My paper focuses on two forms of teachers’ written feedback: direct, i.e. correction of errors, including grammar, punctuation and spelling; and indirect, which identifies but does not correct problems – either real or potential. I argue that the two forms, when they are com- bined, have an important role to play in guiding students to an under- standing of what constitutes a "good" written text in English. Such an understanding is an important element in the overall goal of academic writing, which is not only to produce a text that satisfies the requirements of the examiner but also to create and promote a distinct and stable scholarly identity – an aspect of writing that is often neglected in studies of writing. Unlike much research on the subject, my article focuses on an individual student, a Chinese postgraduate of English at Kristianstad University.