First Person Essay

posted by Laura Callisen 19 Jun 2015
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First person essays are personal essays that relate to experiences that the author has had. They require selecting a life experience that will be interesting to readers and relevant to the course. Most students will agree that the more difficult parts of writing a first person essay are topic selection and use of descriptive language. Because of this, we are providing to you, a list of personal essay topic ideas, questions, and essay prompts, along with some tips on how to best use language so that your reader relates to your experience.

Selecting an Experience to Share

Your first task, before you begin your pre-writing will be to select an experience to share in your essay. As you begin mulling over ideas, ask yourself a few questions.

  • Is this an experience that I can tie into what we’re learning in class?
  • Am I willing to share this experience publicly?
  • Will this experience be interesting to a broad audience?
  • Does it have emotional appeal? Is it funny, touching, or compelling?

If you can answer each of these questions affirmatively, chances are that you have found a suitable essay topic. If you are still working on finding the perfect idea, keep reading.

Personal Essay Questions and Prompts

Here are a few questions and prompts that many students find helpful as they try to come up with an ideal essay topic:

  • What was the best day you ever had at school?
  • Describe the first time your parents treated you like an adult.
  • How did you meet your first best friend?
  • Describe your first date.
  • Write about the best day you ever had.
  • Have you ever saved another person’s life?
  • Describe a time that you went against popular opinion.
  • Have you ever stood up to a bully?
  • Write about the worst day you ever had.
  • Have you ever been impacted by a house fire, tornado, flood, hurricane, or other disaster?
  • Describe your first day as the new kid in school.
  • What was the worst argument you ever had with a loved one?
  • What was the most exciting experience you ever had on vacation?
  • Tell readers about your first time flying in an airplane.
  • What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to accomplish?

Read also: Who can write my admission essay and make it stand out among others?

Descriptive Language in Writing

In order to grab the attention of your readers, using a descriptive language in your college essay writing is a must. This is the way that you will appeal to their sense memory. Sense memory is what people use in order to understand what another person was thinking and feeling in a particular situation. You accomplish this by describing, rather than telling. For example, if you want your readers to know that you were nervous the first time you went on a roller coaster, don’t simply write that you were nervous. Describe the feeling in the pit of your stomach, tell your readers about your sweaty palms, and your racing heart. This is how your readers and instructors can relate to your personal experience.

Hopefully, this information will help you with your personal assignment. However, always remember that you can get "write my essay" help, available at GrabMyEssay.com.

Laura Callisen

Blog writer for GrabMyEssay

Hello! 

Hello there! I am Laura Callisen, and I fancy myself to be a modern “Renaissance person.” I suppose my 30-something self began my incredible journey after having been born in Stavanger, Norway and then immigrating to the U.S. (Utah, actually) at the age of 5. I am certain that this change was more of a cultural “shock” for my parents than for me, because I quickly mastered the language and was clever enough to “play the game” of public education in America. After graduating from Skyline High School, where I spent two years as the school newspaper editor, obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in English and journalism from the University of Utah was a natural culmination of my love for writing.

My inclination to be socially conscious led me to lots of community outreach and volunteering during my college years, especially in the areas of educational and housing improvement for the poor and a number of environmental crusades. My passion for philosophy and travel have now taken over, and I am enthralled with the widely varied value systems of all cultures in which I can immerse myself, if only temporarily. My life as a freelance writer allows a freedom I never want to sacrifice for a stuffy office!

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