Fendi's Writing Portfolio

Cover Letter

The famous American critic Bell Hooks was once quoted as saying that “Life-transforming ideas have always come to me through books”(2003, O Magazine), which，in my viewpoint，should also be held as the incontestable truth to most of us.

So, currently, when more and more students are addicted to those delicately illustrated magazines, when a lot young couples dwell on online cinemas, when large numbers of teenagers suffer from the sequelae of being “couch potatoes”, I still hold the conviction that reading and writing essays are the most efficient and most elegant way of communication. Not only do we communicate with our peers, but also with those “imaginary” yet “realistic characters and their great creators­”——those shiny stars glowing in the literature kingdom who has always retained their aureoles. We are standing on these giants’ shoulders, writing responses and interpreting essays to their masterpieces, which, in return, bring us such joy that even exceeds our expectations.

Therefore, with this kind of true contentment and unexpected enjoyment, I establish this writing portfolio, my first step into a completely new realm, which also serves as a demonstration of my maturation and growth in English writing. Together with the development of this writing portfolio, from the first word to the very end, I myself also experience the transformation from a layout in academic writing to a knowledgeable participant, also from an awkward story-teller to a more skilled essay writer, all of which, certainly means a lot to me.

Among all my gaining, firstly, is the switch of my attitude in English writing. I begin to realize that the purpose of writing is more an expression of ideas than an exhibition of such luxuriant phrases. That is perhaps the reason why Hemingway would regard simplicity and briefness the “the best decorations”. Words to essays are just what dresses to persons, if properly chosen, they can well complement your appearance, but if over-emphasized, they will only serve as a distraction, which impair the significance of your inner things.

At the meantime, during my continuous trails and practices, I am also beginning to establish my own writing style, and having a preference of diction and organization, which seems really important for the development of a writer. As a foreign language learner, I used to contemplate hard before even breaking down the first word and inevitably sometimes put such excessive emphasize on just part of the article that the main idea is to some degree impaired and the whole organization turns out to be at a random. After forced to taste such bitterness again and again, I set out to find a writing strategy that works well on me, which can also render a little inspiration and illumination for those who have been striving in the field of academic writing.

This strategy is divided into the following 4 steps:
1) Analyze the topic, dividing it into some more narrow and specific sub-topics;
2) Finish the each part of the skeleton according to the previous division, and the main job to be done here is just breaking down your original thoughts.
3) Select parts of the skeleton that you find most interesting and explore them further, extensive information and deep insight are needed on the point to make them riveting and vivid;
4) Reread the whole passage to examine its contextual coherence, also adding some connective phrases to thread the essay logically and naturally.

Guided by this method, I have created 6 items on my portfolio. The first one is the cover letter that you have been reading now, which briefly demonstrates the layout and the characteristics of my blog. And the second is the draft 1 of my interpreting essay on Necklace by Guy de Maupassant, followed by the draft 2 and draft 3. Then comes my final-timed writing, on creating an advertisement for a film adapted from Grass Eaters, which acts as a short presentation of  the sad story documented by Krishnan Varma. At the end of the portfolio is my reading log on Grass Eaters, which can been seen as a supplement and also an expansion of the final-timed writing. Through this writing portfolio, I want to show the achievement I have made during this semester from different dimensions, so the items I choose all have got special emphasis on its own aspects, thus giving my blog freshness and diversity. Surely it still has got a lot of flaws, which are left to be corrected or improved during my further study.


Among all the items, the reading log is the one that got the least formal format. It does not prove to be rigorous, nor does it involve detailed supporting from the original essay. On the contrary, it features in the initial feelings and also the original “discoveries”. With regard to the essay, perhaps nobody can allege whether the author is really an optimistic one or not even till now, but this reading log do find a unique stand to establish itself and to refute what most people commonly believe true.

However, the next interpreting essay does belong to a totally different category. Since it is required to be written “academically”, I decide to completely change my previous way and reread this story in search of a statement that is persuasive and evincible enough. In the end, I focus on the irony which appears throughout the essay. It features most of Maupassant’s work but has proved its highlighted importance right in this story. Instantly, I come down to my writing, with the first draft listing out all the points I cover and the organization I adopt, the second draft including the interpreting and reasoning which serve to assure the unity among the evidences, the essay and the statement, and also the third draft extending the my points and furthering my insight into its social functions on its own backgrounds.

At the beginning of building this portfolio, I have prepared for no easy job, for the topics I choose are really demanding ones. For a long time, I’ve been feared that they’ll turn out tough to master and finally make my writing experience such an unpleasant one. However, the essays actually shape up far better than I have expected. At times, when I do become lack of experience or skills, it is always not too hard to find another way out. And as the essay develops, I myself also become more quick and broad-minded in dealing with similar dilemmas. At least, I am no longer afraid of giving myself a difficult “topic” or “statement” in life, frightening though it may seem at first, it will ultimately turns out to be solvable. Actually, how hard a “statement” is actually depends largely on how you view them and when you start to work on them.

At last, I shall say thanks to the blog and to you all on supporting my blog. Through this kind of practice, I do harvest much more than in any of the textbooks. Keep on as I will on my English academic writing, for it is always far better to strive in sweat than to lie in comfort.