Writing an essay seems to be a daunting task to many students. Whether this essay is for admissions or exams such as the SAT, students may find it difficult if they don’t know the right writing patterns.
Often you need to break essay writing into smaller parts to write it faster. In this post, check out the essay writing tips that are indispensable in college.
- Pick the right topic
You may be given a topic for your essay or you may need to choose one yourself. Choose something that interests you or you have some knowledge about it. Analyze your topic well. Conduct a research even if you think you know the topic well. A research is not only a way to gather information, it is also the perfect way to organize your thoughts and give you the idea what exactly your essay will contain.
- Make an Outline
This is one of the most crucial essay writing tips. The outline provides a proper structure for your essay before you actually begin to write it. It is sometimes necessary to make an outline not only for yourself; some teachers ask students to submit their essay outlines before writing the whole thing. It also helps in making changes to the essay before writing the final draft.
There are some prewriting steps while making an outline such as listing all the ideas, clustering the subject, questioning. Identify the purpose of your essay you want to persuade. Think well about the audience; it may be written for an instructor, classmates or strangers. Target your essay based on the audience, as well.
- Write Your Thesis Statement
The majority of essays require a thesis statement. It is one or two sentences which explain the main idea of your argument. There are two types of thesis statements. First one is informative, in which you explain the intentions of your essay. The second one is a persuasive thesis, in which you explain why the particular opinion is true.
There are some of the qualities you need to consider while writing a thesis statement such as length, position, and strength of the argument. A thesis can be short or long depending on how many points it mentions. The position of a thesis is generally after the introductory paragraph. Finally, it should be arguable.
- Write the Body
You should write the main idea of your essay and support it by writing 2-3 paragraphs, unless you write a big fundamental essay. The main idea should be clearly stated and should then be supported by evidence. The important aspects of all the body paragraphs are a clear topic clarification, specific evidence, examples, unity and cohesion, natural transitions between paragraphs and a concluding sentence. The supporting details may be in the form of personal examples, statistics, and quotes.
- Write an attractive Introduction
An introduction is the road map of the entire essay. It sets the tone for your work. It should be attractive enough to catch the attention of readers and keep them engaged. Start with something unique and interesting to grab readers attention. Try to stick to the formal language and tone. You can start an essay with a question or include some interesting facts. Make sure your introduction aligns with the thesis statement.
- Write a Compelling Conclusion
The conclusion is important because it provides something for the audience to think about once they finish reading your essay. It provides the completeness to your work; so ending it with a positive note can be a good practice. A strong conclusion contains three sentences minimum. They should be convincing and clear.
- Proofreading
It is advisable to proofread your work with fresh eyes. Concentrate on grammar, spell check, sentence style, structure and finally punctuation. Make sure the information in the text is accurate. The readability of the essay should be proper to include the transitions, common, uncommon and powerful words.
