I realized 90% of my essays were just me reacting to the news cycle. They were fun to write, but they scored low because they lacked depth .
Current events should be the hook, not the thesis.
Bad: "Why AI art is bad."
Good: "How the 2023 AI art debate mirrors the 1839 photography crisis at the Académie des Beaux-Arts."
Your professor has read 100 takes on the news this week. They haven't read many essays comparing Ovid to modern diaspora literature.
Go deeper. Weird is memorable
.
Current events should be the hook, not the thesis.
Bad: "Why AI art is bad."
Good: "How the 2023 AI art debate mirrors the 1839 photography crisis at the Académie des Beaux-Arts."
Your professor has read 100 takes on the news this week. They haven't read many essays comparing Ovid to modern diaspora literature.
Go deeper. Weird is memorable
.