NIRANJANA IYER, COLLEGE ESSAY COACH AND EDITOR

After completing my MBA from IIM Ahmedabad (India) I spent several years in the corporate world, last with Citigroup Inc., before deciding to become a writer. I obtained a Liberal Arts master’s degree with a specialization in creative writing from Dartmouth College (New Hampshire) following which I began writing with an eye to publication. I founded The Compelling Story, a writing consultancy where I work with new writers to help them understand the process and requirements for creating memorable, powerful stories.

I lived in India, the United States, Britain, and last in Canada, before moving back to the United States. I now live in the San Francisco Bay Area, and I’ve been in the writing/editing field for over 20 years.

COLLEGE ESSAY SPECIALIST

I provide personalized, empathetic coaching for high school students seeking admissions to American universities. My students have been admitted to the Ivies and other selective institutions including MIT, Caltech, Stanford, The University of Chicago, UC Berkeley, UCLA and more and more. There is no substitute for one-on-one college essay coaching when it comes to writing the best college essay!

I do not advertise my services anywhere, and I’m not on Yelp or any other platform. Every one of my clients comes to me via referrals by satisfied students and parents. You can see my testimonials page and my LinkedIn profile for detailed client feedback about my process and results. All my testimonials are real and verifiable; you can contact my recommenders on LinkedIn directly if you wish. Many counselors have stock photos, fake names, and fake testimonials on their websites—please do your due diligence before you sign up with any counselor.

I primarily work with high school students, but I also help with SoPs for grad school.

Questions? Please contact me at thecompellingstory at gmail dot com.

WRITER

My work has appeared in The Smithsonian Magazine, The Millions, The Christian Science Monitor, The Rumpus, The Aerogram, Bookmarks Magazine, The Missouri Review, World Literature Today, The Asian Review of Books,  Herizons, Bookslut, Rain Taxi Review and much much much more. I’ve published hundreds of book and film reviews, and I’ve also interviewed several award-winning authors for various publications.

EDITOR

I have been working as a writing consultant for over 15 years. Novels and college essays are my specializations, but I've also edited short stories, memoirs, academic papers in the social sciences and humanities, essays for executive programs, and a screenplay. I've worked with a diverse range of authors including award-winning writers, medical professionals, college professors, graduate students, management consultants, and, of course, high school students. I've seen many sides of the writing process as a student, as a writer, as a submissions editor for a magazine, as a book reviewer, and as a manuscript editor. I am passionate about the transformative power of a good story to warm hearts, broaden minds, and open doors.