Essay Hell: Last-Minute Help

If you’re all done with your college applications, including the essays and supplements, huge congrats!

For those of you still struggling, there’s no need to panic. As long as your deadlines haven’t passed, there’s still time. And honestly, writing a solid essay or supplement doesn’t have to take days or weeks.

As you probably already know, the hardest part is simply sitting down and putting pen to paper (or fingers to the keyboard).

So here’s my most basic advice for finding a topic fast. It works best for the personal statement (the Common App essay), but if you look hard enough, it applies to almost any prompt.

Step 1: Think of a time you had a problem

It can be big or small. Here are some examples:

• A mistake: You messed up somehow.
• A conflict: You got into an argument or had some kind of misunderstanding with someone.
• An obstacle: You wanted to do something, and someone or something got in the way.
• A challenge: You decided to try something hard and failed at first.
• An internal problem: You have a personal or emotional issue you have to manage.
• An external problem: You have a physical issue or outside circumstance you deal with.
• An obsession: You have a topic or activity you can’t get enough of.

Step 2: Follow this outline

Write a paragraph “chunk” for each letter, and you’ll have a rough draft.

A. The moment. Start with a paragraph or two describing what happened when you had that problem. Put yourself back in the moment and tell it like a story: “While sitting at the kitchen table with my mom, I started to…” or “During a trip to the beach with my friends, I decided to…” This moment must include a problem you faced. Stop at the problem. These mini-stories are called “anecdotes” if you want to search how to write them.

B. The background. Give a little context. Explain the bigger picture and the circumstances that led up to that moment.

C. What you did. Pick up with the problem you started with. Share how you handled, managed or reacted to the moment and the problem. Add at least one line about how you felt. Include what you were thinking and the steps you took to deal with it.

D. The reflection. (This is the important part!) Now shift gears. Look back on what happened and how you dealt with it. What do you notice about the way you handled that moment and the larger problem? Try starting with something like, “Looking back, I realize I’m the type of person who…” Reflect on how you see yourself and whether anything shifted or changed along the way. Include a sentence or two about what you learned about yourself: how you are, why you’re that way, and why it matters to your goals and values.

E. The conclusion. Circle back to the moment you started with and bring the reader up to date. Give a quick status update on the problem or issue. (You don’t need to have fixed it; just share where you’re at now.) Then add a sentence about how you see yourself applying what you learned to your future goals.

Step 3: Make it your own

Of course, you can take this outline in any direction you want. It’s simply a framework for writing about yourself in a way that shows your behavior and thinking instead of just telling the reader about them.

That’s what brings an essay to life and pulls your readers (those college admissions folks) into your story. So trust that simple story about a moment when something happened to you, and go from there.

Just write several sentences for each stage (A through E), and you’ll have a rough draft. That’s three-quarters of the way there! Then go back, read it through, smooth it out, and add details that support the point you’re making about yourself.

If you have more time and this process gets you rolling, check out my online course or browse my blog for more ideas on improving your draft. You’ll find tips on crafting your introduction with a mini-story (search “how to write an anecdote”), plus ideas for adding depth and meaning to your essay.

No more excuses!

Stop panicking, and don’t let your monkey mind hold you back.

Chances are you’ve worked hard all through high school, and this is no time to sabotage yourself over these dumb essays. A mediocre essay is far better than no essay. And if you find a good story and topic, you might surprise yourself and crank out a terrific one.

Just trust the process. Don’t aim for perfection. Let yourself pound out some basic sentences and paragraphs, and write the way you talk, using everyday language.

This doesn’t have to eat up your entire weekend, either. Tell yourself you’ll brainstorm for an hour. Then give yourself another hour to start writing. Set reasonable deadlines, stick to them, and before you know it, you’ll be DONE. Essay in hand!

Hope this helps!

Janine