. Sure
I have certain things that I pride myself on and certain things that I
think I can do well enough on to hold my own, but if we'd be honest I don't
think anyone considers themselves perfect." (paper 2,draft 2)
Another weakness I have is my inability
to pull myself out of a slump in my writing. All writers have points in
which they have a block that keeps them from writing insightful work. I
went through such a block in unit 2 of this semester. In fact I addressed
this in my fifth out of class journal for unit 2:
"WRITING IS LIKE FOOTBALL OR BASEBALL
OR BASKETBALL... YOU HAVE OFF-SEASONS... THIS IS ONE OF THOSE SEASONS.
IN MY JOURNALS I LOOK FOR CREATIVITY AND EXCITING NEW IDEAS AND THEYFRE
JUST NOT THERE."(Outclass journ. 5)
This can be seen through comparing my
writing from the first unit and second unit. In my sixth journal for the
first unit I described football:
"... The other players disappear
and it's just you and the goal line. You maneuver in and out of players
as if they were cones on the pathetic drivers test you took when you were
sixteen, only if one of the cones gets too close, let him feel what its
like to be run over."
I was very creative and descriptive in
this first unit. In this journal entry I used metaphor to describe the
feeling of playing football. It was a topic I enjoyed. Unfortunately for
the second unit I had a harder time finding a topic:
Where do babies come from?
Where do cows come from?
How do they give milk like that?
How do they get in that little jug
at the grocery store?
Who invented grocery stores...
Kids are full of questions. Too full.
(journal 4)
These weaknesses, though, do not change
my opinion of my writing as a whole, however. I still have strengths. One
of the strengths that I addressed in my first letter is still a very important
part of my writing. This strength is my use of description and metaphor.
An example of this is in my Pastan interchange rewrite: "'Their lives are
kindling and each of us carries a lit match. Be careful how you wave your
match."
The one change that I am most proud
of is my consideration of myself as a writer. Since I started looking at
myself as a writer rather than a student completing an assignment, I have
a new sense of pride in my work. I approach writing differently now than
I did at the beginning of the semester as well. I now allow my thoughts
and emotions to be transferred to paper as they come, rather than trying
to type out phrases and sentences that I think sound good. I think that
understanding one's self as a person is a sign of maturity. I also feel
that understanding myself as a writer is a sign that I am maturing as a
writer and that the quality of my work is much greater.
In regard to the final aspect of the
criteria for your course, my timeliness during this unit has improved as
well. During unit one I was late on one of my assignments. During this
unit, however, I have turned every assignment in on time. I have also been
present for all important class activities. In conclusion Dr. Reichert
I feel that this past year in your English 1101 and 1102 courses has really
sparked growth in me as a writer. I have improved not only the quality
of my writing, but my attitude about writing as well. I feel that my timeliness
and quality in your class has improved also. For this reason I feel that
I deserve an A in your course. Thanks.
Sincerely,