The essay contest
seemed to be an interesting assignment when it was first given to the class. I was
intrigued that we were all going to be able to write about different topics for
the same assignment. Since I had received such positive feedback on my previous
assignment, I was excited to begin this one. After class, I decided to start
searching for some interesting prompts. I was quickly discouraged when all I kept
finding were short story contest, or contest that required further knowledge
about subjects I was not familiar with.
Starting out with
not being able to find something that seemed attainable was definitely a block
on the road for the production of this paper, but I didn’t give up. I began by
searching for things that held my interest and then searched further for
contest that were being given regarding that subject. By doing this I was
finally able to find a contest to enter.
The contest I selected
was for an anti-bully/bully prevention organization. The prompt was to write in
approximately 500 words why the youth should be happy with themselves and
explain why you personally think it is okay to be different and to be who you
are. Once I found this, I was enthralled to begin. I decided I was going to
take my writing in a direction that was to convince the youth to accept
themselves.
Creating the
direction I wanted this essay to take was the easy part, next I had to figure
out how I was going to achieve this with the limit of 500 words. I decided I
was going to break up my ideas and construct an outline that was going to help
me to gain control of the word limit, as well as help me conform to it.
Following the production of an outline, the first draft was ready to be started.
During the
development of the first draft, I included personal stories and reasons why
valuing yourself was crucial to living a happy and fulfilling life. After I had
completed that, I went back and added some more details to those ideas I had
presented. Then it was time to submit out draft in class, and complete peer reviews
for our classmates. A week later, we were going to be getting back our peers’
reviews and I was anxious. But after receiving them, my worries subsided and I was
ready to go again. The peer reviews I had received were very helpful and again
displayed where I needed to work on my paper. Not only did they suggest where I
needed work, but I was also praised for some of the work I had produced, which
kept me motivated.
Obtaining the peer
reviews was the most helpful critique I could have gained from this class. Not
only did students in the class take the time to do them, they put in effort as
if it were their own papers. They actually put in the time and effort to read
and evaluate the material you turned in, and wanted to help you succeed to
reach ones full potential. This helped me to submit my final copy, which in turn
allowed me to receive positive feedback from Professor Longhany.
Overall this essay
turned out to be something I am proud of. The process of writing this essay was
one that included discouragement at first, and being able to overcome the
obstacles I and faced and finally achieve it. This assignment required us to look
for contest that were interesting to us, and allowed us to be creative with our
work, and that is exactly what we did.
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