Narrative/Descriptive Writing

Keeping it Personal… Think about it: What, to you, is the most important and/or compelling part of a story? Your readers expect to get the same from you.

The Recipe for a Successfully Story? Concision Creativity Personalization

The Art of Storytelling It is deeply personal AKA, it’s about YOU Avoid making up a story Authenticity bleeds through for your readers, so own your writing! Keep it simple Avoid the thesaurus-based story The devil is in the details!

How to Tell Good Stories? Master description Appeal to the senses Use of objective and/or subjective descriptions and language Understand connotation vs. denotation. Aim for connotation!!!

Storytelling Tips SHOW don’t tell Vary your sentence structure Description is key (use meaningful details) Vary your sentence structure one word/one line paragraphs are a-okay! Maintain a clear narrative structure – Find a FOCUS (Pick one!) Chronological Flash backs Grammar can make or break your story Don’t flip-flop your verb tense Use effective transitions Download the Grammarly extension on your computer: it corrects your grammar on Google Docs!

Your time to shine… SHOW your reader some vivid images

The College/Career Essay - CollegeWise Understand the role of the essay in the admission process Don’t try to impress the admissions office. Just be honest. Own your story! Sound like you. Don’t repeat information from the rest of your application. If you do, shed new light on the information – give them a new window Remember, this is not a regurgitation of your resume!

The College Essay A test for whether or not you can show an ability to do college-level work at a higher education institution. Aka, can you write creatively and with complexity? The essay MUST answer the entire question Opportunity to reveal who you are to complete strangers and prove that you are a worthy candidate for admission

Answering the Prompt FIRST STEP: Think about what you want to share about yourself. BRAINSTORM!!! Don’t pick a specific life event, pick a character trait (exceptions always apply) SECOND STEP: Pick a prompt and adjust your story to fit the requirements THIRD STEP: Narrate meaningfully and with emotion

Show Them a Glimpse of Yourself Tell YOUR story in a way that is unique to you You may pick a general topic, but make is absolutely relevant to yourself No one should be able to say – “that sounds like me!”