Blog #4

Having the opportunity to participate in the genre of op/ed is going to be an interesting experience. As professor Flewelling had mentioned on her blog, in high school, most students wrote argumentative papers, usually with the topic already being chosen. This brings up the topics of objectivity and subjectivity. Most of the papers written were from the objective side, having the writer see both sides and making the stay in a neutral position. Now, we have the opportunity to voice our own opinions in the subjective way. What this means for me is that I will be forced to voice my own opinion and that has always been difficult for me. I usually keep to my own thoughts when there is a discussion on certain topics because many times I have been ridiculed for having certain views and that discourages me from further expressing myself. I am hoping these next assignments allow me to better my opinions, having the mentor texts as good reference to create a great op/ed.

Now the question at hand is what constitutes a great op/ed.According to the New York Times, some characteristics that follow a well written op/ed are making every sentence count, knowing the audience you are attempting to connect with, and most importantly offering your opinion. These are just few of many characteristic that will allow one create a well written op/ed. The one characteristic that stands out to me is making every sentence count. The reader can always choose to stop reading at any point, and it is your job for that not to happen. So this ties in with knowing the audience you are targeting, with knowing what to write to want them to keep reading and not think its just another column stating analytical facts. In my opinion, reading something that just talks about numbers, except for sports stats, makes me very uninterested in the topic at hand. I would rather read something that has passion and could be seen in their style of writing, whether it be based on a picture or tweet. For more tips on how to write a great op/ed, Writer’s Digest has some great points to incorporate in your writing.

When it comes to choosing a topic, things can get overwhelming just thinking of all the possibilities that you could talk about. For me, I will stay in the area of politics because this is always a buzzing topic, especially with the elected officials in office at the moment. It seems like every time I open social media, there seems to be a new scandal brewing. A specific topic has not been chosen, but I will make sure it is one that is relevant and interesting enough to keep my fellow bloggers intrigued. One topic I have in mind is with how Colin Kaepernick has been influencing Americans on his stance on certain topics, including the whole kneeing situation. With this topic being more on the controversial side, it will really allow me to express myself and share my opinions with my fellow classmates. 

Can't wait to share my op/ed with the class, as well as read others as well.