Despite having a reasonable level of grammatical competence even prior to taking ESL 273, I always found it a challenge to write a cohesive and logically-structured essay. Another problem which I had before attending this class, and which held me back from producing a satisfactory paper was the uncomfortable feeling that I used to get from having to write an in-class essay. There are other important writing techniques which I was aware of but which didn’t know how to apply in my writing. For instance, I never considered, as much as I do now, using transitional words or parallel structures in my essays. I never thought that using synonyms is a great way to give my writing flavor and sophistication.