Composition
Many students make the understandable mistake of thinking that writing is an activity that a person either can or can’t do. I’ve often read eloquent passages from students claiming that they can’t write. The truth is that writing is a skill, a skill which most people can learn. You may never write like Ernest Hemingway or Ta-Nehisi Coates, but you can learn to write clear, concise prose. This learning will take instruction and practice, just like any other skill.
Writing can be difficult; I suspect that’s part of the reason many people struggle with writing, or why they report that they “hate” writing. Think of writing like playing a sport. People exercise and build their strength to help their performance in a sport; we ask you to read and respond to writing to build some of your brain’s writing “muscles.” Athletes study games and strategies to succeed in their sports; we’ll read successful writers and discuss strategies for effective writing. Finally, athletes play practice games and play against other athletes to hone their skills; we’ll write and write and write to develop our writing skills. If you do this, you’ll find that while writing may not seem any easier for you, you will have the skills necessary to successfully complete writing tasks.