7/29/2019 Epistolary Ecstasy: Common App Essay

1/2

I began writing letters to editors on a whim, fuelled by a curious zeal for how newspapers are nuclei

of international dialogue and the belief that I, a mere student, could catalyse this conversation.Even the most elite of newspapers offer this egalitarian policy, opening their submission

windows for all to enter and express themselves.By fervently writing these letters, which ranged on topic from the surge of counterfeit Apple

stores to the Epicurean reflections of Lucretius, I immersed myself in a vortex of hyper-information.

I found myself not only absorbing every story available for the sake of adding to my database of

knowledge, but devising replies. The often bizarre facts and figures I retained fuelled my success in

Quiz Bowl competitions and debates as the Co-President of ASL's Debate Club.Writing a letter (as opposed to a staccato "tweet") is like auditioning for an intellectual role in

a thriller with focus, discipline and commitment. Editors want letters that are argumentative,

humorous, concise and to-the-point, or a mix of all four. The reward, in exchange, is to have my

observation, printed for the world to applaud, admire, criticise and respond to.

Since editors dont notify you of publication, it must have come as an odd, if not slightly

jocose, surprise for my parents to see their son discussing how the BBCs World Service is a remnant

of erstwhile imperialism in the Financial Times Weekend Magazine one October morning. I felt my

pulse racing with the thrill of artistic adrenalin; there was 16-year-old Shahid Mahdi and his 15

seconds of fame.The tumult of school and various commitments rolled by. Between editing "Jambalaya", the

literature and fine arts magazine at my school, attending Tuesday night sessions of Will Fiennes'

exclusive Writers Seminar, and running the London Marathon for the Spinal Research charity

(despite recently having had twelve metal screws in my fractured left arm and being the youngest

participant) among other activities, my schedule was by no means easy-going.Yet, the zest to be involved remained an unwavering fascination, and I made time to hammer

away at responses. The bulk of my email accounts inboxes largely consist of automated No

Reply: Thank you for your letter... messages from papers and magazines across the globe.

Ultimately, my perseverance produced results. Publications in Time magazine and The Daily

Telegraph followed, as did one in the holy grail of newspapers, The Economist, after fourteen

attempts.What I found to be most heartening is that I, a boy among giants, was selected. Whereas

MPs, Congressmen, CEOs, bankers and diplomats had experience in their respective fields as a

7/29/2019 Epistolary Ecstasy: Common App Essay

2/2

bulwark for their opinion, I had no credentials other than the fact that I was a voracious reader and

passionate writer.

I live in an age of tweets, blogs, and chats; a world where forums and walls are synonymous

with social media rather than architecture, and where nonsensical babble saturates the internet.

Writing a letter may be archaic in comparison, though I feel the proverbial pen - or rather, the

keyboard - is mightier than the sword, and channeling my thoughts keeps me in the global loop.The satisfaction of seeing your name in thatunique font, on thatpage, in thatnewspaper, is

almost as grand as realising that youre influencing the conversations of people youll never know. I

see my infatuation with letters and news as a foundation to greater ventures in writing and the art of

journalism. What today may be a 300 word letter seeking editorial approval could grow into a 6,000

wordNew Yorkerstory in the future.