Just like how doing laundry is a multi-stage process, writing is also a process. The dirty clothes represent my initial thoughts and ideas. Those ideas serve as the foundation for constructing my writing, but they are raw and messy. That’s why I’ve begun incorporating a visual outline to help visualize what my first draft will look like. Just like how detergent helps wash clothes, visual information helps me assemble and arrange my ideas into a draft. For example, turning my literacy narrative into a comic allowed me to visualize how I wanted to restructure my narrative in a more effective way. The washing machine represents combining all my ideas of what I’m going to write with a visual outline to facilitate properly organizing my writing. Just like how a washing machine spins and mixes all the clothes together, I envision the first draft to be a mixing and processing of my ideas. Doing laundry isn’t just about washing the clothes, however. It also involves drying the clothes. Once the rough draft has been completed, the next component of the process is editing and revising. A lot can go into this. After rereading and reflecting on what I had previously written, I’ve learned to listen to other people’s thoughts. When constructing a final draft, I try to combine the suggestions given from both peers and professors into my writing, just like how a dryer turns and mixes the clothes. In that way, similar to how the process of drying my laundry ends with nice, clean clothes, the process of editing, revising and reflecting helps produce a polished final draft.
Enrolling in this class has surpassed my expectations for a first-year writing class at Emory University. I first thought enrolling in this class would just mean this was a class just to get my freshman credits out of the way, but throughout the semester, this turned into one of my favorite classes and one that I looked forward to throughout the semester. The various projects, sketch assignments, papers, and other work did not seem like a “burden” to complete; instead, I enjoyed the work, as it acted like a breath of fresh air and a stress reliever from the tension of my other classes this semester. I also feel that, in a way, this class helped me break through the box of high school and middle school writing skills and helped me evolve into a better writer, which also helped my performance in other classes this semester. I learned to think critically and develop a more creative approach to my writing. I also better understood the importance of writing and how it can be used to convey complex ideas. The supportive and engaging atmosphere of the instructor and fellow students significantly contributed to my positive experience. Collaboration and paper interaction throughout the class improved my writing skills and created a sense of camaraderie that enhanced learning. Overall, this class has been a stepping stone for my academic journey, providing me with new writing skills I will use throughout my academic career.
The first “significant” assignment we had was the literacy narrative, and its three parts helped enhance my writing and helped me analyze the type of reader and writer I am and why I am this way. This was unlike any assignment I ever had to perform in high school because it helped me find the root cause of my reading choices and writing techniques. For example, “I discovered that my mom reading me and my twin brother’s bedtime stories while we were in elementary school contributed a lot to my love interest in fantasy during quarantine,” demonstrating how this helped me understand how my past experiences shaped my reading preferences, and how this experience was eye-opening and has changed the way I think about my reading habits. In addition, I also analyzed that my writing interest and ability come from writing about myself because I believed that I had a “different” upbringing because I was one of the few Indian students in my high school. Still, when I got to Emory, I had to rethink my writing interest because many students here share the same upbringing experiences as I did. Another significant part of this assignment was turning my essay into a comic. The main difficulty or difference of creating my literacy narrative in comic strip form was that I had only to include the “important” parts of my essay in the comic, as I felt like I had more limited space to work with. Overall, this was a great experience because it taught me to think critically, condense my essay, and let the figures and pictures in my comic do most of the storytelling. The third part of this assignment was the revisions part of the first part of the essay. The main changes I made were making sure my essay did not have a “happy ending,” I did not have to discover a liking for reading magically, and I did not have to act like reading was now one of my favorite hobbies and passions. In my conclusion, I could just be true to myself; I broke free from a formulaic resolution and encouraged a broader understanding that personal growth can be unique and different.
Another essential skill I learned throughout this semester was analyzing text better, looking at the methods the author uses to express their narrative or viewpoint, and what each page and drawing does for the author’s argument. The primary assignment that honed my skills was the tracing pages assignment, in which we took a closer look at the pages from Spinning and Stitches. We analyzed the rhetorical situation of these texts; we discussed the intended audience, the message, and the impact of the text. We also discussed how the texts were structured and presented. Finally, we discussed how these elements worked together to create a successful text. This assignment was a lot different from any other assignment I did in high school, given that it was a comic. I was able to redraw the pages from the text and analyze the comic panels closer, looking at the overall structure of the page, the types of panels that the author used, the facial structures, the objects the author chose to draw, and why the author decided to take up space on the way page the way they did. I learned a lot about the comic book language and the author’s purpose through this assignment, as both the authors of these novels used minimal text and made more use of drawings and expressions to develop the mood and argument.
Furthermore, this class, as a whole, was a lot different than any other class I have taken so far and that I will probably take here at Emory. It completely changed my viewpoint on comics, as initially, I thought comics were a bottom-tier way to express stories and emotion; I felt that they were meant for children telling stories about superheroes and saving the world from ending. I saw comics more as a light-hearted genre and dismissed them as “fun reads.” However, this semester completely changed my viewpoint on this comic genre and the fact that they can be used. I discovered that comics are a powerful tool for converting characters’ emotions and serve as a great way to enhance character development. In addition, through this class, I have also discovered the diverse range of styles and genres within the world of comics, transforming my stereotypical view of comics as superhero narratives. Novels of this genre can captivate me by portraying historical events, challenging childhood memories, societal issues, and various other profound subjects.
Lastly, the sketch assignments we did in this class were also unique and helped me develop as a writer, and some of these sketches helped me in other courses. For example, I still use the tactics of the visual note-taking assignment in the topics I am struggling with for other classes. In addition, these sketches taught me a lot of critical thinking skills as well; when creating the triptych, we had to create a beginning, middle, and end in only three panels, meaning we had to create a brief story, making the problematic part limiting myself to only using this space and not going into too much depth for each part of the story. Similarly, for the quadriptych, we had to create a story using only four panels, which, in my opinion, required more critical thinking skills because we had to add another panel and make it so this panel has a use in the story, and was not just thrown in to elongate the beginning, middle, or end.
Most of the sketch assignments were also very enjoyable, such as when we had to recreate a scene from our favorite movie, where I chose to do a Darth Maul scene from Star Wars. This assignment brought back a lot of nostalgia from my elementary school years when the Star Wars series was one of my favorite movie series, and it was fun to recreate a scene from my favorite characters in Star Wars. Another famous sketch was the Data Viz assignment because it was interesting to change a small part of my life to see if it affected my productivity. I study best by listening to Hindi music.
The last major part of the class that helped develop my writing and reading skills was the Halfa Kucha presentation. This presentation was just an alternative to writing an essay, in which we had to create a 10-slide, 20-second per-slide presentation, demonstrating how the pieces we read this semester show trauma and healing. Providing a compelling and concise argument for the time constraints was challenging. Still, overall, it was a good learning experience that taught me the importance of being straightforward and efficient with my writing and helped me with my
Public speaking skills.
In addition, throughout this class, I was also taught many technological skills, including creating our website, photo editing skills, and image and text citations. These skills were invaluable, and I am confident that I will use them in the future. Understanding how websites work and being able to navigate content management systems contributes to overall tech literacy. This is increasingly important in a world where technology plays a significant role in personal and professional life.
In conclusion, my first-year writing class at Emory University has been a transformative journey, surpassing the initial expectations of a mere freshman credit requirement. The diverse projects, from the revealing Literacy Narrative to the insightful tracing pages assignment, propelled me to think critically, break free from high school writing constraints, and approach writing with newfound creativity. The class revolutionized my perception of comics, demonstrating their emotional depth and ability to address profound subjects. The sketch assignments, such as visual note-taking and the triptych, honed my critical thinking skills, providing practical tools for other courses.
Since Christmas is coming, I get inspiration from the shape of the Christmas Tree. The tree of my academic journey this semester stands tall, with each light and present representing the myriad skills and projects that I have developed and completed. At the pinnacle, the star—the reflection letter—symbolizes the culmination of my learning, shedding light on the path I’ve traversed.
Just below the star, the “Pecha Kucha” bauble sparkles with the essence of concise oral storytelling. It taught me the art of brevity and the skill of focusing on the most salient points of my narrative. The “Final Portfolio” that branches out alongside is the robust assembly of my works, showcasing my progress and the breadth of my capabilities. Encircling the tree, the “10 Sunday Sketches” are like the lights, brightening my understanding of various topics with quick bursts of creativity. Each sketch was an opportunity to explore ideas rapidly and without the pressure of perfection, allowing for a free flow of thoughts. Lower on the tree, the “Literacy Narrative” series presents a trio of gifts, each unwrapped through the semester. The first narrative was the foundation, a platform where I explored my relationship with reading and writing. The second, in the form of a comic, added a visual dimension to my storytelling, challenging me to convey meaning clearly beyond words. The third narrative was the synthesis of my learning, where I could apply the feedback from the previous two and refine my storytelling craft. Another gift under the tree, comprised of “Tracing, Stitches & Spinning,” represents the fundamental skills—research, drafting, and revising—that are the roots of all academic writing. This assignment taught me to explore more details in the comic: the frame, the image, the facial expression and so on.
In crafting this Christmas tree diagram, I’ve learned that my growth as a writer and reader is not just a linear progression but a seasonal cycle of learning and reflection. Each component, each project, and each skill is an integral part of the whole, contributing to the stability and beauty of the entire structure. As I step back and view this tree in all its decorated glory, I see not just a series of assignments completed but a structure of learning—a testament to the knowledge I’ve gathered and the intellectual ornaments I’ve accrued along the way.
If you haven’t already, you should change the front page of your site so that it’s a static front page instead of your posts page. Here is a support document that explains how to create a static front page (if your theme hasn’t disabled the Customizer menu, I recommend you follow the instructions for “Set the Homepage from the Customizer”). Note that you will likely need to create a new posts page along with the static page. In the screenshot of the menu below, you can just click on “+ Add New Page” and then create a page called “Posts” or something like that.
Your reflection essay should go in the static front page, so that it’s the first thing a reader sees if they just go to your sites URL. You can link from the reflection essay to specific works as needed.
You should also create a menu with links to all the major assignments for the course. Here is a help page on creating a menu in WordPress. Again, if the Customizer is available in your dashboard, I’d recommend using the Customizer to create your menu. You can organize the sketches using categories or tags in the menu, or you can just have a link to your posts page in the menu so that your reader can find them there. Make sure that your reader can easily find the three parts of your literacy narrative, your Tracing Pages essay, and the Halfa Kucha slides and reflection.
The half-kucha presentation was the toughest assignment for me in class yet. It took me a long time to figure out how exactly I should plan. However, after I figured it out, I decided to use regular images from Google and specific comic panels from each book in my presentation. I picked panels from each comic because they helped the audience connect better with my story. I wanted people to feel like they were part of the moment, so I chose these visuals to make my words more powerful and relatable.
Giving a presentation without control over slide timing and limited text taught me valuable lessons. I learned the art of adaptability, needing to adjust my pace to match the slides. It forced me to be concise, clear, and extremely organized with my content due to the limitations of the presentation format. This experience emphasized the importance of communicating effectively within set constraints and refining my delivery to ensure clarity and thoughtful with every word spoken.
As someone who has done multiple public speaking competition I thought I did worse than I expected. Thus, I could have Improve my presentation by practicing in front of a large audience. I realized that nerves and the atmosphere of a big crowd significantly impacted my speaking pace. By rehearsing in a similar setting, I could have been better prepared to manage those nerves and adjust my talking speed accordingly. I believe this would have allowed me to control my delivery and ensure a more consistent and effective presentation.
Photo Credits: Nana511. (2023, December 4). Gladiator. Via Flickr.
I chose to use an image from Gladiator because of how iconic of a hero Maximus is, known for his strength and honor. As a sort of Biblical reference, I hope that many of the things I have learned this semester will be added to my “armor” as I continue through the battles of college and life.
The Sword of “Hyperempathy” and The Shoes of Resilience are both tributes to the heroes that we read about this semester. Though I have no superpower like Lauren, I feel that I have gained a deeper understanding of how suffering can look this semester through so many characters in the comics. I have learned about how the stages of grief can look very different for every person like Teddy and Sandra and how important it is to be there for the people who are suffering in silence. Often, the best thing we can do is be a shoulder to lean on as we try to empathize with those suffering around us. In terms of resilience, it’s hard to think of a better personification of this word than David Small who had a beyond traumatic childhood, survived cancer, then moved out on his own while still a young teenager. Stories like his show that victory over trauma can look as simple as surviving and thriving on your own while still in the process of healing.
The Breastplate of Validity is one that I feel that I have developed through learning to interpret comics this semester. I have always had a bit of a rampant mind that gets off track, but I have learned this semester that the place where any certain story takes me is valid and important. One of the special parts of comics is their ability to be interpreted differently by different readers who know trauma in many ways. So, it is important to be a good self-listener while reading comics and stay open to what truly comes to mind.
Lastly, The Shield of Emotional Maturity represents a large focus of mine since we began Sabrina. As a young man, I have never one who’s liked to share emotions, particularly when they could be seen as embarrassing or not masculine. I saw parts of myself in Teddy’s emotional isolation and was able to better understand how it can be destructive to not let others in. Going forward, I will be better tooled to express my emotions healthily and let others support me when appropriate.
The actual style of the oral presentation has stark differences from creating an argument in essay form. But when I was creating the slides, I felt that I was crafting an argument in a very similar manner. My thought process during slide creation was to simply compare and contrast the characters while drawing correlations to the main idea of trauma in men and women. Looking back at my process, I feel that I could have written an essay without much deviation from my thought process. But the real difference came with the actual action of talking in front of the class. It is easy to take time to get every word out that you can think of when typing an essay in a quiet room, but talking in front of others creates a different environment. I felt that the nerves and time restrictions that come with a presentation like this caused me to stick more to the main points of my argument while mentioning a few sub-points. Contrarily, an essay would allow the argument to be fine-tuned and developed to a deeper level. But, the skill of being able to present an argument orally is very worthwhile making this exercise extremely important.
One decision that I made for my presentation that I am very happy with was to use images outside the comics. I believe it allowed me to speak more generally about the plot and not have to worry about sticking to the actions of any one page at a time. This pushed me to orally defend my argument with the pictures to support me rather than trying to explain individual pages. Also, I feel that the pictures were more eye-catching than a slide can be because of the lack of text while also allowing some humor to slip through. The lack of text also allowed me to quickly be reminded of my talking point with a glance rather than trying to distinguish which words were being said.
Public speaking has always been one of my biggest fears. Even when I feel that I have conquered that fear, my heart will begin to beat out of my chest once I get into the environment of my presentation. The same happened for this assignment. When I saw my name on the speaking order for the day, I instantly felt the adrenaline rush through my body. But unlike most times I have spoken, I took a couple of deep breaths and consciously felt my heartbeat slow and my skin cool. I was encouraged by the comfort that I felt while talking and hope that this experience will only give me more confidence in the future. The time limit for every slide was especially beneficial in keeping me from rambling and on task. Sometimes, I have the tendency to go off on tangents but the focused nature of this prompt could not have been more helpful for that purpose.
A simple ‘cocktail’ that represents what i’ve learnt from this class is composed of three (technically four) parts:
The first and arguably my most significant takeaway from the class was an increase in my writing ability and confidence in what i’m producing. Through the Sunday sketches, where we wrote on and reflected about a variety of ideas, I came out of the class feeling more capable of expressing ideas about the things I do. Additionally, I definitely felt more proud of the literacy narrative the second time I wrote it, which is a testament to what i’ve taken away from this class.
The second takeaway was an increased understanding of how to analyze comics. Beyond looking at things like color, text, and other blanket-level traits, I learnt both how to and why we should look deeper behind some frequently overlooked parts of comics, such as camera angle and how the frame of each panel changes the flow of the story. The tracing project, for example, helped me understand how the choice in making the main character in Stitches and Spinning seem smaller in a certain panel symbolized the suppression of their emotions — a level of analysis I wouldn’t have been able to detect prior to this class.
The third takeaway, although the smallest, is at the top of the cocktail as it is likely the first thing I will remember about the class: a much deeper appreciation of comics and the work that goes behind creating them. No matter what type of comic — political cartoons, graphic adaptations, or superhero strips — I realized after the class how deliberate choices are made to subtly but surely alter the perception of a given panel. As I mentioned as part of the previous takeaway, I feel like being able to analyze aspects of a comic such as art style, angle, frame shape, and more, have all given me a much deeper sense of respect for the work that goes into the creation and editing process for works of this medium.
Finally, the cocktail olives: although it’s not much by itself, a martini wouldn’t be complete without it. Even though it’s not something that the class was focused around, I still found it to be something I was able to take out of the class. Beforehand, I wouldn’t have realized that my ideas could still be represented through my subpar drawing capabilities.
Presenting an argument rather than writing an essay was considerably more difficult. When writing an essay, you have the freedom to elaborate to whatever extent you desire. It can be very detailed and you can dive deeply into evidence. Whereas doing an oral argument, you have to focus on one agreement and make sure your audience can fully flow your argument . Especially doing a Halfa kulcha, where your time is limited, you have to make your argument very precise and easy to understand. However doing an oral presentation gave me the advantage of having visual aids that can allowed me to focus more on my argument and let the visuals speak for themselves.
Making a structure for my argument wasn’t too difficult because of how precise the prompt was. I structured it similar to an inductive writing, where I have my observations , analysis and finally an ABT thesis. However, choosing which books to choose was a bit difficult. Majority of the books we read after Sabrina, didn’t appeal to me as much as the first half of the books we read. I eventually chose Sabrina and It’s lonely at the center of the earth because I understood them more and it was fairly easy to understand how the steps of recovery happened in each story.
Yes, Ever since i learned about the Inductive writing style, it helped me evaluate my writing style. So continuing the inductive stye instead of deductive is what i can make use of in my written work or any of my future oral presentations.
I don’t think my analytical thinking process was any different because it was a written assignment i would’ve have 100% used the same structure.
For visuals, I wanted to put specific images of panels so my audience can have a reference. But for some of the slides, used images that I found on google. I wasn’t thinking to much of the images because majority are from the specific panels and the audience were well aware of the stories and images.
I learned that practice does indeed make perfect. I spent my whole Thanksgiving break practice to the wall, the mirror, to my family and to my friends. It also important to cut any unnecessary detail that is not needed and to focus on your main claim and elaborations, since you don’t have enough time.
One of my classmates presentation that really stood out to me, was the approach in storytelling. In comparison to me, he had more energy and a narrating voice, whereas I was mono toned.
I could have been more deliberate in how I used images. I recall being asked about one of my specific pictures and how I came to choose that image. I “failed” to answer that question since I chose that image just for visual sake, whereas my audience may have assumed I purposefully chose that image to convey a message.
