<p>How do you write thoughts in your college essay? Also, can I use contractions in mine? </p>
<p>My essay is my personal life story. It has people speaking to me in quotations, my inner thoughts..etc. I think I wrote it informally. I don't have any slang in it though. Am I allowed to write this?</p>
<p>I think it’s fine, because its like a narrative. Don’t use contractions unless it’s in dialogue.</p>
<p>Contractions are fine, this is a completely different genre from research papers or literary analysis papers you write for English class. It will probably sound very stilted and artificial if you don’t use contractions at all. </p>