I just can’t think of what to write!
Occasionally you’ll hear about or run into a student who, the night before the school’s deadline, sits down and writes 650 perfect words. No stress, no editing and, what’s more, they are accepted. That was not me, and, I’m guessing, that will not be you.
So what do you do when you have read all the example essays, done the brainstorming practice, reviewed your list of extracurriculars and academics and you still can’t write the essay? If you’re feeling stuck, we suggest that you try the following techniques.
Write the WORST possible essay you can come up with
Make it cringy. So bad you’d be embarrassed to put your name on it. The kind of essay you wouldn’t want your cat to read. But make it 650 words and stick to one of the prompts. Once you are done, send us a copy and if yours is one of the top three all-time bad essays we receive this year, we’ll add it here as inspiration (with or without your name, your choice).
Once you’re done with the bad essay, keep going, but shift directions just a bit. Think about what you just wrote. Is there anything in there that you actually do want the Admissions Officer to know? Highlight those parts of the essay so you can come back to these. Try another 650 words. You’ve already written the worst 650 words you can come up with, so you know that whatever you write will be an improvement.
If you need inspiration, have a look here: Bulwer-Lytton Contest. This annual contest challenges participants to write an “atrocious” opening sentence to a terrible novel.
Just write anything
It doesn’t matter what you write. Jot down a shopping list if you want to. Describe the room you’re sitting in. Go with the flow of consciousness and put down anything and everything that pops into your head. Write up to 650 words and take a break. Then review what you’ve written to see whether you can draw inspiration from your notes. Remember that the Common App essay prompts will accommodate just about any topic you can think of!
Bottom on chair approach
Get a liter bottle of water, soda, or juice. Get a packet of salty chips/pretzels/whatever. Drink and eat. Now stay seated until you have written a set number of words. Do not get up until you have achieved the goal. See where I’m going with this? Trust me, it works.
You will have plenty of time to revise.
Don’t write the essay. Talk the essay.
You know how when you’re driving to school or practice, or when you’re just walking around aimlessly, you can pretty much write the essay in your head? That little soundtrack that spins the perfect story that you want the adcom to know? And then, when you get home and sit down at your laptop to put it down on paper, the words disappear?
Some people are much better with the spoken word than the written. If that’s you, you have a couple of choices. You can use use your phone to capture what it in your head. Don’t worry, if you have earbuds in everyone will assume you’re on a phone call. Alternatively, find a friend or family member who is happy to scribe for you. Talk your essay to them as they write it down. If you don’t want to use a person, try using speech-to-text as an alternative.
Draw the essay
Get out the crayons, it’s time to seek inspiration in your kindergarten days! Seriously, though, I’m sure you’ve heard of mind-mapping as a way to take notes on school subjects. You can use this approach on your essay. Put yourself at the center of a blank piece of paper and scribble down whatever you want around it. Use crayons or colored pencils so you can organize your thoughts.
Write down half-a-dozen things about yourself in your mindmap. This can be anything you like — your extracurriculars, school subjects, whatever is really important to you. Once you have these down, pick two or three and expand on these, still on your mindmap. Use what you have created as the start of your outline.
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