<p>My daughter has scrapped two essays because she truly did not like them. She has been working on the essays for months. She trying to start another, but she is out of ideas. She has writer’s block. Any suggestions on how to help her?</p>
<p>She would have to be open to it… but D2 and I brainstorm ideas as we look at the prompts together. We talk about her extra curricular activities, her interests outside of school, etc., and just kick around possible topics. If your D is one who will pooh-pooh an idea just because it comes from a parent, that won’t work. Obviously my D writes the actual essay, but there is nothing wrong with just generating a list of ideas that way.</p>
<p>When an idea is mentioned by either of us, we usually talk about a few aspects of it that could be used in the essay. We discuss whether she can make it original and revealing enough to be a good essay. I think it is really hard for them to look at their own lives (they are so used to them!) and figure out what might look unusual to someone else, or what truly reveals themselves to someone else. Your advantage as a parent is that you have a glimpse into many seemingly minor incidents that could be useful in the process; a paid counselor can help them generate topics, but won’t have (1) the insight into your kid’s true personality, and (2) that wealth of experiences with them that might fit into an essay. But in the end, she has to own the essay and the content, of course.</p>
<p>Has your daughter written a resume? That may help show trends or ongoing interests. Plus it is a huge help when she fills out many applications: her dates and activities will all be consistent. She might also start with the short essay expanding on an extra curricular activity.</p>
<p>My daughter looked at a few of those college essay books to get a feel for the variety… try the library. Then she looked at all her activities, and we did discuss them. Specific instance is better than a generalization. One thing to keep in mind is to perhaps have the essay be about something that isn’t as obvious from the rest of her academic/EC application. For example, my D was a dancer, and strong academic student… but she wrote her essay about her interest in rock climbing which otherwise wouldn’t have been very obvious from her application - and in fact played a bit against type for a dancer. It doesn’t have to be the MOST important thing in their life in other words, just something that makes a decent story and reflects on their personality.</p>
<p>Any school essays that could be used as a jumping-off point? My D adapted an essay from her AP lang class with the prompt “Why I Write.” Because she had written it with her English teacher in mind rather than a faceless admissions committee, it came effortlessly, and was far better than anything she had intentionally written for a college app.</p>
<p>I’m not a parent, but I’d let her handle it herself. If she’s about to start college, working past writer’s block on her own is important (especially when presented with a close deadline).</p>
<p>One more comment, Chinablue. Could she have scrapped them because she is just tired of them? After months of working/reworking them, and with the stress of apps coming due soon, she could have scrapped them too soon… could she have a trusted adult (maybe an English teacher or college counselor) look them over and help her pick the better one, and provide suggestions for improvement?</p>
<p>One thing we learned after looking over a college essay book was that the essays generally were NOT fabulous. In fact, most of them were not really very good at all. She may be putting too much pressure on herself, and needs a trusted adult (maybe not a parent!) to help her gain perspective on the work she has already done.</p>
<p>A hobby or EC? Two of my kids wrote about hobbies. One essay was about entering a digital art contest. Another was about cake decorating. (Her main EC was a sport, but she used that for a short essay.) Third kid had an assigned topic “a challenge you faced/obstacle you overcame,” and wrote about entering a big public high school after being homeschooled. All of their essays were somewhat humorous/not taking self too seriously. I’ve read a lot of essays on a big variety of topics for CC students over the years. I tend to prefer those that use a little humor and/or have some sort of original insight. Your D should remember her audience–try to connect with (and entertain) the reader and make him/her think. Also, try to come across as a nice person, not bragging too much.
I tend not to like topics that paint the writer as a “victim” (illness, accident, death in the family, divorce), or “hero.” (whether they led the team through a winning season, or rescued someone as a lifeguard, or saved someone from illiteracy or poverty through volunteer work, etc.) These types of topics are hard for most students to do well (not saying they CAN’T be done, but. . .)
The essays she’s already written may be just fine. Maybe should should ask for feedback on CC.</p>
<p>Think small. One small thing that says a lot. One of my D’s wrote about her stinky old jazz shoes. One D wrote about the one question that she is always asked (what is it like to be a twin). Break it down.</p>
<p>All writers struggle with this. Anne Lamott (author of Operating Instructions and Bird by Bird, among other excellent books) said: “give yourself permission to write a really s****y first draft.”</p>
<p>Chris Bohjalian, author of Midwives (an Ophrah Book pick) said: you can’t edit a piece of blank paper.</p>
<p>Tell her to get something down. It doesn’t count. It isn’t The Essay – it’s just stuff. </p>
<p>Maybe sit down with your laptop – she talks, you type. There’s something about forming ideas AND writing them down at the same time which is very tough.</p>
<p>Write to a friend. Have her imagine she’s writing a letter to her best friend, or favorite relative: I want to tell you about (her significant experience or historic person she most wants to meet – whatever the essay topic is). The words will come more naturally that way.</p>
<p>The “garbage can” test. Sometimes, you write an entire novel then decide – I hate it – it’s stupid – I can’t believe I wrote it – I’m throwing it in the garbage. Then you think, but there was that one passage where I wrote about the main character’s first experience in the pool, swimming, keeping up with the rest of the team – THAT part is worth saving.</p>
<p>And it turns out that’s the start of your new essay.</p>
<p>My favorite creative nudges are just to look through books of quotes and a thesaurus. I also take showers to unlock my brain.</p>
<p>Great ideas! We used several of them today. One additional thing we tried was brainstorming a list of topics. My D found a list of questions that are used to get to know someone. Questions like: What is the best gift you ever received? If you could have any super power what would it be? We spent the afternoon making a list. Now, I am happy to say she is busy writing.</p>
<p>This is very normal. The Common Application essays are really like nothing the student has ever done before or will ever do again. Harry Bauld’s book* On Writing the College Application Essay* I think is very good and has some nice examples. Digmedia, a CC poster has some good advice and also has written a book. <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-essays/979752-easy-exercise-get-started-terrific-essay.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-essays/979752-easy-exercise-get-started-terrific-essay.html</a></p>
<p>My older son had a terrible time. At one point he wrote a computer program that basically stole lines from sample essays on line. He used the result of the program (pretty awful) as the opening to an essay about how he’d rather write a program than write an essay, but how it was clear from the results of this program that he needed a little more education. By starting with something silly, but in his comfort zone he was able to write a very natural sounding essay. It was not an A+ essay, but it was pretty good for a kid who hated writing.</p>
<p>My younger son bounced around a bunch of ideas. He wrote a couple of essays that he rejected as not good enough for his main Common Application essay, but in the end he found places to use them after all. One of them became the “What your favorite EC” essay. The essay wasn’t about him, which he thought was a problem, but it did show him thinking like an historian in a volunteer activity which I think ended up being a huge plus. I actually liked it better than his “main” essay, but I know why he felt that it wasn’t the right essay for the that.</p>
<p>Finally a Georgetown admissions officer said their favorite essay prompt was the make up your own question option. Don’t be afraid to use it. :)</p>
<p>Another finally, if it’s natural to you, don’t be afraid to be a little lighthearted and amusing. I think it really helped both my kids that they avoided the overly sentimental, stereotypical essays. How my overseas mission trip taught me we are all the same. How I learned perseverance from sports. How I learned winning doesn’t matter. etc. etc.</p>
<p>I could NOT write the Common App essay at all. I was really lost about what to write about. Then, my AP English teacher had us write 100 questions that were important to us without stopping and try to find our personal theme. It was easy for me to start my essay after that, it actually helped me find something that I would enjoy writing about!</p>
<p>My d also had writer’s block. She threw out countless half-started essays that were trying to be too deep. I think she was putting too much pressure on herself. One day she was reading Peanuts, the comic strip, in the paper and an idea just popped into her head from reading it because Lucy the main character really makes her laugh. She wrote a clever essay, with a bit of humor, and it must have been okay because she was accepted at all of the colleges she applied to.</p>
<p>Walker1194–GOOD TOPIC…wish our kids would have thought about the Twin question because they DO get asked that all the time too.</p>
<p>DS wrote one essay about writing college essays.</p>