1. Narrative/Descriptive Writing

2. 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.

3. The Recipe for a Successfully Story?
Concision
Creativity
Personalization

4. 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!

5. 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!!!

6. 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!

7. Your time to shine… SHOW your reader some vivid images

8. 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!

9. 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

10. 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

11. 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!”