<p>As a freshman, I'm required to take two GE courses, a foreign language, and a critical thinking writing course in my very first semester. Everything has been good and all for the most part. However, I got a C- on my first paper in writing (I was a straight A student in high school). I'm trying hard to answer the prompts, be as descriptive and specific as possible, but I still don't think I'm where I need to be. This worries me for when I will have to do my term papers and my other writing assignments. I'd hate for my grades to plummet simply because of my writing. I'm dedicated to doing well, attend every class, spend hours on work, and yet writing is the only thing holding me back from very good grades. Any advice?</p>
<p>BTW, I have gone to my school’s writing center twice already. I’ve also gone to various office hours of my writing professor.</p>
<p>Graded papers usually come with some kind of feedback. What types of mistakes did your professor indicate? Stop in during office hours and ask your professor for some specific advice about what to improve for the next paper. </p>
<p>Take a closer look at the comments and perhaps bring your comments with you to the writing center. I’m assuming your school’s writing center employs upper-level students who have done well in writing courses, so maybe if they see your final product and see how your professor reacted to it, they can better guide you and offer you advice. Also, you could also even ask them to be brutally honest just in case they’re holding back a few of their opinions in an attempt to not come off too strong. </p>
<p>A lot of times I find that it’s all down to the organization. You said that you tried to answer every prompt, but did you have paragraphs that tried to squish every answer in them? Or did you go either broader paragraph ideas and then added in the prompt answers when appropriate? </p>
<p>Is this just a regular comp class where you’re required to write an argumentative, academic paper? If so, you should try to have a very linear progression and should have strong, concise language. </p>
<p>what english classes did you take in high school and what english class are you taking now? Is it an english 101 class or an upper division course?</p>
<p>There are no secrets. If you want help here, please post the comments you’ve received on your work.</p>
<p>Your library may have the book “They Say/I Say: The Moves that matter in academic writing” by Gerald Graff et al. It’s got some good strategies for crafting a winning paper.</p>