Original Writing of Term Definitions

When I started Unit 1.3, it didn’t take long for me to realize how complex the process of writing a definition is. We were asked to choose a relatively complex term and write a definition for a non-technical audience. I chose the term Post-Production because it is used in my current profession and I am often asked to explain what it involves to clients and junior team members. As instructed, I wrote three different types of definitions: parenthetical, sentence and expanded. Parenthetical definitions use a clarifying phrase in parentheses, whereas sentence definitions are used to elaborate the term’s meaning even further. Expanded definitions offer the most variety to a writer as many methods can be used, depending on the term. I chose Required Conditions, Examples, Analysis of Parts because I felt that they would be the most successful in conveying the information. In the assignment instructions it said that choosing a situation and an audience to write for was a major component, but I didn’t realize just how crucial they are for producing the most effective definitions.

Peer Review Process

For me, the peer review section of the assignment was the most interesting, revealing so many of my shortcomings. In an earlier assignment, I mentioned that one of my weaknesses is grammar, so to critique someone else’s work (Karolina Atehortua) was quite an uncomfortable process. Two things did help ease this discomfort though. Firstly, keeping personal pronouns like I/you out of my review made it feel more professional and less personal. Secondly, reviewing someone else’s work made me realize that I can actually be useful by tapping into some of my newfound knowledge from the textbook. Receiving my peer review from Karolina also highlighted how a second set of eyes is crucial to the writing process. As writers, I think working on an assignment for a long stretch of time makes us overlook many errors because they no longer stand out. With a peer review, mistakes and suggestions are brought to the foreground, can be corrected and ultimately a better piece of work is produced.

Editing Process

The editing process provided me with a second chance to write a stronger assignment, taking all of Karolina’s positive, critical and constructive feedback into consideration. While she only found minor errors, her comments were very useful. I was able to see mistakes in my APA citations which led me to educating myself further via outside sources. Karolina also flagged my tendency for ‘wordiness’, which I appreciated and am always trying to correct. What I didn’t anticipate in the editing process was how some of the feedback I gave to Karolina carried over to my own revisions. For example, I was more aware of my grammatical errors, the correct use of certain definition types, APA citation guidelines and the overall organization of my assignment.  Overall, this assignment was extremely beneficial and I know I will bring what I learned to my future work.

Thank you.