English 1101
9 October 2013

Midterm Reflection

I have done a variety of different assignments throughout my English 1101 class this semester. The assignments that have had the most influence on me include select chapters from J.M. Bohannon’s I Hate Writing, Anne Lamott’s “Shitty First Drafts”, Stephen King’s On Writing, and my practice with rhetorical analysis. Each of these assignments have significantly impacted me and caused me to view my own writing differently. They have helped me grow as a writer as well as come closer to finding my own writer’s “voice”.
I have really enjoyed and learned from the chapters that I have read so far in I Hate Writing. My favorite chapter is chapter seven because Bohannon discusses many different ways to introduce a paper. I found her methods very helpful because I have a tendency to struggle when writing my introductions; I simply have no idea where to begin. Bohannon suggestions in chapter seven include telling a story, using a quotation, defining an unfamiliar term, directly stating an argument, writing in the reader, and being creative. After trying each of the options presented by Bohannon in this particular chapter, I found that using a quotation is my favorite technique. I feel it is the easiest way to start a paper off since I have something to base my paper off of. I also feel it is a good way to draw the reader in since a quote is simple, yet sets the theme and mood of a paper.
I also appreciated the advice Bohannon gave in chapter six. She talks about how to set up and organize a paper, as well as how to transition from different ideas. I particularly like one of her quotes in which she compares writing to dominoes. She states "If you line up a group of dominoes and tip over the first in line, each one will touch the other and they will fall in a sequence. Writing is the same way. You want your thoughts to line