For this writing assignment, you have two choices. Please select one of the following options for your essay:
Describe a person, place, or object that has special meaning in your life.
Describe a particular moment or occurrence in your life that had special meaning to you.
Use the techniques described in sections 6.3 and 6.4 of Essentials of College Writing and expand upon the prewriting done in the discussion forum for the past three weeks to provide specific details about the person, place, object, or event so that readers can visualize the subject and/or feel present in the story. Your description should be specific and appeal to the five senses. Please be sure to read and review the "Example Personal Essay - Draft" document before beginning your draft for more guidance on writing a descriptive essay.
This rough draft needs to be at least 550 words, and it should have a thesis statement that clearly states what you are going to be writing about. View the sample Personal Essay - Draft to guide you as you complete this assignment.
For more information about writing thesis statements, visit the Ashford Writing Center and review Chapter 5 of Essentials of College Writing.
The point of a draft is to allow your instructor to get a good sense of your organizational writing skills, examine your use of the strategies of narration or description, and provide you with feedback you can incorporate into the Final Essay that is due in Week Five.
As you write this draft, please pay attention to the areas that you struggled with in your "Grammar Assessment" quiz and "Practice Essay" assignment.
When submitting your draft, make sure to
Proofread your work for errors in grammar, mechanics, and style.
Format the essay according to the "APA Template" handout.
Perform a word count check to make sure the essay is 550 to 800 words in length.
Save the document as a Microsoft Word or compatible .doc or .docx file.
Use a naming convention that includes your last name, week number, and the assignment number (e.g., smith_w2_a1.doc).
The interactive video, Writing an Essay: The Fundamentals of College Writing, provides an overview of the essay writing process. It will prove very useful as you work on your Final Essay throughout the course.