My Theory of Writing 

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December 17th, 2018

Dear Fellow Classmate,

English was never my strong suit, nor did I find it easy. From the beginning of my educational career, I would dread going to my English classes and writing papers. Year after year, my lowest grades would be found in this specific subject, causing my confidence in my writing to plummet. 

The first language I ever learned was Polish. Both my parents grew up in Poland and moved to America with very little knowledge of the English language. Because of this “ELA” became my worst enemy. It took a long time for me to understand my reoccurring grammatical errors and find my very own style of writing. When I became extremely self-conscious about my writing, I would turn to reading as my escape and as my “tool” for becoming a better writer. My English teachers would always tell me that the more I read the more my writing would improve. I actually enjoyed reading.  I picked up books from all kinds of genres, absorbing their stories and lessons.  Over time, my writing did improve, just as my teachers preached.

In high school, I began to improve as a writer, but I still remained self-conscious throughout those 4 years. My goal was to change this mindset during my first semester of college. I knew that “Freshman Composition” would not be a walk in the park. On the very first day of class, we were introduced to key terms that would become the blueprint of all my writing assignments. These were the rhetorical terms that would help us analyze any type of source thoroughly. I was very intrigued by this analysis but had trouble grasping some of its terms. After this activity we were told to complete a diagnostic essay. The professor said she would be collecting this essay and our grade would reflect how we could possibly do this semester. Upon hearing this, I became extremely nervous and was not optimistic. To my surprise, over a week later I receive the highest mark and extremely positive feedback from my professor. This moment began the development of my very own, Theory of Writing.

My very first English assignment was a source-based essay. I was very familiar with this kind of essay, but I was not familiar with rhetorical analysis just yet. Throughout the essay process, I was challenged on many levels. It was a long journey to develop my final draft. At the very start of my essay process, I really did not know where to begin. The one thing I had down was my topic. When it came time to locate my research sources, I tried to find the best sites that would contain an adequate amount of information for my rhetorical analysis and build upon my own stance. I knew the broad genres that each of the 4 articles were placed under, but when trying to find their specific genres, I struggled. Understanding the definition of the “rhetorical situation” was a challenge for me. I first thought that it was closely related to the article summary. In my source list and first draft, I failed to even mention the rhetorical situation. It was during my peer review where I learned to understand the difference between a summary, rhetorical situation, and rhetorical analysis. In my peer review sessions, I learned more from my members more than I originally anticipated. 

My first draft was a good start in my own writing process, and it really gave the confidence necessary to approach my final draft with a positive outlook. Learning about rhetorical analysis and the rhetorical situation as well as fully understanding their meanings, really made ideas flow out of me more than ever before. The rhetorical situation and analysis influenced my entire research, established my own stance, and provided me with a complete understanding of my sources on the gender pay gap.

My understanding of the rhetorical strategies grew stronger with every assignment I completed. The more I wrote, the more I begin to realize how essential and helpful rhetorical analysis is in the writing process. In my own writing, rhetoric is closely related to my stance but also ties back to every aspect of the rhetorical situation itself. At the beginning of the semester, I never really viewed this as such a vital part of my writing. I struggled to really focus on executing an analysis to its maximum, especially in my first draft. It was during the final draft of my research essay where I realized how to approach analyzing all my evidence through the usage rhetoric. Having an analysis of my sources gave the paper more of a standing point in terms of what was trying to be executed; a strong analysis develops an even stronger stance. When the writing of an individual exudes passion, it executes the purpose and rhetorical situation to its fullest potential. With my writing, I want to reach out to my audience and benefiting audience in a passionate way that leaves them in a deep logic.

The composing process in my final assignment was very much different than the research essay process. When getting started on my research paper, I had to analyze information from many sources pertaining to my research question. I had a specific model essay, serving as the skeleton of my research essay, that represented my genre. My composition project was more controlled. I was able to reflect my previous research through two other genres that pertained to the same audience as my research essay. When composing my political cartoon and subway advertisement, I made sure to analyze them rhetorically before they were finalized. It was important that I knew the purpose, audience, genre, stance, and rhetorical situation behind my compositions. If I could not completely analyze my genres to these rhetorical properties, I knew that something was not being fully executed. Following this rhetorical “checklist”, allowed me to compose two genres that would fulfill my need to speak out for the women in this country, who are not getting the income they deserve. My audience needs to reevaluate their efforts and take a closer look at the reality of the gender pay gap within my two genres. 

I had to climb a tall ladder to get to the point I am right now. Within my love for the STEM field, I began to realize that writing will still be essential part of my life and that there really is no escape. In my major of civil engineering, accuracy, relevance, and getting my ideas through to my audience is vital. Building upon my writing strategies throughout my assignments in college will create an outcome of success in my desired career. My writing is a representation of myself, and by now establishing my own theory of writing, I have the most accurate depiction of myself to present to my future audience and employers.

If I could go back in time, I would really want to give this theory of writing to myself. Because of this reason, I felt the need to write this letter to you. There is no reason to be discouraged by the hardships that come with writing; the best writers feel what you feel too. If you made it to this point in my letter, you can clearly see that I was never a confident writer and did not see any importance of it. It is okay to be overwhelmed by, The Theory of Writing. The truth is, I still don’t know what mine is and I will continue to develop my theory, as well as, see its importance as I continue to write. I want you to feel that too; your past relationship with writing does not have to influence your relationship with it today.

Best of Luck, 

Gabriella Pieniadz