If you want to write good personal essays, read them. Editor Holly Hughes includes lots of examples in her annual anthology.
Want to write the kind of food-based personal essay that delights an editor and an audience?
Of course you do. So for research, get The Best Food Writing 2016. I’ve paged through a few beautifully-written entries, but it will take several delicious hours to devour the whole anthology. (Disclosure: An essay I wrote was included.)
What makes a personal essay eligible in this year’s edition? Says Editor Holly Hughes, she chose pieces based on trends, those that reacted against trends and food snobbery, those based on the foods we eat together as a family, and essays about the human connection.
Right there, I hope you got lots of ideas for stories. Now, on to the craft of writing.
What can you do to up your personal essay game? Implement these eight writing techniques:
1. A strong voice. Your voice is what differentiates you on the page. It’s your personality, a way to make your story unique from everyone else’s. Therefore, if everyone else is writing about kale, a strong voice will make your story different.
2. Sensual details. Go beyond the five senses of taste, touch, smell, smell and sight to describe food. Describe body language, for example, to establish a subject’s character or state of mind.
3. Eccentricities, oddities, or obsessions. It’s what makes your story different and relatable to readers. Bring on the quirk, be it your obsession with kombocha brewing or why you love both your auntie’s tacos and Taco Bell’s.
4. Messiness and complexity. Because readers are smart, let them draw their own conclusions without hitting them over the head. Avoid stating the obvious. Include a little ambiguity, without being confusing. Doing so will draw readers in.
5. Present conflict and contrast. That’s what makes a personal essay worth reading. A struggle drives readers forward through the text to the end. Resolve the issues you present, to some extent, at the end. Use contrast as a construct to build interest, such as the previous example about tacos.
6. Humor. While the story could be about a tragedy or something sad, it can still contain humor, whether snarky, silly, goofy, slapstick, clever, or wry.
7. Emotion. Let emotion build up. The most effective stories are when a character reminds readers of themselves or someone they were close to. Expose the tender spots. Get in close.
8. Strong characters. People love strength and bravery in the main characters of a personal essay. If the story’s about you, you want readers to root for you. Stand up for something! Because you can make the food you’re writing about a character, it could be the star of the story, too.
Most of all, keep writing drafts and work on these techniques to deepen your piece and expand your readers’ responses to it. For more on voice, see:
(Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link.)
Loved this post! I followed the links and continued to read about Nigella and PW. I really am striving to write a post with a story and not just blah, blah, blah recipe instruction. I want to amuse and entertain. Writing is an art and even though some people find it easier, there is still a lot of learning to make it seem that way. I always come away learning something when I read your posts. Thank you!
Congratulations Dianne on your inclusion in Best Food Writing 2016! I just read The Meaning of Mangoes twice. On the first read, I got totally immersed in the story — your fascinating parents, Vancouver Chinatown in the 60’s, being descended from Iraqi Jews from India who were born in Shanghai. The second time through I read more slowly, picking out all the elements you talk about: the humor, the emotion, the oddities, the conflict, the messiness. There’s so much to learn from in this personal essay. Even though I subscribe to Lucky Peach (so much great writing in that mag) I had overlooked this one, so thanks for posting about it!
Thank you for this double read, Annie. I’m pleased that my essay held up to these points I’m trying to make. Whew, that was a close one!
I love this post and very helpful. Thank you Dianne!
You are most welcome, Carlos. I hope you can put the info to good use.
Acknowledgments do not stop when you do good work but may be the things that make you miserable, broken-hearted, but in the end, there are valuable lessons that no school teaches. Learn how to thank people when they have finished, to solve all the assigned tasks. Learn how to say thank you each day so much, so we will also receive thanks from others. When you receive thanks from someone, you will find life happy and useful. Because there are times when the light of life seems to be shut off and it is rekindled by another light. Do not regret it when you receive somebody’s help. Emotional or anything else just get back when you let go. Thanks also!
Good advice. Thank you to you for commenting.
I agree with every factor that you have pointed out. Thank you for sharing your beautiful thoughts on this.
Avoid common clichés like opening with a famous quote; this is not a college essay you’re writing, it’s an anthology of your thoughts. Rather, try to form a unique connection with your target audience.
Good point. I do get tired of seeing famous quotes in openings. It’s become a bit of a cliche.