Use these prompts on paper or in your preferred writing app. The PDF versions provide space to write.
Turn one main idea into a clear, supported paragraph.
Download Paragraph Planner (PDF)
What are you explaining or arguing? Who is your reader?
Write the main point of this paragraph.
What detail supports your point? Record the source if needed.
How does the detail support your point? Why does it matter?
Add another detail or connect this point to the larger argument.
Bring the paragraph back to its main idea.
Build a focused claim for an argument or analytical essay.
What question must your essay answer?
What is your answer or interpretation?
List two or three reasons or patterns you can support with evidence.
Why should your reader care about this claim?
Combine your claim and key reasoning in one or two sentences.
Is it specific, debatable, and supported by the evidence you have?
Revise for meaning first, then edit for correctness.
Download Revision Checklist (PDF)
My writing answers the prompt. My main idea is clear.
Each paragraph has a purpose. Ideas connect in a logical order.
Examples support my points. I explain how and why they matter.
I credit borrowed ideas and words. The writing reflects my own thinking.
I use precise words. Sentences are clear and appropriate for my reader.
I check grammar, spelling, punctuation, length, and required formatting.
What will make the greatest difference to this draft?
Read aloud or ask a trusted reader for feedback. What still needs work?
Find a true story that shows how you think, act, and grow.
Download College Essay Brainstorm (PDF)
Copy the question and record the application requirements.
List real experiences: a choice, challenge, curiosity, or meaningful activity.
Where were you? What happened? Which concrete details do you remember?
What did you do? What did you learn or begin to see differently?
Which values, interests, or qualities does this experience show?
Choose an opening moment and the main insight you want to develop.
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Decide where you are stuck: gathering ideas, organizing them, or revising a draft. Use a planner that helps with that step.
Before you fill it out, write a one-line goal so you know what the planner should help you finish.