Reflection of the Writing Process for “Parsing Sweat” by Zora Neale Hurston
In February, I began reading about the challenges that African Americans faced in the 20th century as part of a celebration of the Black History Month, a time for recognizing the achievements and the struggle of black people. In the process, I came across Zora Neale’s short story. I chose to study the book because it depicts the physical abuse that most African American women still face in the 21st century. Before writing the review, I engage in a prewriting process, entailing taking notes on the main thesis and arguments in the book. This process helped generate ideas for the review.
The drafting phase was an opportunity to connect ideas and arguments in the book. In this phase, I wrote the review with no attention to spelling. Irawati supported this strategy when she argued that drafting is a time for a writer to sketch out the arguments and ideas. In this regard, I started by writing the introduction to provide the direction for the review. Upon completing the draft, it was time to revise the document. The revision stage is used to refine the prose, eliminate spelling mistakes, and make the sentences more concise (“Resources for Writers”). When revising, I shut out all the distractions. I then read the paragraphs slowly to ensure that I do not skip any mistakes to make sure that the arguments were explicitly clear from a reader’s perspective.
I did most of my writing in the library on Fridays and weekends. Out of the four types, I feel most confident in persuasive writing since it permits an author to give personal opinions on the subject. Conversely, expository writing is the most challenging since it requires a logical explanation of facts and figures, which often change with the advancement of technology. In most of my writings, I noticed that I often have difficulties finding a clear topic sentence. Besides, I also find myself packing too many ideas in a single paragraph. Nonetheless, my writing strengths include excellent revision skills and the ability to ensure a logical flow of arguments. I want to continue to improve on my weaknesses in readiness for my career as a successful author.