//------------------------------//
// Publishing Contretemps 
// Story: Remedial Applied Essay 
// by DerpyStarlet 
//------------------------------//


Publishing Contretemps
By: A.K. Yearling who attended a public school in Cloudsdale.


I took a deep breath to steady myself, to steel my nerves for what I was about to do. Confident in my composure, I turned my gaze to the magnificent structure before me. A perfect blend between Gothic and Prench architecture that fit perfectly in it's own niche little corner of Manehattan. Past all the big buildings and stuffy offices lies the premier publishing company in Equestria. I grip a copy of what is hopefully my final draft of my book.
After many revisions I finally had a story I was happy with. A story that told the truth without a sacrifice to the excitement of the story. With one final breath I steadily trotted into the building. It was far emptier than I could have expected. For being such a prestigious establishment there was an incredible lack of presence from within the building. Of course I had only just stepped into the main foyer, anybody with real business to conduct must be sequestered further into the building. After all, that is where I was heading.
The receptionist didn't seem to bat an eye as I walked closer, nor did she seem to take any particular interest in my presence. I informed her of my meeting, to which she finally seemed to acknowledge my presence. She seemed to give me a cautious once over before slowly turning to a small stack of Manila folders. She asked for my name, and once supplied with that information she told me that my meeting was scheduled in room 1107. Rather than provide any sort of direction she simply turned back to her typing, seemingly indifferent towards my dilemma.
I'm a very capable mare, and I've yet to cross a number system I can't crack; so rather than waste my time with bothering the receptionist yet again, I take matters into my own hooves. After a bit of meandering about I find the 1100 hall easily enough, and in turn door number 1107. I take a second to garner enough determination, ready to prove my worth. I knock gently, hearing an expectant response. With only a moment's hesitation I find myself shuffling into the room delicately.
The publisher greets me and immediately pulls out her copy of my story, not wasting time with semantics. She gives me praise and for a moment I feel admiration, but she quickly follows up with all the things she found wrong with my book. A brief summation of her description would go along the lines of “Generic adventure with a generic adventurer that has no real character development. The tale seems trite and cliche, with the main character seeming unrelatable and overly competent.”
I was more than a little upset, mostly because the story was based off real events I had faced. For such a major event in my life to be called “trite and cliche,” I didn't react well. In turn I was forced to vacate the premises with both copies of my story, my hopes dashed. It wasn't long before I would go at it again with another publisher after even more revisions. Thus was my battle to publish my first, and arguably most successful book.

~

Twilight sat back in her chair, a bit confused as to what she had just read. Confused for a couple reasons. The biggest being the formatting. This essay wasn't even MLA formatted, it was presented more like a story than anything.
Reading the story again, Twilight began to take notes. Scrounging together in her mind what she knew an admissions essay had to be and finally considering her idea of an admissions essay.

~

Analysis

Yearling’s essay highlights her major accomplishments, her writing, with an air of humility. This approach shows not only her character, but projects herself with attractive modesty. Showing her early struggles while only glancing over her eventual success shows that the message tends not towards the end goal, but the adversity faced on the way there.
Her essay is a relatable tale about trying in the face of continued failure. Using first person she puts you in her place, making her trials and tribulations personal. This is made easier by the fact that success was not immediate, a fact many can attest to.
There were problems with pacing, wherein the first half of the essay is building up to actually meeting the publisher. The description of the style of architecture could be a nice insight into Yearlings history with architecture, but seems out of place in an anecdote about writing. The beginning isn't very intriguing and doesn't invite me to want to read the rest of the story, even if the story as a whole is insightful.

-	Twilight Sparkle