Occupying Space to Be Memorable

How does your day begin?

Is it always the same?

Or are there tiny differences hiding in the routine?

Zoom in.

The feeling of cold tile on your feet.

The first sip of coffee.

The song playing in the background.

These are the details that place the reader in the room with you.

Details matter.

They’re not just decoration.

They are what Hemingway called the tip of the iceberg—

small truths that suggest something deeper underneath.

Don’t just tell.

Show.

This is what makes your writing come alive.

Not “I was nervous,”

but “I could feel the paper sweat in my hand.”

Zoom out.

What did that moment lead to?

What came before it?

What does it say about who you are becoming?

Now zoom out again.

Look at your month.

Your year.

The world you’re growing up in.

Is there chaos? Uncertainty? Hope?

Good writing travels.

It moves from small to large.

From you,

to us.

This is what college essays need.

Not just a clean sequence of events.

But a story that breathes.

Zooming in gives your story shape.

Zooming out gives it meaning.

This is how you occupy space in a reader’s mind.

Not by shouting,

but by being specific,

and being aware.

Be the story they remember.

Not because it was perfect.

But because it was yours.