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Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:00:16
I'm Andrea Askowitz.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:00:18
I'm Allison Langer, and this is Writing Class Radio. You'll hear true personal stories and learn how to write your own stories. Together, we produced this podcast. It's equal parts heart and art. By heart, we mean the truth in a story, and by art, we mean the craft of writing. No matter what's going on in our lives, Writing Class is where we tell the truth. It's where we work out our sh-.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:00:39
Shit, shit, shit.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:00:41
There's no place in the world like Writing Class. And we want to bring you in.  Today on our show, we're bringing you the first essay in our teen series. These essays were all written in Guatemala last summer, August 2022. And we've waited till now because each of the students is revealing where they were accepted.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:01:05
So all the essays that were written in our Guatemala teen writing retreat, they landed those kids into the colleges of their choice. Am I right?

Allison Langer (Host) 00:01:15
Well, I mean, I don't know that for sure, but I'm pretty sure. Okay.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:01:18
Yes. They all had a target, and they all launched into their target.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:01:24
Basically, they're all going to college and they're going to love it, and they're in the right place. So I know there's a lot of stress because this is what I do. I work with kids who are trying to get into school, and I'm stressed because my son's applying this year. I mean, you were stressed when your daughter was applying. Everyone is stressed because you just want your kid to be happy.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:01:40
I was not stressed.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:01:41
All right, whatever. The point of the matter is, usually the kids end up where they're supposed to go. The essay is a huge part because it gives you the opportunity to really show these admissions people who you really are. So it's not a resume, it's not a bragging situation. It's a place to show your vulnerability and who you are aside from your grades.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:02:03
Okay, so I want to say something about what we did in Guatemala, because you've been working with teens for a few years.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:02:09
Five.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:02:10
Yeah. Okay. So you're like, Andrea, let's do a teen writing retreat. I'm like, I don't really like kids. And you're like, no, let's do it. It's going to be awesome. And it's a way to get these kids to write their essays. And I was like, you crazy. There's no way a kid is going to write their essay in six days. Do you remember that?

Allison Langer (Host) 00:02:29
Yes. Because it started with one of the parents who knew the woman who owns the house that we've been to on our adult retreats in Guatemala. And she said, Will you do a teen when my daughter's going to college? And she was like, I'm not doing it. Call these girls. So she calls us and you're like, no. And I was like, Wait, what? I love this idea. Let's do it. So I want to give Debbie Zelensi. How do you say her last name?

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:02:55
It was Debbie Z's idea, and she asked us, but okay, my point is, I was like, no, I don't like kids. And then you were like, no, we should do this. And then my other point was, no, there's no way this is going to work, because how are we going to get ten kids to write a successful essay in six days? And then you created this whole agenda. First, we had them just write to a bunch of prompts, and on today's episode, you're going to hear Emily talk about how this came out of that first day's writing prompt.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:03:22
Prompts and tips. We really went over writing tips the same way we deal with adults and the way we learn ourselves.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:03:28
But on the first day, the prompts were, like, my most embarrassing moment, a time I wish I could do over, something I hate about myself. They were very hard hitting. We just got right to it. And in that prompt response workshop, people were crying. I could not believe the vulnerability that these kids revealed. They just opened up immediately. And then what we did is you worked with them. I worked with them solo, and then they brought back drafts. The whole group worked together, and then we went and worked with the opposite. So if I worked with five solo, you worked with those five. I worked with those opposite five. But in my experience, working with those kids, sitting there one on one with them, they were so smart, they were so driven. They worked on it on their own. And by the end of the six days, every single kid had a kick ass. I mean, it was a miracle. The week was a miracle on so many levels. But I just want to give you credit, Allison Langer, for coming up with this program. And we're repeating that program this summer, summer of 2023 in Key Largo, and it works really well. So if you have a kid out there who needs to write their college essay, contact us at info@writingclass radio.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:04:45
There's another thing, though, that we're not talking about here that I think should be mentioned, and it's that these kids came with so much anxiety and stress and secrets. Not just you'll hear our first storyteller, but every one of them was holding back and really suffering inside internally. And you couldn't really tell from the outside because they're all beautiful and polite and smart, but when they started revealing their stories, the vulnerability and the emotion just bust open. But not just in them, but in us, too, because we were also sharing stories, and we all bonded in such an amazing way. So every kid who came and went has said that this experience changed their life. They went into this whole essay pressure. Oh, God, I got to write this essay. And they said it was the most amazing experience of their life. And I'm saying that twice because people don't understand and our adults all say it, too. There's a way of bonding, of sharing. When you start sharing your stories and there's no more secrets, there is something that busts your heart open. And I could see it, and there was so much going on. And as we read each person's story, we'll talk a little bit about some of the things that we dealt with while we were there. But first and foremost is the just openness of every single person and how that will affect them moving forward in their life.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:06:10
True that. We'll be back with Emily Olster story after the break.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:06:16
We're back. I'm Allison Langer, and this is Writing Class Radio. Up next is Emily Olster reading her college essay.

Emily Olster (Reader) 00:06:31
There's a picture hanging in my family's living room of a smiling, blue eyed girl. She has beautiful blonde hair that curls at the bottom. Her bangs pour over her eyes. She was always happy spending her days dressing up in princess costumes or playing on the swing set in the backyard with her younger brothers. That was five year old me. One week before high school, I started pulling out strands of hair from the front of my head. I didn't realize what I was doing until I looked in the mirror. A whole patch was gone. I walked around school trying to hide the damage, scared people would know my secret. This went on for a year. I hid the bald spots with hats and headbands. When my parents noticed, they Googled hair pulling. That's when I first heard the word trichotillomania. Trichotillomania became my constant companion. I thought it would be temporary, a habit that would last through the first weeks of high school and fade away once I'd adjusted. Sure, the workload increased and I felt the need to get A's, but I could always handle schoolwork. This was different. I felt stressed about nothing and nobody in particular. There was just an underlying sense of uncertainty. Piles of hair on the floor kept getting bigger. Every night before I went to sleep, I promised myself I would stop pulling. Then every day before school, I filled in the missing patches of hair with root touchup or wore a headband that hid my secret. I tried to pretend this wasn't consuming me. Even though it was, I never mentioned it to friends, and I'm not sure if they noticed or not. I didn't want to burden them with my problem, and honestly, I wanted to save myself the embarrassment from bringing it up at home. It became an uncomfortable topic. My parents wanted to help. My mom approached me, saying, can we talk? But I shut her out and walked away. Tricatillomania took a toll on my confidence and I felt trapped and alone. But I kept persevering if I ignored my problem, maybe it would resolve itself. I joined the bowling team and student cabinet and became involved with my community's youth advisory council. I started playing tennis again and began making beaded jewelry. These things kept me busy, an attempt at taking my mind off my hair. The summer after 10th grade, my parents sent me to high school in Israel, hoping a change would help. At first I was nervous, but wanted to try. We lived in dorms, went to classes, and studied Israel's history. I fell in love with Israel and the new people I met. The pulling declined. I felt independent, free of worry and in control of myself. This experience was a huge motivating factor for me. I got home and wanted to stay in this state of mind forever. But when school was about to start, the pulling got worse. I participated in traditional and cognitive behavioral therapy. Cognitive therapy really changed my mindset. I created a plan to ditch the hat and headband and try new and fun hairstyles without being ashamed. I set an ultimate goal to go to senior prom with a beautiful head of hair and then go to college without any secrets. This summer, I signed up for a writing and service workshop in Guatemala. On the first day, the writing prompt was, write about your biggest secret. I wrote about Trichotillomania. I had no idea I would be reading my words out loud. I cried while I admitted the truth to everyone. After, I felt free, relieved I no longer had to hide. Later that day, when everyone jumped off the dock and into the freezing lake, I threw off my hat, took a huge leap, and let my hair fly.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:10:11
Okay. So how was it writing about all this stuff and sharing in a group?

Emily Olster (Reader) 00:10:17
It was definitely hard because I never have written about it before, because I've always just felt uncomfortable bringing it up. But it definitely felt better to read out loud, feeling like I wasn't being judged. And, yeah, I'm glad I stuck with this topic.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:10:38
That's awesome.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:10:39
Thank you for working hard.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:10:56
The first thing I can think about is, like, could I have done that at that age? Like, wow, what a cool ass girl.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:11:03
Honestly, yeah. I don't think I could have done that. What I want to say first is that her ending, which is one of the hardest things to do, is, like, the best ending I've ever read in any of the stories that anyone's ever submitted. It's a scene that evokes exactly where she's going. She's flying off the dock, throws her hat, and takes a huge leap. It's so good.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:11:32
Well, you know what's better than actually reading it and hearing it again? Watching it. I saw her do it. I saw her. All the girls jumping off, one boy in the water, all of us around, and she whipped off her hat and just held onto each other's hands. I have a picture of it, maybe we can put it on. And she just took off. It was like this leap off the edge. It was like a little drop into the water, like maybe 10ft or something. Right.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:11:59
It was a big drop. I do remember it, but I saw.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:12:02
Her hair flying and the whole thing, and I was like, yeah. And everyone was so excited. But the writing is also super clear, and we get a real sense of who this girl is before, during, and now, which I think is really cool.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:12:21
So she shows us who she was by, like, oh, wait, that's that French term. Yeah, it's a picture of a picture. She did that. So she's showing us herself at five years old. What I noticed this time when I was just reading it, is that she had this confidence about her little girl self. Like, she talked about herself as this, like this smiling, beautiful little girl. I love that. That really hit me.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:12:48
I know.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:12:49
I just thought it was, like, an awesome way of seeing herself. And then she's like, that was five year old me.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:12:56
And listen, some of her best friends were at this retreat, and she bravely read in front of her best friends this, and they just got up and they gave her hugs. I think also, people, they know you're caring secrets. So the fact that she could just let this out is so amazing. And I'll tell you, a lot of people I've worked with don't want to include any personal information on their college applications. And I don't know, but as a reader of some of these, I'm just like, you know what? This girl can recognize herself, and she knows what she's dealing with. And I'd much prefer to have that person in my school than somebody who's running around with secrets, who doesn't really know what's going on.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:13:38
I imagine that college intake people what are they called? Admissions officers? I don't know, but I would agree with you. I would think that they want students who know themselves. That was another thing about this narrator. She's such a knowing narrator. She even knew that she was, like, sort of hiding from herself. That, to me, is so smart. Like, she was hoping that if she didn't deal with it, it would just go away. That moment when her mom approached her and she just walked away, that's just heartbreaking.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:14:08
I know. Especially as a mom, right?

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:14:10
Yeah. And I could so feel it.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:14:13
So college essays are only 650 words or less. Sometimes, like, it's between 350 and 650. I mean, I guess they kind of want around 500 or more, but not over 650. And because of working with these kids and realizing you can get an awesome essay at 650, we've started using that with our grownups. Right. 850. That's all you.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:14:36
That's all we give them now.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:14:38
Yeah.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:14:39
I want to talk about this method that we stumbled into of getting these kids to write these essays and adults to write essays very short, very good essays in a short period of time. Because people think that it's easier to write short, but it's not. It means you have to really figure out exactly what you want to say and only say that.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:14:59
Yeah. No tangents, only things that matter to the story. And she did that so well.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:15:05
I wanted to say that I learned something because I didn't know what Trichotillomania was, and I appreciated Trichotillomania. Okay. I didn't know how to say it, but I didn't know what it was, and I learned about it. And the way that she just laid that down was so clear and easy and necessary, I thought, for the essay, like, what is that? And the way that she talked about how she was feeling stressed out for no reason that she really could name, and this is how it manifested itself.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:15:34
And I'm sure people can relate.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:15:36
Oh, yeah.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:15:37
It's this thing that you think you're the only one going through, and then you realize, like, wow, there's a lot of people going through stuff. Maybe not exactly this, but something similar. This essay landed her at the University of Florida, which, by the way, is no joke. It is, like, harder than Harvard to get into these days. I want my son to go there, and I just am praying he can come up with us good. An essay and hopefully get in.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:16:05
Is it really harder than Harvard? I mean, I know it's so hard to get in there. I know. It's like one of the top five public schools now or something.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:16:12
Apparently, they only take 11% of the applicants.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:16:16
Yeah. And so many people apply. Right.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:16:18
Okay.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:16:18
So University of Florida is really hard to get into. And Emily busted in. Yeah, or she did.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:16:51
Thank you, Emily Olster, for writing the story, for having the courage to write it down, for having the courage to say it out loud in Guatemala, for working on it until it became amazing, and then for reading it here on our show. Thank you for sharing your story, and thank you for listening. Writing class Radio is hosted by me, Andrea Askowitz and me, Allison Langer.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:17:18
Audio production is by Matt Cundill, Evan Surminski, Chloe Emond-Lane and Aidan Glassey at the Sound Off Media Company. Theme music is by Marnino Toussaint

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:17:31
There's more Writing Class on our website, including stories we study, editing resources, video classes, writing retreats, and live online classes. If you want to write with us every week, you can join First Draft, our weekly's writers group. You have two choices you can come on Tuesday from twelve to one Eastern with Allison Langer or Wednesday Seven to Eight Eastern with Zorina Frey. You'll write to a prompt and share what you wrote if you want to. If you're looking to take your writing to the next level, check out all the classes we offer on our website, writingclassradio.com. If you're a business or have an organization of some kind and you want to punch up the writing within that organization or business, we are your teachers. Check out all of our classes on writingclass radio.com. Join the community that comes together for instruction, an excuse to write, and most importantly, to hang out with us.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:18:36
A new episode will drop every other Wednesday.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:18:41
What's wrong?

Allison Langer (Host) 00:18:42
We're dropping these every week.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:18:47
Okay.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:18:47
Wait.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:18:48
Yeah.

Allison Langer (Host) 00:18:49
Okay. A new episode of the college series will drop every Wednesday.

Andrea Askowitz (Host) 00:18:55
There's no better way to understand ourselves and each other than by writing and sharing our stories. Everyone has a story. What's yours?