Thursday, August 31, 2006

Personal Essays: Things To Think About Before You Write

This post at the mbToolbox is intended to encourage you sign up for Christopher Frizelle's Seattle course on writing personal essays, but no one says you can't benefit from the advice shared in the process. Check out the questions you should ask yourself, starting with "Am I ready to write about this?".

5 comments:

Leah Miranda Hughes said...

Erika,
I appreciate this resource; I believe I will apply it to my tutoring students for college admission. Thanks!

grackyfrogg said...

perfect timing on this post, as i've been mulling over some essay ideas and wondering how to start!

i wondered about this sentence, though (in the first paragraph on the essay advice page): "A personal essay draws on your experience in the world, and the more loaded your experience is, the deeper and more meaningful your essay will be." what do they mean by "loaded experience"? not everyone lives a crazy-exciting life with lots of traveling or suffering or adventures. does that mean they can't write a meaningful personal essay?

Erika D. said...

Glad you like the post. As for the meaning of "loaded," why can't it refer to emotions or intellect?

grackyfrogg said...

you mean i went shark diving for NOTHING?!

just kidding. (like that would ever happen--but if it did, and i survived, you can bet i'd write an essay about it!)

anyway, that was a good point/reminder, erika. thanks.

Leah Miranda Hughes said...

This morning, I am writing a handout for writing the college essay: I know their young lives can produce a "deeper and more meaningful" essay. My students, fortunately for me, think and reflect, even on these stock questions, and have something to say that distinguishes them and represents them.