You give me so much hope.. I am struggling and only on my first week of ap Lang because I realized I’m not a good writer or analyzer like many people in my own class :( I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately and don’t know how I’m going to improve, but hopefully I’ll see light down in the tunnel because I want to do better!
You got this! I also wasn't confident when I began studying for AP Lang, but the more practice you do, the more ready you'll feel. Good luck and happy learning 😄
Writing is a learned skill. Often the people who are good at it early are, in the end, not very interesting. Find examples you like, don't copy, steal. Copying is plagiarism; easily detected by googling small sections. Stealing is aggressive learning. Powerful and can be almost immediate. "After a desperate first week of AP English(WTF is 'Lang'? Language Skills? Only monsters in suits thinks this is descriptive.) Your video gives me some hope. Other students are already better writers and more analytical. " I just 'stole' from your comment. I decided in 2008 that I would follow the 10,000 hours principle and write a novel. Two assumptions: that I already had at least 5000 hours from decades of reading and writing, and that my 'teachers' would be the great writers. Everything writing does or can do is on a page somewhere. So Dickens, Austen, etc.. are my coaches. I was right about my second assumption. I think I'm finally close to 10,000 hours. One important thing I learned: If I don't enjoy writing it, no one is going to enjoy reading it. So enjoy the process. Writing is editing. So write write write, then rewrite. Learn to touch type. (I've marked up my keyboard with dots of hot glue for some keys where I make mistakes, all odd numbers, the home keys, etc... I've also stuck on large letter stickers. I touch type, but I peek. ) I've got ADHD, so I would usually wait until just before the due date... Better is to immediately start. Start while the teacher is repeating the list of requirements. Do most of it the first day, now you're ahead of the game. I also stopped worrying about the requirements and the grade. Instead I want to crush the assignment. Good luck.
With humble and grateful intent, I admit that heaven knows that I am definitely receptive to whatever I can get my hands on to improve my writing (especially since writing is one of my passions). I am elated to find this informative and motivational feature of 5 Books to Improve Your Writing via the Ms. Peer Editor youtube channel.
Good video. I have many books on writing, some of them terrific, some lousy (I'm embarrassed that they're in my house.) Some have a few good tips, some many. Just part of the process. I think Stephen Pinker 'took down' Stunk & White. It repeatedly violates it's own principles, has serious mistakes. Meh. Such is life. It's useful, especially to students. (I've studied and learned from it, but I'll bet you could learn more studying Charlotte's Web.) My take is to learn, but not over worry, the rules. Rigidly following rules is a dead end. (I've seen Amazon reviews where teachers (I was once...) praise a book because it has no grammatical mistakes. I've also heard that Heinrich Himmler's manners were impeccable. ) Ever see a school hoist a banner that says, "At our school we talk and write in complete sentences'? I once pointed out that the person boasting about this just violated the banner when they presented it. Their scowl meant they didn't care. No one speaks in complete sentences. Read a transcript. This is important to understand and appreciate. Writing is meant to be read aloud, but it is not speaking. One is not better than the other -- they inform each other. Zinnser sounds good. In high school a teacher said that we would learn grammar in her class. Great. I'm in. Then all she'd do is write 'grammar!' on my papers. When I'd ask, she said, 'go to the library and get a book on it.' She never taught grammar, she taught insecurity. (The class started with requiring us to write an essay on the Alexander Pope quote, "As the twig is bent..." Easily understandable... except whatever we wrote she said wasn't enough... It's a chestnut. There is no deeper or nuanced meaning. If you're a student subjected to this, include a passage about a cult of deranged teachers meeting to beat on the carcass of quadruped. (Reference to Dickens's Hard Times.) ) The ubiquitous No Adverbs rule is interesting. They usually clunk badly. Awfully clunk? Often they are superfluous, but it might also just be our modern English reading ear. (James Jones uses a lot of them in his writing. Terrific books The Thin Red Line and From Here to Eternity; the adverbs still clunk. ) I've just ordered the Art of X-Ray Reading. (Thank you!) This seems similar to the approach I use. Which are the books I really like? Why do I like them? Then How do they Work? How do they do what they do? Then I try to steal from them make my own version. If you do this well it's no longer stealing, it's become part of your bag of tricks. Punctuation rules. When you really get into writing, especially dialogue, you begin to understand that commas, semicolons, periods, italics, dashes, question marks, etc... are often just forms of pauses and emphasis. They are conventions more than rules. In many cases I've found the specific emphasis I want to use (usually in between other forms of emphasis) is either not clear, doesn't exist, or two people (us on different days) would disagree. Sometimes because it can't be accomplished, you just have to change the passage until it works. A reader, actor or director could do it, even a child has a wider range than does punctuation. Just part of the game. But learn the Oxford comma, when you need it -- it's needed. Something that seems never covered in prose writing is metrics, usually iambic/trochee. I think most of the best pop songs wind up using some pattern of accented syllables. (Teachers go off the rails when they teach Shakespeare's use of iambic pentameter and then give examples that are trochee (its mirror) "now IS the WINter OF our..." WT...??) I find when I edit my writing I often shift words to get a beat. I think it helps. I think in our present English speaking we don't use it as much. Bureaucratic writing seems to actively avoid it. South Asian English seems to be the present masters of metrics in (our) English. See how an accented syllable was needed there? Most of this is not applied, it is by ear. "You can't hurry love, no you just have to wait, Love don't come easy, it's a game of give and take." That 'no' is there just for the beat. Wake up with a headache, find an interesting video... and right down the rabbit hole.... Hope I haven't bored. If I've offended? Good. Take me down a notch.
Did you read all the books that are referred to on The art of X-Ray reading..? Do you think it might be ok to go over the book without having read some of the books mentioned?
You definitely do not need to have read all of the books that are mentioned in The Art of X-Ray Reading! I haven't read all of them yet, either. You'll still be able to understand what the author, Roy Peter Clark, is referring to because he often includes excerpts from the books he is analyzing.
Thank you very much 😊 I am looking for a English language textbook specifically about learning different types of writing (informative, argumentative, discursive) with annotated examples from from published articles. I would be really greatful if you could recommend me user friendly guidebook/ textbook if you have come across.
I am in 12th ,in India it is a year to chose what you wanna study further I am studying science ( medical) ,so can I further write and study at same time?
Hii, I guess your exams are cancelled or maybe they held online (I'm not sure), so basically what you can do is, while you're studying try to take notes especially Bio and Chem that would be really beneficial to help you acknowledge your studies and simultaneously help you improve writing and building vocabulary. I did the same thing, it helped me pretty well. Good Luck 👍
You give me so much hope.. I am struggling and only on my first week of ap Lang because I realized I’m not a good writer or analyzer like many people in my own class :( I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately and don’t know how I’m going to improve, but hopefully I’ll see light down in the tunnel because I want to do better!
You got this! I also wasn't confident when I began studying for AP Lang, but the more practice you do, the more ready you'll feel. Good luck and happy learning 😄
How’d it go?
Writing is a learned skill. Often the people who are good at it early are, in the end, not very interesting. Find examples you like, don't copy, steal. Copying is plagiarism; easily detected by googling small sections. Stealing is aggressive learning. Powerful and can be almost immediate. "After a desperate first week of AP English(WTF is 'Lang'? Language Skills? Only monsters in suits thinks this is descriptive.) Your video gives me some hope. Other students are already better writers and more analytical. " I just 'stole' from your comment.
I decided in 2008 that I would follow the 10,000 hours principle and write a novel. Two assumptions: that I already had at least 5000 hours from decades of reading and writing, and that my 'teachers' would be the great writers. Everything writing does or can do is on a page somewhere. So Dickens, Austen, etc.. are my coaches. I was right about my second assumption. I think I'm finally close to 10,000 hours. One important thing I learned: If I don't enjoy writing it, no one is going to enjoy reading it. So enjoy the process.
Writing is editing. So write write write, then rewrite. Learn to touch type. (I've marked up my keyboard with dots of hot glue for some keys where I make mistakes, all odd numbers, the home keys, etc... I've also stuck on large letter stickers. I touch type, but I peek. )
I've got ADHD, so I would usually wait until just before the due date... Better is to immediately start. Start while the teacher is repeating the list of requirements. Do most of it the first day, now you're ahead of the game. I also stopped worrying about the requirements and the grade. Instead I want to crush the assignment.
Good luck.
This was very helpful thank you for taking the time I’m going to invest in these books and start my journey to writing my autobiography
I would love a Ms. Peer Editor book club 🥰
I have the elements of style!!
Wow! I am most excited for referring these books.
Wow , this exactly what I was looking for , thanks so much.....💕💕💕💕💕💕
This was great. Thanks.
It would be awesome to have non-fiction/memoir recommendations!
I agree! Thanks for the suggestion :)
dreyer's english
With humble and grateful intent, I admit that heaven knows that I am definitely receptive to whatever I can get my hands on to improve my writing (especially since writing is one of my passions). I am elated to find this informative and motivational feature of 5 Books to Improve Your Writing via the Ms. Peer Editor youtube channel.
Good video. I have many books on writing, some of them terrific, some lousy (I'm embarrassed that they're in my house.) Some have a few good tips, some many. Just part of the process.
I think Stephen Pinker 'took down' Stunk & White. It repeatedly violates it's own principles, has serious mistakes. Meh. Such is life. It's useful, especially to students. (I've studied and learned from it, but I'll bet you could learn more studying Charlotte's Web.) My take is to learn, but not over worry, the rules. Rigidly following rules is a dead end. (I've seen Amazon reviews where teachers (I was once...) praise a book because it has no grammatical mistakes. I've also heard that Heinrich Himmler's manners were impeccable. ) Ever see a school hoist a banner that says, "At our school we talk and write in complete sentences'? I once pointed out that the person boasting about this just violated the banner when they presented it. Their scowl meant they didn't care. No one speaks in complete sentences. Read a transcript. This is important to understand and appreciate. Writing is meant to be read aloud, but it is not speaking. One is not better than the other -- they inform each other.
Zinnser sounds good. In high school a teacher said that we would learn grammar in her class. Great. I'm in. Then all she'd do is write 'grammar!' on my papers. When I'd ask, she said, 'go to the library and get a book on it.' She never taught grammar, she taught insecurity. (The class started with requiring us to write an essay on the Alexander Pope quote, "As the twig is bent..." Easily understandable... except whatever we wrote she said wasn't enough... It's a chestnut. There is no deeper or nuanced meaning. If you're a student subjected to this, include a passage about a cult of deranged teachers meeting to beat on the carcass of quadruped. (Reference to Dickens's Hard Times.) )
The ubiquitous No Adverbs rule is interesting. They usually clunk badly. Awfully clunk? Often they are superfluous, but it might also just be our modern English reading ear. (James Jones uses a lot of them in his writing. Terrific books The Thin Red Line and From Here to Eternity; the adverbs still clunk. )
I've just ordered the Art of X-Ray Reading. (Thank you!) This seems similar to the approach I use. Which are the books I really like? Why do I like them? Then How do they Work? How do they do what they do? Then I try to steal from them make my own version. If you do this well it's no longer stealing, it's become part of your bag of tricks.
Punctuation rules. When you really get into writing, especially dialogue, you begin to understand that commas, semicolons, periods, italics, dashes, question marks, etc... are often just forms of pauses and emphasis. They are conventions more than rules. In many cases I've found the specific emphasis I want to use (usually in between other forms of emphasis) is either not clear, doesn't exist, or two people (us on different days) would disagree. Sometimes because it can't be accomplished, you just have to change the passage until it works. A reader, actor or director could do it, even a child has a wider range than does punctuation. Just part of the game. But learn the Oxford comma, when you need it -- it's needed.
Something that seems never covered in prose writing is metrics, usually iambic/trochee. I think most of the best pop songs wind up using some pattern of accented syllables. (Teachers go off the rails when they teach Shakespeare's use of iambic pentameter and then give examples that are trochee (its mirror) "now IS the WINter OF our..." WT...??) I find when I edit my writing I often shift words to get a beat. I think it helps. I think in our present English speaking we don't use it as much. Bureaucratic writing seems to actively avoid it. South Asian English seems to be the present masters of metrics in (our) English. See how an accented syllable was needed there? Most of this is not applied, it is by ear. "You can't hurry love, no you just have to wait, Love don't come easy, it's a game of give and take." That 'no' is there just for the beat.
Wake up with a headache, find an interesting video... and right down the rabbit hole.... Hope I haven't bored. If I've offended? Good. Take me down a notch.
Did you read all the books that are referred to on The art of X-Ray reading..? Do you think it might be ok to go over the book without having read some of the books mentioned?
You definitely do not need to have read all of the books that are mentioned in The Art of X-Ray Reading! I haven't read all of them yet, either. You'll still be able to understand what the author, Roy Peter Clark, is referring to because he often includes excerpts from the books he is analyzing.
Why thank ya!
Steven Pinker's "THE Sense of Style" is indispensable. Pinker dismantles a few William Strunk and E B white's rancid advice.
Gracias!
Reading any of Mark Twain's books will improve your understanding of how to write clearly.
Thank youu
Thank you very much 😊 I am looking for a English language textbook specifically about learning different types of writing (informative, argumentative, discursive) with annotated examples from from published articles. I would be really greatful if you could recommend me user friendly guidebook/ textbook if you have come across.
I am in 12th ,in India it is a year to chose what you wanna study further I am studying science ( medical) ,so can I further write and study at same time?
Hii,
I guess your exams are cancelled or maybe they held online (I'm not sure), so basically what you can do is, while you're studying try to take notes especially Bio and Chem that would be really beneficial to help you acknowledge your studies and simultaneously help you improve writing and building vocabulary.
I did the same thing, it helped me pretty well.
Good Luck 👍
nice info
Excellent review
👏👏👏