A Short Guide to Writing Personal Essays That Rock
By: Sam Ripples
Tags: Writing, Productivity, Writing Tips, Creativity, Inspiration

The Formula

I will be brief, because I did not lie when I said this was a short guide.

1. Open with a Bang

Drawing your reader in is a difficult task, especially if you tend to have a dry and expositional voice. That’s why I find that opening with a beautiful sensory image helps to transition the reader into the essay — it allows them to find a peaceful and often beautiful point of entry into the tale while also giving them a good sense of your voice as narrator. Take a peak at some of these openings I’m quite proud of:

The rainclouds crossed their dense arms across the bank of mountains before us, casting an ominous and stern air over our adventure, but my older sister and I didn’t care. — I Am Finally Learning to Love My Body The grocery store is ground-zero for sensory overload. The array of bright, fluorescent trays set into the ceiling lights the cavernous space with an overly-cheerful glow, casting no shadows and bathing the shiny plastic-wrapped food in an eerie, alien tint. The scuffle and shuffle of feet across the tile, the “beep, beep” of the cashiers ringing up customers, the rattle of shopping cart wheels, the enclosed and crowded spaces between the aisles heavy with noise and energy, all of it battering me over the head from the moment I step inside of the store. — COVID-19 Has Made Me More Agoraphobic Than Ever

When you draw your reader in from the first moment, it’s hard for them to want to stop reading.

So meaty. Photo by Alex Guillaume on Unsplash

2. Move onto the Meat

Once you’ve established a sensory image that is appropriate for the story, it’s time to move onto the meat of the personal essay, where it’s okay to get a bit expositional. Explaining yourself in an almost casual way will reaffirm your voice as well as allow you to give the dry facts behind your essay without boring your readers to death.

I find that speaking simply to your audience about your point makes it much easier to understand — being clear to all readers is an onerous task, but when you put forth your own points without becoming unnecessarily dense or overarticulate, it’s much easier for readers to grasp the main idea of your essay and resonate with it.

3. Sensory Image Sandwich

I like to call this part the “sensory image sandwich” — after explaining your main idea/thesis, it’s time to show your readers what you mean. Here is the time go even deeper into your essay, hopefully painting a sensory picture for your reader to help keep them engaged with your narrative as well as the main thoughts behind the piece. Demonstrate your the themes and lessons of the essay in this part, as tying together those sensory images with deep truths about life is an easy way to connect all of the dots.

The yummiest sandwich of all: a sensory sandwich. Photo by Mae Mu on Unsplash

Oftentimes, I try to elongate this part as much as possible, filling it with lessons and epiphanies my readers might find helpful interspersed with whatever story I am painting. But no one wants an essay to go on too long, which is why it’s important to wrap up without repeating yourself endlessly. Demonstrate your most important points and paint a few pictures, but then it’s time to end on a good note so the reader can take those lessons with them without growing bored.

4. End with a Positive Punch

Endings are never easy, especially if you’re like me and tend to be a bit more wordy than the average person. Don’t end the essay before its natural conclusion just because you’re feeling antsy — I find that most pieces have a natural endpoint that becomes clear once I’ve written my way to it.

Punch them in the face with positivity. Photo by Ivan Pergasi on Unsplash

Even if the story you are telling is not a happy one, I always think it’s important to end on a positive or at least hopeful note. While not everything in life is positive or hopeful, it’s also a concern to me if I make my readers more depressed or put them into a negative mood. That’s not to say everything is all sunshine and rainbows and needs to end happily, but it’s just what people need sometimes.

If you need some inspiration, here are a few of my favorite ending lines:

Inhale that pure golden magic straight into your soul. That’s the power of a novel. — Three Reasons Why Novels Are Necessary It’s never too late to begin again. — Your Ultimate Guide to Discovering Inspiration And sometimes I feel an answer, rising up beneath my skin in goosebumps or rolling through my brain like a stray thought, and I sink into that feeling: of being heard and being answered by God and knowing, despite all of the pain, I am not alone. — LSD Saved My Soul

One other silly thing I try to do is end my piece with a rhyme or near-rhyme. After reading a whole page of narrative, it can be impactful to bring some rhythm into your piece to end with a positive punch. Here’s an example of what I mean:

Body hair is beautiful. It’s okay if you don’t agree. You do you, and I’ll do me. — I Don’t Shave (Anywhere)

Don’t be afraid to try new things with your endings. But don’t go on too long and risk alienating your readers who just want to you to get to the damn point, already.

Go forth and rock, my dudes. Photo by Antoine Julien on Unsplash

Now Go Forth and Write Rocking Essays

This formula obviously isn’t foolproof, but nothing in writing is. Much of the writer’s life is a slog — slogging through writer’s block, slogging through editing, slogging through rejections — but attacking an idea with a structure in mind enables you to take control of your process.

The road of a writer is full of bumps, potholes, and wrong turns. Tighten up your structure and you may make it a smoother, more enjoyable journey towards knowing yourself and sharing your eternal wisdom.