The lights dimmed. Darkness. The room settled. Silence. Then, the distant whirring of ... something. What was it? Suddenly, brightness and sound and images launched me into a magical world. At age 6, my first movie experience made an indelible impression. Now, twelve years later, I embrace the formal steps toward becoming a unique storyteller. A visual artist. A filmmaker.

And that's just one example of how to start a scholarship essay. Now let's talk about how you can start yours. 

Should you fill out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) even if you think you won't qualify for aid? Do you need to reapply every year? Is the FAFSA even worth your time? Most importantly, are you holding FAFSA misconceptions that are costing you money?

Take the quiz below to test your FAFSA IQ.

Here, in these early days of our glorious digital era, you can see universities all over the country without ever leaving your home. Some you can even tour via virtual reality. Amazing! Money-saving! Impersonal!

If your daughter is going to invest four or five years of her life living in an entirely new environment, if your son is going to be a short flight but a long drive away, then your college-selection decision process calls for some actual reality: it's time for a road trip.

Suddenly, we're looking at colleges. How did this happen?

Wasn't it just yesterday that we were laughing as our son toddled to the window, pointing excitedly at the big school bus that stopped to pick up the older kids? Didn't we just have him at the small park with the kid fort in a sincere effort to tire him out? And now he’s a high school junior ... so here we are, road-tripping to look at colleges.