Genre is the formatting of a document to address a subject matter. For a document to fulfill the element, it must choose a specific genre and abide by the rules of that format. This class has had us tackle multiple different genres such as resumes, memos, lab reports, technical descriptions, and proposals. All of these genres are different from one another, and it is important to acknowledge these differences in order to succeed within the confines of their formatting.

In my previous works of writing, I understood what genre was but never paid much attention to it. I would loosely follow the constrictions and formatting the required genre was asking for and considered it complete. Looking back on it now, it was a very limiting viewpoint that was holding me back from fully realizing my potential as a writer. I did not even realize what could be considered a genre, as the main ones I was working with were simple essays and writing responses. This course has taught me what a genre can truly be, but also how it can influence our writing. A change in genre can change our approach as to how we choose to present our content, therefore changing the course of the entire document.

For example, writing a document in the genre of a memo would have your present information in an orderly fashion so your audience can understand the issue you are trying to address. In Figure 1, it depicts how I formatted by memo specifically to adhere by the rules of a typical one. I created different heading and subsections, as well as utilizing bullet points to get my point across without drowning the reader in walls of text.