<p>I've started my app, but I haven't started the essay part. Am I screwed? Or do you think the remaining time is ample to do a good solid job on it?</p>
<p>I'm making constant revisions to prompt #2, but I haven't written anything for prompt #1 yet x.x I'm hoping to have inspiration by next Tuesday. That's when I want to send in my application <em>because I'll get my November Japanese subject test score back</em></p>
<p>I think if you have a good idea in mind for your essays, you should be able to write a good one. I find that I write pretty quickly if I have inspiration.</p>
<p>If you can focus on doing nothing but writing, revising, and editing your essays, you could get it done in 24 hours or less. </p>
<p>I kinda can't do that so im trying to break it up into little parts :D</p>
<p>How long? 500 words? I wrote the "core" of one of my supplemental essays (around 230-something words) in around 30 minutes, and added the rest and sharpened it/spiced it up in about the same time the next morning. It was about my area of interest though, so it wasn't too difficult. </p>
<p>Other essays, for me, have taken weeks of random notes jotted down and so on, but I could only really write them once something hit me right. When that happened, it usually took a few hours. As I did more essays, it became easier, for sure. Also, if you write enough essays, most supplements won't seem so different. A lot of supplements and prompts fall into the same general categories, it seems. A few exceptions are the Beloit "words of you" essay, and the U of Chicago essays, of course.</p>
<p>When are you due, Little_duck? Even if you need to send by Wed, you have time. Try to get some editors to check out your work beforehand though.</p>
<p>If your due date doesn't coincide with mine, I'll edit some for you also.</p>
<p>The UC essays are due on Nov. 30th, basically the apps. are I mean.</p>
<p>but i know kids who started like back in October so I was thinking I'm way behind but apparently not?</p>
<p>It depends on the person, duck. Some people work better under pressure, and some like to schedule in their app time over long periods of time so it doesn't feel overwhelming. I work better under pressure, but ironically am an obsessive-compulsive planner. So, I finished all the stuff I knew would kill me much farther in advance (specifically, the activities and awards sheets, which I wanted to be perfect) and put off the stuff I could delay until around the week prior. I planned it that way. It sounds weird, but I knew that I might have worse essays if I wrote them on more sleep. The 230 word essay I told you about was written after an all-nighter, and the night before also had little sleep. And the essay came quickly and was pretty strong, IMO. A lot of writers need to "let go" and I, an admittedly tense person, relax better while sleep-deprived. Go figure!</p>
<p>If you don't KNOW that this works for you, don't do it. Also, I tried to give myself enough time to be able to chill and re-read without tiredness obscuring mistakes I'd made. I still made a major mistake, though I doubt that I would have avoided it because it stemmed from something that I didn't notice for months. </p>
<p>Try to finish this week, if you can. Then email it to a teacher, or ask for readers here. It will also give you some time to step away and then have the chance to view your writing again with "new eyes." I don't know how many essays you need to finish, but I think that, if you manage your time and focus your writing skills, this week is ample enough time, as long as you are applying to under 10 schools (not counting sheer and simple common app schools).</p>
<p>I wrote both of mine in two days. I wrote them both (my first one was actually the same prompt as another of my essays). I then proofread it and waited until the next day to proofread it again.</p>