Elements of Writing

Learning how to write an essay has been quite an interesting journey for me. Looking back at the pathway from day one to this point helps me to understand that using and applying rhetorical tools gives me the ability to create a higher quality essay, paper, or story. Utilizing rhetorical tools allows me to be more effective in reaching and communicating well with my desired audience. 

Some of the tools that have helped me the most throughout this process are: the order of the essay writing process, narrative, description, compare and contrast, cause and effect, and peer review. Each of these elements plays a specific part in the writing process, giving me the ability to be clear in what I am trying to convey to the audience. The process of getting everything out of my head and onto paper has always been a struggle for me. I haven’t had the ability to say exactly what I thought or felt. These four tools literally give me a better voice as I apply them in the writing process. The following is a brief explanation of what they are and why they are important.

Writing an essay is easier when the body is written first, the conclusion second, and the introduction last. It seems backwards, but this process allows you to get all of the important information together first. Next, the conclusion will sum up everything you have already stated. Finally, the introduction will point the way through the essay to the conclusion. The introduction can be done this way because the body and conclusion are already written. Your introduction will simply capture the attention of the audience and provide a pathway through the rest of the essay.

Narratives are used in the writing process to grab attention, prove a point, or better explain something. Description gives the audience a clear picture of what is being referred to. Compare and Contrast gives the audience a greater understanding of details and what something is, or is not. Cause and Effect shows how or why something happened. Description, Compare and Contrast, Cause and Effect can all be used in a narrative to give greater detail and understanding to the audience – giving the author a better voice.

Before any paper is complete, a great way to polish it is to have a peer read over it. Any author can easily miss the punctuation and spelling errors in their writing. Another benefit to a peer review is that the peer can point out any details that may be missing, which would cause confusion to an audience. A fresh set of eyes can make all of the difference in any writing project.

For more details on these topics, please refer to my previous blogs.