(Recursive Process) – Demonstrate the ability to approach writing as a recursive process that requires substantial revision of drafts for content, organization, and clarity (global revision), as well as editing and proofreading (local revision). (Word Count: 536).

I was always my own harshest critique when it came to my rough drafts of my writing. I was afraid to have errors in my writing and would get frustrated with myself when there would be careless mistakes. All throughout high school, my rough drafts would be graded as if they were a final draft and the grade would later be upgraded after the final draft was completed. It was due to this process that I always found revisions very stressful and would try to make it so that I would not have to revise in the first place. The extent of my “revisions” would essentially be making sure there were no spelling errors and I wasn’t repeating myself.

Throughout the semester, I have learned that a rough draft is supposed to have errors. In fact, it is expected to. It was in learning this that I was able to then develop my revision process which would now include taking in the feedback I was giving by my peers and professor. I would no longer be afraid to completely scrap a section of my writing, as well as not being afraid to repeat my previous statements. I learned that repeating myself is actually expected to a certain extent, as it helps to reinforce my ideas and make them stronger to the reader.

An example of this writing revision process can be seen in the conclusion paragraph of my second essay. In my rough draft (Photo 1), my conclusion was significantly shorter than all of my other paragraphs in my paper. This was largely due to the fact that I felt as though I was repeating myself and I didn’t know how I wanted to expand my ideas.

Photo 1: Rough Draft Paper #2 (conclusion)

My conclusion in my rough draft was very simple and didn’t really serve any greater purpose to my essay other than simply taking up the space of a conclusion. In my revision, I was able to create a conclusion that had a purpose. (Photo 2).

Photo 2: Final Draft Paper #2 (conclusion)

After spending more time with my conclusion, I was able to turn it into something that served a purpose in my writing. I did this by adding more real world connections and giving an idea for a bigger picture of empathy in the future. By creating this possible call to action and look into the development of empathy rather than only my own experiences, I was able to create a conclusion that wrapped up my paper, but also added a level of importance that it was lacking.

My revision process will definitely continue to grow and progress as I write more in the future, but it has come a significant distance from where it was at the beginning of the semester. I now feel confident in the idea that I don’t need to be perfect on the first try. It is perfectly reasonable, acceptable, and expected to be able to fix a paper rather than trying to completely skip over the revision process. By learning this, I feel as though I’ve become a better writer, and I am excited to see where my growth in this process will take me as I learn even more about my writing style in the time to come.