Response #5

Sean Demme

9.12.2012

English 1510

Sarah Allen ‘Inspired Writer’

Summary: In Sarah Allen’s The Inspired Writer vs. The Real Writer Allen goes into depth describing the struggles of (basically) every writer. Sarah depicts one of her student admitting that they hate writing – her student was worried about admitting this. Allen reassures her student that this is okay – it’s once we’ve admitted that writing is a rough process we can put the fact aside and write at our best. She does this in this passage; she admits that writing is hard for herself, a college professor. And later goes on to explain that she puts that aside – trudges through and produces her best work.

Synthesis: Sarah Allen is right in what she is saying. It’s true that most people have trouble writing it comes down to your determination. If everybody hated writing and just gave up then we would have no great writers – not Shakespeare, no Peter Elbow. It’s ones will to push through the writer’s block and the mislead thesis’ that makes one a good writer.

Personal Reflection: I personally really liked this piece. It was very relatable to me. I like to write a lot (kinda) but I don’t find myself to be the best writer – I can’t lead people to do things with my writing or really even get a great reaction from it. This inspired writer has inspired me to write to my best – she genuinely made me want to be a writer after I read this piece. The way that somebody’s words, just squiggles on a page, can change people is nothing short of incredible.