Scott Hartsell Professor Padgett English 1101 26 November 2013 My Thoughts on Good Writing What is good writing?

Everyone has their own unique opinion on it. You cannot go and google a set definition of it, but it is definitely clear when a piece of writing is written well above others such as J. K. Rowlings Harry Potter. So what makes good writing good? Grammar and spelling can only provide so much in the writing department so there are obviously some other role-playing factors here. You could have a piece of writing in perfect form (grammar/spelling-wise) but it could still be blown away by other pieces of work just because they are more catchy and interesting. In this paper I am going to analyze what I think makes good writing good from textual examples, some being my own and others from different authors. I believe that good writing stems from being easily understood and relatable by the audience, being written properly (grammar/spelling), and an ability for the authors writing style to be interesting to a wide variety of people. Let us take a look at an example from Sherman Alexies The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me:. I can remember picking up my fathers books before I could read. The words themselves were mostly foreign, but I still remember the exact moment when I understood, with a sudden clarity, the purpose of a paragraph. I didnt have the vocabulary to say paragraph, but I realized that a paragraph was a fence that held words. (Alexie)
Comment [AP2]: Okay, so it seems like youre talking about mass appeal. Formatted: Font: Not Italic Comment [AP1]: What about people who dont think HP is all that great?

Hartsell 2 Here is a little background for the essay: Alexie grew up on an Indian reservation in an extremely poor family where reading and writing were frowned upon. To me, this passage of his essay is extremely clear. He talks about how he learns to read and his recognition of the organization of writing. What makes this good writing is just that it is easily understood and has clear structure. His comparison is a little awkward at first a fence for words but when you put it into perspective with his lifestyle growing up, it works quite nicely. His sentences all work together and are cohesive, a certain requirement of any good piece of writing. What if this passage had been all over the place, or had just had a random off-topic sentence thrown in the mix? It would be very confusing and a turn-off for the reader. Another factor of good writing is that it is relatable to the reader. Looking back at the example from Sherman Alexie, it made me think about my reading experience as a child. Maybe not consciously, but it was definitely ion the back of my mind as I sort of compared my experience with his in an effort to make a connection. Not all writing will be relatable of course writing can be on anything and everything, and it is assumed that you have not experienced absolutely everything that has been written on. Going back to the topic of Harry Potter, let us think about the main characters in the series. There is Harry Potter (of course), Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. They all go to a school of wizardry where they are trained in magic and are involved in a series of adventures involving Harrys foe, Voldemort. Dudleys mouth fell open in horror, but Harrys heart gave a leap. Every year on Dudleys birthday, his parents took him and a friend out for a day, to adventure parks, hamburger restaurants, or the movies. Every year, Harry was left behind with Mrs. Figg, a mad old lady who lived two streets away. Harry hated it there. The house smelled of cabbage and Mrs. Figg made him look at photographs of all the cats shed ever owned (J. K.
Comment [AP3]: Good, I really like this analysis here.

Hartsell 3 Rowling, page). Now I am sure that anyone that reads this paragraph can relate to it. Be it they grew up in a similar situation of favoritism in the family, loathe spoiled children, or have been babysat by a crazy old lady that hoards cats everyone can relate to it. This creates a mental connection and helps create a more realistic feeling when reading since you have first-hand experience or knowledge on similar matters. Even just the backgrounds of Ron and Hermione allow you to connect with them. They are described with feelings and situations just like anyone else. Ron grows up in a very poor wizarding family and is constantly embarrassed by it; Hermione is so afraid of failing that all she does is study. The result is the same fear of failure and judgment of others being brought out in your mind and this connection happens again. If a piece of writing can cause this connection to occur, then it is probably good especially if it is easy to read and cohesive. These factors work together to create that fabric of realism in fiction. In non-fiction, this connection also works, but more so in a way that allows you to share feelings with the people being described in a biography or a time period, in, per se, a history book. Grammar and spelling is also a large part of good writing and also ties into a piece being an easy read. If one does not use proper punctuation or spelling in their works, then it becomes frustrating for the reader. For, if we dont, we will have truly become exactly like or hated enemy, the virus (Sally Sue). This is the concluding sentence to a short essay about humans and their impact on the Earth with global warming. I do not know about you, but it makes me cringe to read it it is just not structured well and the misspelled word our just makes it seem very unprofessional, like it belongs in the comments section of a Youtube video. Also, the comma toward the end of the sentence is extremely awkward - since there are only two words after it, it ends very abruptly and does not provide a smooth ending. Without grammar and spelling rules
Comment [AP7]: :) Comment [AP6]: Your conversation on connecting with the reader here is really solid. Comment [AP4]: Okay, I really like your reasoning here. Comment [AP5]: Assuming too much? Though I think its safe to say that most people have experienced these sorts of feelings at some point in life.

Hartsell 4 implemented correctly, any piece of writing could become essentially a code to decipher, discouraging anyone from reading it and for it to become a good piece of writing at all. The final part of my thesis stated that the authors style should be able to be interesting to a wide variety of people. I believe that this comes simply from experience as a writer. Being a writer, it is assumed that you read a fair number of books. Chances are that these books have all been written well. Subconsciously, after reading each of these books you pick up bits and pieces of tips for yourself; things that you noticed that made the book good or intriguing and you begin to apply those to your own style of writing. The same thing is true for a musician. If you want to know how to write good music, you just have to listen to many varieties of music and pick up tips and tricks off of what other people are doing, and then infuse them into your style of writing music. But if you do not listen to very many genres, you end up limiting yourself. Chances are that if you do not read a lot, you will not be as good a writer as those who do. Let us take all these elements of good writing and look at a piece of my own writing and determine if it displays my factors of good writing. The second paragraph incorporates a lot of logos logical explanations. For example, I made the comparison of charging only twenty dollars to produce, mix, and master a full song. Anywhere else this would be much more expensive; therefore, she should not have expected the same kind of speed and service that a top- dollar studio would have provided. I tried to highlight on the fact that we are only a small business and that we could not keep up with her demand. This is a sample paragraph from an essay I wrote analyzing a complaint letter I had written. The grammar and spelling here are spot on, making this an easy read. All of the sentences work
Comment [AP11]: Does spot on mean flawless in this context? Comment [AP10]: I agree with all of these things, but Im trying to find a connection to your thesis. Comment [AP9]: hopefully Comment [AP8]: isnt that what languages are anyway?

Hartsell 5 together and are cohesive; there are no random bursts here and I think I explain myself well. I try to make a connection with my audience by talking about a customer being difficult and sharing my frustration. Overall, I think that this is a good example of good writing, but it definitely could have been more interesting and better in general. I just need to read more so that I can build up my writing style. A piece of good writing is relatable and easy to read, has good grammar and spelling, and is interesting due to the authors expansive style. I do not consider myself a good writer only competent at a maximum. This is because I do not practice much, nor do I read as many books as I should to expand my own style of writing. Even if I do not use the points stated above as effectively as I could, they are all still valid to a piece of good writing regardless. But sometimes you do not have to really analyze or think about a piece of writing to judge whether it is good or not sometimes you just know. Scott, I really like what youre saying about mass appeal in this essay. You make great use of specific examples of writing that you think is good and writing that you think is not as good. You use sound reasoning and logic to support your position. I think the paragraph about writing development seems off topic, and I wonder if the second to last paragraph is too selfcongratulatory. How does that paragraph speak to your ethos? Otherwise good work here.
Comment [AP12]: You seem to be impressed with yourself in the preceding paragraph.

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Works Cited Alexie, Sherman. The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me. Reading assignment from class. Hartsell, Scott. Analysis Essay. Essay from class. Rowling, J. K., and Mary Grand r . Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. New York: Scholastic, 1997. Print. Sue, Sally. A Brave New World. English 1102 example from class.