Audrey Immel

Portfolio Entry 3

This term paper was one of the most time-consuming and arduous assignments in school that

I have written—but not necessarily in a bad way. I felt that I had complete autonomy in this

work, so any challenge or labor, I put upon myself. I expected the longest part of the writing

process to be reading The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, but it ended up being the

development and narrowing of my ideas. I spent so long struggling with the content of these

stories, especially because of Alexie’s deceptively simple writing style. It took rereading the

stories upwards of five times each to finally grasp at the meaning and understand their nuances.

For example, halfway through outlining I had an epiphany and considered writing 2,000 words

solely about the titles of each of the stories. At some point though, I had to focus my ideas even

if that meant leaving out an equally important thematic idea or literary device. I fell in love with

this book throughout the writing process, leaving me very invested in doing the stories justice

through my term paper. While this made finishing the essay a rewarding achievement, it also

meant that I did not efficiently use my time; I cared too much and worked too long to the point

that it left me confused. A part of me thinks that this is because I had so much time and did not

procrastinate; having some pressure to finish usually helps me quickly organize my thoughts. On

the other hand, it was very useful having time to edit twice, not just turn in a first draft.

Another difference in writing this essay compared to others was my incorporation of

secondary sources. It felt more like I was engaging with the larger literary community and not

simply turning in an assignment for only an instructor to read. Reading and either agreeing or

disagreeing with other writers helped develop my ideas and encouraged me to apply my voice in

my writing. Throughout my schooling experience I have been conditioned to take an objective

point of view, never use “I” and use dry, derivative prose. The more I read literary criticisms and

essays from others, the more I realize that this type of writing should just be the most articulate

and precise version of your own voice.