Essays are a big part of academic life. From short compositions about our personal experiences to lengthy research dissertations, it is important to be able to craft a compelling essay.
While some may think that essays are only relevant in schools, the writing skills that you gain will help you in your career when you write your cover letter, compile a report, or communicate with your colleagues and clients.
Here are some tips that can help you effortlessly write winning essays.
Do Your Homework
You will sometimes be allowed to pick the topic for your essay. However, most of the time, you will have to write about a subject chosen by your teacher. Researching your topic is the best way to ensure that you write an insightful and interesting article.
During your research, you may learn more about your topic, and this new information could change your view and understanding of pertinent issues. While surface knowledge of a subject is not difficult to achieve or even fake, thorough research will speak for itself in the quality of your essay.
Let us take, for instance, an article about basketball. You could write an entire essay about how much you love basketball. However, if you also include facts about the history and social aspects of the sport, your essay will be more objective, well-rounded, and engaging.
Manage Your Time
Too often, academic life is hectic and chaotic. You have to juggle a variety of classes and coursework on top of friends, family, and work. Trust me, we have all had the experience of trying to rush out an essay at the eleventh hour.
Saving your work till the very last minute is generally not a good way to produce quality results. Therefore, you should try to set aside specific blocks of time to focus on your writing. By creating a daily or weekly schedule, you will be able to prioritize pressing assignments and gradually start working on the others.
How you plan your schedule depends on when and how you are most productive. Some people like to work in small segments while others like to dedicate several hours at once. You can give yourself half an hour of writing in the morning before class or two hours late at night when it is quieter.
Set an Essay Structure
The structure of your essay will influence its impact and flow. Typically, essays follow the same basic format of introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. An essay in this format presents your position, supports it with information, then ties everything together in a compelling finish.
The introduction is the most important part of your essay. It is where you will state your argument or thesis. It tells the reader about the subject of the essay and briefly summarizes the arguments or points that will follow. Your introduction should be clear and make the reader want to find out more.
The body paragraphs are where you will do the bulk of your writing work. Your essay could have three to twenty paragraphs, depending on the required length. Each paragraph should provide evidence for one argument that supports your thesis position.
After you have sufficiently proven your thesis statement, the last paragraph will reiterate it in a neat conclusion. Your reader is much more informed by the end of the essay, so the conclusion does not need any additional explanations. Be clear and to the point.
Review and Edit
Congratulations, you have finished the first draft of your essay! However, there is still work to be done. The review stage is essential in producing a top-notch piece of writing. You will need to edit your essay to ensure that there are no errors and that it makes sense and reads well.
You can ask your classmates or family members to read the article and review it for you, or you could use an online grammar checker. Online grammar checkers are ultra-useful tools that will make you feel like you have a dedicated professional editor.
These tools do a lot more than just identifying spelling and grammatical errors. They recommend writing adjustments such as removing passive voice and redundant words to enhance the impact of your essay. Grammar checkers will also help you improve readability through the use of sentence-length variation and transition words.
After you have reviewed and edited your essay, read it again in its entirety. Ask yourself if your thesis position has been strongly supported. Are there multiple persuasive arguments? Will your essay be able to convince your parent or teacher? If the answer is yes, good job!
Writing a successful essay is more than just banging out words on the keyboard. It requires conscientious research, thoughtful consideration, and objective review. By giving yourself ample time to prepare and by using the tools at hand, every student can write essays like a professional.