What did I do wrong?

OP is probably in the top 100 in terms of AP exams and SAT IIs. He has a good shot at a top 5 graduate school.

He said he modeled the novel essay on someone else’s successful one. It sounds like his essay told nothing about himself, but simply attempted to copy a winning formula. He doesn’t provide the schools with any way to see any of his novel. Obviously, it made a bad impression.