by Cara Kalf | Jun 30, 2021 | Cara, college coaching, College Essay, writing tips
Top 5 Tips to Write Faster Top 5 Tips to Write Faster is the secret you want more than any other, and I’m going to give it to you for free. Everyone wants to write faster, but especially students, and especially students writing application essays for more than a...
by Cara Kalf | Jun 15, 2021 | Cara, college application essay, college coaching
The Worst Beginnings I thought I’d start a blog post with an example of how not to begin—but I decided I’d lose your attention before I even got to the explanation. With that in mind, if you want to make sure you aren’t choosing some of the most clichéd and dull...
by Cara Kalf | May 30, 2021 | Cara, college coaching, College Essay Examples, writing tips
What’s Your Why? Motivational speakers and authors talk a lot about “finding your WHY.” If you’re really clear on why you’re doing what you’re doing, they tell audiences, you’re more likely to get it done and do it well. This is true for mundane things you might need...
by Cara Kalf | May 15, 2021 | Cara, college coaching, College Essay Examples
Which Details Matter? It’s easy to recognize when a child has edited their writing. Instead of a rambling story that jumps oddly from one apparently unimportant moment to another, you get—a rambling story that jumps oddly from one unimportant moment to another … with...
by Cara Kalf | Apr 30, 2021 | Cara, College Essay, College Essay Examples
Garden Tales Last summer, my 3-year-old discovered the joys of pulling fresh vegetables from the garden and eating them on the spot. One day, he found a bed full of carrots and pulled one up immediately. When I saw him eating it, I couldn’t figure out where he had...
by Cara Kalf | Apr 15, 2021 | Cara, college coaching, College Essay, College Essay Examples
Twenty Questions (And Then Some) With Your Dream School List So, how is that school list coming? If you’re applying this summer, you need to be filling—and then narrowing—your list of potential schools so you know what essays you need to start writing in late June or...
by Cara Kalf | Mar 30, 2021 | Cara, college application essay, College Essay, College Essay Examples
Unexpected Essay Secret Write Badly Here’s what you’re doing wrong: You’re expecting it to come out right. It might sound counter-intuitive, but expecting perfection from your draft is the best way to kill it. Actually, it’s the best way to ensure it never gets...
by Cara Kalf | Mar 15, 2021 | Cara, college application essay, College Application Tips
Unicorns Are Not Unique or No Such Thing as a Synonym If you polled every student I have ever had in the classroom, I suspect one of the top three facts you would learn is this: “Mrs. Kalf doesn’t believe in synonyms.” I think they find this deliciously subversive in...
by Cara Kalf | Feb 28, 2021 | Cara, college application essay, College Application Tips
The New (Improved?) Common App 2022 The Common App has released its prompts for next year, and I’m delighted to see all of my favorites still on the list. There’s only one prompt that’s new for 2021, and you probably didn’t need the Common App writers to tell you it...
by Cara Kalf | Feb 15, 2021 | Cara, College Application Tips
The Tool You Didn’t Know You Needed What if a student really had nothing to say? The Tool You Didn’t Know You Needed It’s rare that I get a student with no story at all. But it happens that students come to me to write their essays and have few stories that really...
