<p>My otherwise brilliant daughter is having a meltdown when it comes to the personal essay for the common application. I mean crying jags. We helped her narrow down a topic: her experieriences in theater tech. She has been doing it since 6th grade but is now freezing up and forgetting everything...after this she has two more to do for the Macaulay Honors Program...this is going to be hell. Any suggestions about how to handle it? SHe does not accept help from us...for her academic subjects she has long since passed the time where she needed our help so she is very resistant...</p>
<p>If she were to start a blog about theater tech, what would be some of the first topics she would want to write about? An essay is really no different from well thought out blog post.</p>
<p>Perhaps the pressure of whipping out a full-fledged essay is too much for her. Suggest she sit down with a pad of paper, a pen, and a cup of tea and write nonstop for 10-30 minutes. She can write about whatever she likes; it doesn’t have to relate directly to an essay. Indeed, it may be just as worthwhile to have her write a diary-esque entry to vent her stress about this whole process and then freewrite something more essay-appropriate another day. </p>
<p>From this writing, she can start to carve the beginning of an essay. She may get a full-fledged essay from this exercise, but it’s more likely she’ll get a few paragraphs, a few lines, or just a general approach to an idea. Still, it’s something, and she’s no longer charged with writing a brilliant essay in one go. She should just slowly start to shape her essay up from these inklings. The editing process can (and should) be a long one as the essay evolves over time. </p>
<p>I’d also advise getting an oversized monthly calendar so she can plan everything out, working backwards from the deadline. Perhaps these next three weeks she freewrites twice a week, then spends the next month editing, then puts her essays away from a week or two before returning to add the final touches. Whatever works for her schedule and the deadlines of the schools she’s applying to.</p>
<p>My suggestion would be for her to perhaps sit down with a friend or counselor, someone with whom she can be relaxed, and simply talk through essay ideas. One person could jot down a few words to aid memory but otherwise the suggestion is just to talk about ideas and a plan for the first essay.</p>