Don’t be afraid

*

Don’t be afraid *

of writing about you

Quick personal essay checklist:

Is it about:

  • (mostly, like 80%) you?

  • how you’ve changed, learned something, come to be you?

  • A challenge, a problem, a difficulty?

Does it:

  • Show, not tell?

  • Have a Theme?

  • reveal some characteristics?

  • Sound like you?

How to
get going:

Step 1

Take a swim around your own experiences,
think of times you:

  • Were proud of yourself

  • did something difficult

  • Changed your mind

  • got hurt

  • Did something unexpected

  • learned something

  • Took a chance or a risk

  • Defended yourself, or someone else

  • Took a stand on something

Step 2

Settle on 5 moments, and write them as little stories. Keep them under 100 words.

  • use all your senses

  • Be in the moment

  • remember the emotion of that moment

  • Freewrite — don’t worry about word choice, grammar, or your audience.

Examples

  • Now boarding: Flight 581. My heart pounded. I’d never wanted to leave the ground, but the chance to see the artist that changed the way I saw the world was too exciting to pass up.

  • It didn’t hurt as much anymore, now all I could feel was a needle pulling the string currently sewing my split lip back together. My first thought when I hit the ground hadn’t been about pain, but would my blood stain? What would mother say?

  • The words were there, on the post. everyone could see them and I couldn’t erase them, even though they had definitely come out of my mouth.

  • “I can’t thank you enough.” The shopper had been so angry she was near tears when she came into the store. She was right, but the mistake was made a week before I was hired. My first instinct was to yell back, but once I heard her, I realized I could actually help.

  • “It’s going to be so much nicer,” Dad promised, but he’d said that the last two times, didn’t he? This was what a broken heart felt like, I guess, like my chest was burning.

If you haven’t taken a break yet, DO IT NOW!

STEP 3: make some observations

There are two goals in this step. One is to find the meaning in your stories, and to rank them. It really doesn’t matter if you rank then process, but don’t discard ideas, you will be able to use them later.

What does each story say about this writer?

  1. Courageous, hopeful, inspired

  2. learned to worry about what’s important

  3. Humble, able to change

  4. Responsible, can do hard things, Good listener

  5. Can work through disappointment, have had to be resilient, have coped with change

Which are the strongest statements about me, what do people need to know to understand me?

  1. Courageous, hopeful, inspired

  2. learned to worry about what’s important

  3. Humble, able to change

  4. Responsible, can do hard things, Good listener

  5. Can work through disappointment, have had to be resilient, have coped with change

Yet more examples

Step 4

Add a paragraph to your top choices, using the qualities you identified. Keep it simple, and in your voice. Show why this was a change for you, or how you grew from it.

  1. when I was nine, I won a poetry contest and everyone called me a great writer. People should be careful when praising a 9-year-old, i didn’t ever think I had to work at it. But the first time I heard her lyrics, I realized that I’d never make a difference unless I tried to harness my gift.

2. Being liked was my first priority when I got to middle school. I was the only kid in my grade to not have a cell phone, at least I thought so. My elementary school bully, a neighborhood boy who made my stomach drop every morning just thinking of the bus stop, had moved. Nothing could go wrong. Then I got on social media and suddenly I had all the power I’d lacked. I should have learned from all those years of bullying about how to impress others, but I didn’t.

3. Being well-behaved at school isn’t about good manners or knowing what to say. For me, it’s about not saying much, just following directions and paying attentions. If you asked my teachers and parents, they’d tell you I am a good kid. I am proud of that, but I have also been aware that means that it’s safe to be quiet. When I had to get my first job, I applied for everything that didn’t face the public. I got a job stocking shelves, but when three people quit, I got moved to cashier and found out talking to people is really hard.

Our mission

This is a space that demystifies school for students, parents, and readers of all ages. Lead by a veteran teacher, we break it all down, explain why it happens, and offer support for struggling readers, learners, and the grown-ups who help them. 
It’s also for anyone who loves reading, misses learning, and wants to reconnect with your inner book nerd.