Nicholas Barnard
College Writing
Thomasenia Hutchins
As a writer one usually attempts to identify and correct problems inherent in his finished product. I believe I have identified these problems, but my writing continues to fail to meet my vision. These problems are inherent and consistent throughout all varieties of my writing. I have failed to convey clear messages in stage scripts, sitcom screen plays, creative stories, and expository essays. All forms of my written works suffer from common problems.
The progressing of one idea to another is a skill that I have found difficult to master. Transitioning, as progressing between ideas is often called, is a vital part of any form of writing because of the fact that it allows the reader to follow the ideas, through the narrative flow of the work. I often forgo well thought out transitioning and substitute poorly rephrased sentences, that partially serve the job of transitioning in my interpretation of the reading, but rarely others' interpretation of the piece.
The overall descriptive character of my writings suffer as a result of the transition focused revisions of my works. Often my descriptions are flat and scientific. In other instances my descriptions are technical and obscure, but these accurate references to items appear to be genius to me, but often lose my reader due to a trivial garnishment I decided to add. I have failed to find a methodology of adding interest to my stories without losing the reader and a clear narrative flow to my pieces.
Narrative flow is essential to the success of any piece. Quite literally the narrative flow is how the story of the piece progresses, or in an essay how the flow of thoughts develops. In many situations I tend to make obscure connections only associated through an insignificant event. This associative method seems normal to me, but as a result of the fact my readers do not possess my cranial unit that can associate ideas through insignificant portions of memory, they become lost as to my intentions. Another important portion of narrative flow is the proper ordering of ideas, which also allows the reader to follow the argument of the writer, a skill that sometime eludes me.
The success of any piece relies on several elements coming together within a coherent frame at the appropriate places and proportions. I have just analyzed the pieces of my writing, but the possibility exists that focusing on the pieces degrades any work, turning it into a simplistic jigsaw-puzzle. The key to good essay writing is finding the correct places for the jigsaw essay pieces, and then applying an excellent veneer to obscure the remaining seams.