Tips to successfully write a micro-essay
This semester I took English 201 along with 4 other classes. When I thought about English class, I thought it would be a lot of long research-based essays about boring topics. But when I got to Mr. Cummings class I was proved totally wrong. I was surprised when he told us we would not write a lot of long essays or do a lot of research writing, but rather do a bunch of little essays about whatever we wanted to write about. I grew to enjoy writing these as the semester progressed. At first, I was nervous to write them because when I write something, I usually write it in a lot of detail, but we were only allowed to write a max of 300 words so it was difficult for me to feel like I said all I needed to say into the small amount of words we were given. After writing a couple I got somewhat used it and developed some tricks that I will share with you now. These 3 tips are to write whatever comes to your mind it can be about anything, try to be vague about your topic, and lastly practice makes perfect.
Write something, anything
When your writing a 250-300 word essay, embracing the spontaneous flow of thoughts can be a valuable approach. When you allow your mind to have no boundaries it lets you be more creative and original in your writing. This way of thinking encourages a more authentic expression of your thoughts and feelings, instead of trying to think up ideas that you think other people would want to hear. By avoiding overthinking and instead letting ideas unfold organically, you may uncover unique insights and connections that might be overlooked in a more structured approach. This process not only makes the writing experience more enjoyable but also often leads to a more engaging and dynamic essay, capturing the reader's attention with a genuine and unfiltered exploration of the chosen topic. You will be more willing to actually do the writing instead of dreading it and maybe not doing it at all.
Don’t over elaborate on your ideas
Opting for more concise language when writing a micro essay is better for several reasons. Firstly, the limited word count necessitates a limited, focused approach, urging writers to pin point their thoughts to the most essential elements. This constraint challenges you to prioritize key ideas and communicate them briefly, promoting clarity and preventing unnecessary wordiness. Additionally, a more concise writing style is likely to captivate the reader's attention, as it avoids tedious elaborations and gets straight to the point. The brief nature of a shorter essay also encourages precision in language and structure, gives room for every word to contribute more meaningfully to the overall message. In a world saturated with information, the ability to convey a compelling narrative or argument within a confined space is a valuable skill, this will help readers not to get bored of your writing. This will also help limit your word count and only say the necessities.
The more you write the easier it will be
Lastly this piece of advice I think can be applied for most anything, but it really serves true when writing micro essays. When you frist start writing them I can bet you will not enjoy it very much. It will feels harder than writer an actual long essay, but with time and practice it will become easy. Once I started writing them more frequently I noticed I started writing them faster and with more ease. Though I would not say that I am perfect at writing micro essays now I do think I have improved since the beginning of the semester. Each time you write a micro essay you will learn new tricks that will help you write the next one even better. Do not feel discouraged when you have two in one week, it will only get easier and easier, so you should feel more excited to write your next one.
Conclusion
Writing micro essays is definelyty different from anything I have ever written before in any of my english classes, but I enjoyed it way more that I thought I would. With consistency and practice I became a more fluent writer and learned how to write quicker and more concise. I got to write to an audience that I actually connect to and got feedback from it. Even though at frist I was confused and seriously did not want to write them, they eventually grew on me and I know they will on you too. I just think that writing what you want to write about makes it that much more fun and enticing. I think even after this class is over I will be writing mirco essays here and there just for fun.