Usage of quotes in the SAT essay

Test Preparation
1

<p>Hi CC,</p>

<p>I'm trying to improve my essay writing for the SAT and I've noticed that virtually all examples of 11/12 point essays seem to include quotes from the likes of Ullyses unabridged, the untranslated Beowulf manuscripts or a Nobel laureate's acceptance speech. As an uncultured procrastinator who seemingly doesn't appreciate good literature, I find it hard to come up with relevant quotes since the back of my cereal box and my shampoo bottle (my usual reading material) rarely contain quotes worthy of use in a philosophical discussion. So my question is do I NEED to have a quote from an impressive source to score a 11 or 12? And are you guys really so well read that you can recall a relevant quote or two for any topic within 25 minutes or do you have a few 'all-purpose' quotes that you try to shoehorn into your essay irrespective of the topic (and if so, would you mind sharing a few)?</p>

<p>In addition to that, I'd appreciate any other tips you might have on essay writing. In particular, what is your brainstorming process like and how do you allocate your time?</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>Apparently, you can attach any “quote” and have it be quoted by any random famous person. ETS doesn’t care about accuracy, they care about making sure your quote actually makes sense with the prompt. I remember I wrote a random quote (and by random I mean you can make it up) and had it quoted by MLK (who did not say it) and I got a 12.</p>

<p>You don’t need quotes or the speaker to actually be from a piece of literature or anything. It can be from anything, but a really famous person (MLK, JFK, FDR, Obama, etc.) is fine.</p>