In-class Writing 1

I have had many positive reading experiences. I love literature and reading. One of my first positive experiences is from my early childhood. My dad would read aloud for me and my brother every evening. Nights when he read to us were always great.
Another positive experience I've had with reading happened last summer. I decided to read The Lord of the Flies, by William Golding. I began reading it in the evening, and I was so captivated by the story, that I read all through the night and into the early morning. I could not put it down. By the time I finished, it was 2:00 AM, but I did not care, because I liked the book so much.
I spent much of my childhood reading, and thanks to this, almost every reading experience is a positive one for me. There is a lot of beauty in literature.

When it comes to writing, I have a mixture of good and bad writing experiences. I remember one time when a brief comedic presentation that I had written made my whole classroom laugh. That was a great experience. It was amazing to see my writing be so effective, and to see other people respond positively to it. On the other hand, I've had some trouble with writing in the past. I was never very good at following the format prescribed by my instructor. This got me into lots of trouble. I remember receiving a D on a final paper my junior year of high school because I had been too lazy to make it in MLA format. I also have problems organizing a concise argument. I tend to create disorganized, sprawling papers that take up ten pages and lack a clear direction or purpose. In my senior year of high school, I started working on a final paper months in advance. However, I found myself struggling with revisions and corrections the day before it was due. I received a passing grade, but in retrospect, I realize how much better it would have been if I had made a simpler argument and developed it more.

I like reading and I like writing, but I have a lot of work to do at both. I want to be the best writer I can be.