I don’t need to emphasize the overstuffed myth that is the all-important college essay, do I? You arrived at this page, so you’ve heard about it: The college essay is this mythical creature. It looms large in the cultural imagination. It is a writing assignment unlike every other writing assignment high schoolers encountered before it arrived. It comes with a genre of self-help literature. Entire family legacies can hinge on them. Scholarships, honors program, self-worth. It’s spawned a whole genre of self-help literature.

It’s too much.

So… why have I created my own guide?

Honestly, it’s because I see something missing from existing resources about college essays: guidance to help you feel good about it.

It makes a difference to write about a subject you genuinely care about. It matters that you feel in control of the choices you make about how you tell it. It helps to be guided along by someone who is sensitive to the excitement and pressure that come with things like preparing to begin college.

And I feel weirdly qualified to do this, because I worked in college admission for 9 years (ascending to the role of Senior Assistant Director at Emerson College) and have taught creative writing in a wide range of genres since 2016—primarily college screenwriting. I’ve coached over 100 students through the process of writing their college essays. I have a pretty good grasp on what works—both in terms of college essays and the process of writing well.

And I believe writing well means doing it in a way that feels good. 

Welcome to Find the Words’ College Essay Lab—a guide for college applicants who are open to the possibility that telling an important, personal story to the education institution of their dreams doesn’t have to suck.

The guide contains 5 “lessons”. A few of them include video instructions for writing exercises, and each of them come with a homework assignment. Each one is usually a good hour of work—and those assignments are necessary to complete before the following lesson. Honestly, you’ll probably need a full day between each lesson.

If you get stuck at any point, you can always schedule a 55-minute drop-in appointment—I include instructions for doing so in each lesson. In the interest of transparency: these cost $150/per.

Click here to be taken to the first lesson and complete them at your own pace, or browse the lessons below—but make sure you complete them in order!

Take a deep breath. 

It’s just an essay.