Prior to English 110, I had little experience using different types of citations in my work. All of my previous classes required me to cite sources using CSE format, which made it hard for me to remember that we are using MLA format in this class. Often, I would mix in elements of the two formats or use a completely different format altogether in my first couple of papers. After re-reviewing the MLA format, I was able to successfully cite my sources as required. I also realized that when citing in-text, the date is not required in MLA, which I had been adding to my other papers. I noticed that I had little to no in-text citations in my second paper as well. In my Chosen Work Sample, I made sure to include in-text citations after any information that I had gleaned from the text and after each quote I used in order to ensure credit to the original author.
Local or sentence-level revision has always been something that has come easiest to me. I can usually pick up on errors made in spelling or grammar, ensuring the flow of my work. In my Chosen Work Sample, I made sure to avoid run-on sentences, something I all-too-often see in my peers’ papers. I also made sure to switch up my word choice, sometimes looking up synonyms for words that I felt would otherwise be overused in my paper. By rereading my papers and looking at my peers’ responses to them, I found errors I hadn’t even realized I had made. In my latest paper, Madelyn caught where I had forgotten to add a word, leaving the sentence unintelligible. Previously, it had read “My own mom was unable to spend her in Maine like she usually does each year”, leaving the reader to wonder what I was talking about. By adding in that it was her birthday she was unable to spend in Maine, I could clarify the meaning. This is why local and peer revision are extremely important to writing as you may catch errors you had previously skimmed right over.
Paper Two Citation Sample:
Pollan, Michael. “Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch”. The New York Times Magazine, The New York Times. 29 July 2009.
Chosen Work Citation Sample:
Wernecke Pharris, Caroline. “Dr. Otto Wernecke”. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.cdc.gov/publications/panflu/stories/survived_wernecke.html. Accessed April 6, 2020.
