Tutor profile: Codey O.

I'm not sure where to get started with this paper.

First, make sure you have a clear understanding of the assignment. I recommend reading through the assignment sheet and noting places where the assignment is asking for specific things. (if I was working with the student synchronously, I would make a point of going through the assignment sheet with them) After you have a clear idea of what the assignment is asking for, try to state your response to it succinctly. Try to do it in one sentence, if you can. After that, there are a few places you can go from there. I am an fan of outlining, and could share resources with you for that. Free writing is another way you could go. It depends on what works for you, but I encourage you to experiment with your writing process.

How should I read poetry?

First, forget about doing it correctly. Don't worry about finding the one symbol that your teacher is hoping for and interpreting it in just the right way. I find a helpful place to start, once we're done worrying about getting it right, is to ask yourself the simple question: Do I like this poem? If so, why? If not, why not? This is the start to analysis. You're not looking for the correct answer, but what you, personally, can bring to the poem and what you can take from it.

I have a problem with run on sentences. How do I fix those?

Well, it would be helpful if I could look at a specific example from your writing, but in general, run-ons are an issue with joining sentences inappropriately. Look for places where you have used commas in a sentence. Check to see if you have joined together and complete sentences with a comma (a complete sentence has, at minimum, a subject and a verb). This is called a comma splice and is a common reason for run-on sentences existing. There are a few ways to go about fixing these, and which one you choose is primarily up to how you feel as an author. You can replace the comma with a semicolon or a period, or you could add a coordinating conjunction (and, but, so, etc.) after the comma.