As stated in E. Shelley Reid’s article, “Ten Ways To Think About Writing: Metaphoric Musings for College Writing Student,” writing is challenging. Writing is not just something you learn from morning to night. In fact, after reading Reid’s article I am convinced that we will never stop learning how to become better writers. Writing should be engaging, as the author is with her audience. It really grasped my attention how Reid incorporates ten metaphors to show students the mistakes one makes in writing. What I liked about her article is how she conveys the message of not just focusing on rules because many times writing may seem like a chore rather than a living process that connects people (Reid.) I agree with Reid, writing should be a form of connecting with readers. It would be best if you wrote about what you’re passionate about. In the first section “A THOUSAND RULES AND THREE PRINCIPLES,” Reid suggests that writing can be one the most complex things one can do because of how many restrictions students have. Reid states three principles that help students simplify writing. The first principle is “Write about what you know.” The second is “Show, don’t just tell.” The third is “Adapt to the audience and purpose you’re writing for.” These three principles help students understand that writing doesn’t always have to be restrictive, yet these principles also show that writing always has a purpose. In order to fulfill the writing’s purpose, students (writers) need to adapt to the audience and reach their expectations. In overall, Reid has shown in her article that writing will never be easy but there are ways that help us simplify writing.
No writing is perfect
I couldn’t help but think of our discussion in class about writing never being perfect. When reading Reid’s article, I concluded that people never stop learning and improving their writing. There is no such thing as perfect writing because everyone has a different perspective on what makes up perfect writing. We can reach the highest level of education and yet our writing will never be perfect because there is no such thing as perfect. We can become very skilled writers but never perfect writers because for another audience our writing techniques are very different from theirs. It’s okay to write differently, use different styles, and write about what we’re passionate about. What is not okay is when students feel that writing is a burden due to the many rules we have been taught for as long as we can remember. It’s not okay to believe that in order for writing to be “perfect” we have to be objective and not hear our voices in our writing. Our writing will never be perfect in the eyes of other people, but it can be authentic, passionate, and most importantly, writing can be the painting of our voice.
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