22 Profile Essay
Profiles . . .
- Are based on a writer’s newly acquired observations.
- Take readers behind the scenes of familiar places or introduce readers to unusual places and people or everyday people with interesting viewpoints or stories
- Provide information while at the same time arousing readers’ curiosity. Consider yourself as simply holding the mirror and reporting what this person is saying. That said, not everything is important to share so share only the most captivating details and organize/order that information in a compelling way.
- Present scenes and people vividly and concretely through description, action, and dialogue. That detail comes from observation and is not manufactured or exaggerated. This is non-fiction and not a fictional (made-up) story.
- Create a dominant impression of the subject. In other words, what is the lasting impression you would like the reader, your audience, to get from reading and learning about this person.
Profile Essay Prompt Based on Questionnaire: You will write 2 separate profile essays/papers. Base the profile essay on the responses you get from two people who took the questionnaire you created for your community change topic/issue. This should not be a career profile or personality profile but rather a profile on their thoughts, perspectives, and ideas on the issue at hand. Each profile essay should be at least 2 pages long. Write in third person but include first person as part of your direct quotes or as part of your observation as an interviewer. Your essay should not read as a question and answer. and the information does not have to follow the same order of the questions/ answers in the questionnaire. Sample essays written by: Jared Smith
