Thomas's Writing Portfolio

Cover Letter

Thomas Feng
June 17, 2007
Cover Letter

To whom it may concern:

First, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read my selected works for my writing portfolio. I would also like to express my sincere thanks to Mr. Corio, Anita, Promise and Mex, who have helped me a lot during the writing course. I’ve selected a reading log, three drafts of my essay as well as the final timed writing and put them in a chronological order. Because with such arrangement, they can clearly represent both the arduous efforts and the gradual progress I have made step by step by attending the English writing class this semester. This course revolves around five stories, the authors of which include a Frenchmen, two Americans, a Nigerian and an Indian. This provides me with an excellent chance to read stories with totally different backgrounds and writing styles. During the course, I not only find the stories really interesting, but have learned a lot, particularly in two main aspects: writing techniques and the true meaning of writing.

A writing class certainly involves a lot of writing. To be frank, before attending this class, I was already quite confident in my writing capability, since I had finished quite a lot writing assignments in previous courses and got a full mark in the writing part of TOEFL iBT. Anyway, what is taught in this class varies in terms of form and techniques. It is the first time that I have been assigned to write an essay. Also, such techniques as thesis statement, quotation and paraphrasing are all new to me. So it is a brand new experience for me and I spare no pains in working on my essay. Thanks to the help from Mr. Corio, I have managed to learn most of the techniques taught in class without much difficulty, which enables my writing to be more understandable and persuasive.

More important, I think by attending this class, I have truly understood the meaning of writing. This is also a gradual process. At first, I took it for granted that writing simply needed strong emotions. It’s just the case when I wrote a reading log. I expressed my direct feeling after reading a story for the first time. After a while, with deeper understanding of the importance of analysis and interpretation, I have come to know that emotion alone can not make a good essay. This is demonstrated by my three drafts of essay. Every time I modify my essay, I always try to combine critical thinking with personal emotions by adding analyses after expressing my feelings. This is what this class has taught me: Good writing needs both “sense and sensitivity”.

Here is the brief introduction of the works I have selected.

The reading log expresses my first reaction to the story, “The Necklace”. This is one of Guy de Maupassant’s masterpieces and I really appreciate it. It tells the story of a young woman who longed for vainglory but finally ended up in poverty. In my reading log, I associate the tragedy of this young woman with a similar experience of my own.

The three drafts of my essay are something I really take pride in. My essay is about “The Grass-Eaters”, an Indian story by Krishnan Varma, who creates a sharp contrast by describing the miserable life of the extremely poor hero and emphasizing his strong optimism. In my essay, I discuss what lies beneath the seemingly strong optimism and try to figure out the underlying implication of this contrasting effect. Admittedly, my drafts of essay are not perfect. But I have spent a great amount of time and energy working on them, trying to make them as good as I can. What’s more, they reflect the progress I have achieved. With modification, each draft is not only longer, but also stronger, more persuasive and penetrating than the previous one.

Final timed writing requires me to finish an article within 45 minutes. As an examination of one’s overall writing capability, it is also the last piece of writing assignment I have in this class. I hope that this piece of writing marks the successful ending of this course. Though the class will finish soon, I shall never stop writing. For me, writing is becoming an enjoyable process during which I am able to acquire a sense of self-fulfillment and inner peace.

Thanks again for taking time to read my works as well as this cover letter.

                                                                                     Sincerely,

                                                                                      Thomas