“Look inside yourself, you are more than what you have become.” –Mufasa


In the past year a new, enhanced writer has emerged from the writer I originally was, generated from my desire to correct my old habits and mistakes. I realize over the year I have truly embarked on a journey to improve and become a better writer, striving for superior writing even when I thought I could strive no farther.

At the beginning of this year my writing had much room for improvement. When I saw the less-than-satisfactory grade at the top of my first writing task, the Why I Write piece, I was defeated. The corners of my lips turning downward in a frustrated grimace, I held the paper in my hands and wondered how I could have gotten this grade. My hope continued to descend into a pit of despair when I saw my other pieces and the grades I received. What was I doing wrong? Meticulously scanning for errors and examining my paper for opportunities to grow and improve I came to a very shocking conclusion that I had been writing like I was still stuck in 7th grade, using cheesy similes, and dull description. Now, I am in 8th grade, and my writing just looked languid and sloppy.

For example, in my Why I Write piece I discovered that I had misused half of my vocabulary words and forced them into my sentences like circular blocks fitting into square wholes in a child’s toy. To change that, I made my sentence fit my word so it glided right into place and made sense.

Also, I observed that my elements of writer’s craft had the potential to have been a lot more vivid. Over the next writing pieces, I realized how important and powerful these elements could be if I used them well.



The Take a Stand and Banned Book project were the first significant assignments when I was really gratified by the acclimation I received when people looked at my paper. Travelling further into my eight-grade journey, I had faced a lot of pitfalls and bumpy rides, and right now there was a fork in the road. But, I knew I would take the path where success was waiting patiently at the end for me like a ribbon strung above a finish line to be shredded in two as an Olympic runner sprints through it. I was proud of what I had done no matter what grade I eventually got. Finally, I could boast and beam at my grade on my paper and be assured that I had learned from my mistakes and had come back strong and in control of how well I did. Working diligently day after day in class and at home really improved on my writing. If I thought my writing was good, which I thought was satisfactory a few months before, was now the bare minimum as far as success.
It seemed like an eternity since I had done that. Developing my opinion on topics was something I really enjoyed about both of the assignments. Believing that I could overcome the obstacles in front of me and learn from

I finally felt assured that I was able to escape from the rut I had fallen into and become a new writer, emerging from the wreckage