Writing a Personal Essay

Imaginative Writing Vs Personal Writing  Imaginative  Something that you have made up  Includes different characters  It might include a ‘twist’ at the end  Personal  Something that has happened to you  It includes your thoughts and feelings  The writing must be true

Personal Writing  Always use personal pronouns like I, me, my, mine  Include your own thoughts and feelings

Describe the setting  Where did the incident take place?  Who was involved?

Example  Dirty windows  Desks with jotters thrown on them  Four old, dusty computers  Colourful posters with pupils’ work displayed on the walls  An odd, foosty smell  The sound of pencils scraping the jotters  A grey, grimy floor covered in dirt.  Dimly lit  An off-white wipboard  Sixteen marble-effect rectangular tables  A square room  Colourful folders scattered  Heavy breathing of concentrating pupils  The metronome clock ticking round  Old, graffitied cabinets  Browny-grey filing cabinet  Dull, dirty, mouldy, holey ceiling  Filthy lights  Scatty walls

Detail and Description  Make use of adjectives and figurative language (metaphors and similes) to make your essay more entertaining

Reflect on Experiences  Once you have described the experience and the thoughts and feelings you had at the time, you should then describe how you feel looking back.

So…  Write about an experience that actually happened to you  Describe the setting  Include your thoughts and feelings  Use lots of detail and description  Reflect on the incident or event

And finally …  Always write in the past tense!

Tasks  Write a personal essay about what Christmas means to you  Write a personal essay about the best Christmas ever  Write a personal essay about an emotional Christmas  Write a personal essay about the worst Christmas ever

What makes a good personal essay?  Give plenty of background details  Describe feelings in great detail  Describe memories as well as the main event  Describe setting – weather can reflect mood  Needs to be between 500 and 800 words  Use a sophisticated vocabulary  Structure – beginning – set the scene; middle – go between experience then and how you feel now; and end – reflection

Personal Essay  Write about a time when you felt guilty.  Experience:  Before –  During –  After –  Now -