<p>I'm applying ED to William and Mary. It is my absolute number one choice, but the open-endedness of the question has me stuck a bit (It's pretty much just write whatever you want). I've written two different supplements (the first is an essay about how growing up with an autistic brother has impacted me) but the one I want to go with is a bit different from what most people do: I decided to write William and Mary a love letter. It's essentially just me "confessing" my love for the school and using my favorite features of it to reveal personal things about myself. But is that too quirky of a supplement? Am I better off going for something more formal?</p>
<p>The Supplement is open-ended to allow you to feel comfortable in responding in whatever manner you wish: formal or informal, quirky or creative, poetic or profound. Just make sure that whatever you submit shares substantive information about yourself.</p>
<p>Based on what you wrote here, if you were my kid, I’d vote for the second one. It’s creative, quirky, and unusual. I think it would make you stand out in a positive, more memorable way.</p>
<p>The first essay topic is cliche. If you go with that one, be sure it’s personal enough, that you show how your brother has impacted <em>you</em> in a way that someone else would not be impacted.</p>
<p>Hi, I have a question about the supplement as well (I wasn’t sure where to ask my question on the Admit it! blog.) I want to submit a piece of my writing that I am pretty proud of and that I think shows my personality. However, it was three pages doubled space - I single-spaced it and reduced the font to fit it onto one page. It isn’t gargantuan, but it is around 1000 words. Would this be too much for the admissions officer to read? I am particularly fond of this essay, but I know that they have tons of applications to get through.</p>
<p>@montague18, while we are not sticklers for word count, 1000 words is probably a little too lengthy given the guidelines provided say 500 words. If you could edit it down a bit that would be great.</p>
<p>In taking the love letter approach, you would want to be careful not to be simply pointing out the obvious, and keep your demeanor not too stalker-sounding. </p>
<p>Personally, I would go with your first approach, writing about life with your sibling. It tells your audience more about you, behind the scenes, what isn’t already out there in the open, and the mechanics behind what really motivates you, not just that you’re motivated by the carrot. </p>
<p>A clever person could merge the two essays into one idea and get the double-dip of creativity, no?</p>