Blog #6: Writing Process Analysis

My Step by Step Process of How I Write an Essay.

One thing I took away from reading Everyone’s an Author was before I decide to write I must choose if I am going to write an informational or instructional paper. Last week I wrote an informational paper, which is writing to inform people of a situation.  My first step was to read the handout Professor McKeller passed out to the class. Knowing what you are writing about informs you what type of paper you need to write, and directs your writing in the right direction. My first assignment was to choose an article, and write an essay about how the author used ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade her audience. The second step was easy; I had to find an article. Step three was to annotate my article to find the author’s techniques. I used three different colors of highlighters. Using different colored highlighters separated ethos, logos, and pathos throughout the article. This origination came in handy when it was time to write my essay. Step four was to make an outline of what I was going to write for each paragraph. In my outline I write the main point in that one paragraph in bold and underline it. Beneath it I have bulletin points. The bulletin points can consist of quotes, facts, or my opinions that fit with the main idea. I repeat this process for every paragraph I have in my essay. In the fifth and finally step I write my thesis along with my conclusion. I find it helpful to outline the body first, so I can include the main points in my paper to my introduction. Now let’s reflect the steps:

1.       Read the instructions: This helps you start your writing in the right direction.

2.       Find the resource(s) you need to write your paper.

3.       Annotate your resource(s): doing so helps you find important points you can use in your essay.

4.       Make an outline: organizes your thoughts before dumping into your paper.

5.       Write introduction and Conclusion: having your body information help you inform your reader what your paper is about, and helps you wrap your thought up.

Overall I usually follow my steps, but in this essay I tried approaching my essay a different way. Doing so throw me off track, and I ended up writing a horrible paper. Next time I plan to stick to my old plan, because it never failed me.