english essay writing pattern

Sentence Patterns

What this handout is about.

This handout gives an overview of English sentence patterns. It will help you identify subjects, verbs, and clause connectors so you can analyze your writing style and improve it by using a variety of sentence patterns. Click here for a one page summary of the English sentence patterns discussed on this handout.

Subjects, Verbs, and Clauses

In its simplest form, an English sentence has two parts: a subject and a verb that express a complete thought when they are together.

• The subject shows who or what is doing the action. It is always some form of noun or pronoun.
• The verb shows the action or the state of being. It can be an action verb, like “run,” or a state verb, like “seem.”

Examples of simple two word sentences include:

Marvin slept.

Isotopes react.

Real sentences are rarely so short. We usually want to convey much more information, so we modify the main subject and verb with other words and phrases, as in the sentences below:

Unfortunately, Marvin slept fitfully.

Dogs bark louder after midnight.

Heavy isotopes react more slowly than light isotopes of the same element.

Despite the extra information, each of these sentences has one subject and one verb, so it’s still just one clause. What’s a clause?

A clause is the combination of a subject and a verb. When you have a subject and verb, you have a clause. Pretty easy, isn’t it? We’re going to concentrate on clauses in this handout, with emphasis on these two in particular:

• Independent clause: a subject and verb that make a complete thought. Independent clauses are called independent because they can stand on their own and make sense.
• Dependent clause: a subject and verb that don’t make a complete thought. Dependent clauses always need to be attached to an independent clause (they’re too weak to stand alone).

We’ll talk more about dependent clauses later on, but also see our handout on fragments for a more detailed description of these types of clauses.

Something tricky

Before we move on to the sentence types, you should know a little trick of subjects and verbs: they can double up in the same clause. These are called “compound” subjects or verbs because there are two or more of them in the same clause.

Compound subject (two subjects related to the same verb):

Javier and his colleagues collaborated on the research article.

Compound verb (two verbs related to the same subject):

Javier conducted the experiment and documented the results.

Compound subject with compound verb:

Javier, his colleagues, and their advisor drafted and revised the article several times.

Notice that they don’t overlap. You can tell that it’s only one clause because all of the subjects in one clause come before all of the verbs in the same clause.

Four Basic Patterns

Every sentence pattern below describes a different way to combine clauses. When you are drafting your own papers or when you’re revising them for sentence variety, try to determine how many of these patterns you use. If you favor one particular pattern, your writing might be kind of boring if every sentence has exactly the same pattern. If you find this is true, try to revise a few sentences using a different pattern.

NOTE: Because nouns can fill so many positions in a sentence, it’s easier to analyze sentence patterns if you find the verbs and find the connectors. The most common connectors are listed below with the sentence patterns that use them.

In the descriptions below, S=Subject and V=Verb, and options for arranging the clauses in each sentence pattern given in parentheses. Connecting words and the associated punctuation are highlighted in brown. Notice how the punctuation changes with each arrangement.

Pattern 1: Simple Sentence

One independent clause (SV.)

Mr. Potato Head eats monkeys.

Try this: Look for sentences in your own text that have only one clause. Mark them with a certain color so they stand out.

Pattern 2: Compound Sentence

Two or more independent clauses. They can be arranged in these ways: (SV, and SV.) or (SV; however, SV.) Connectors with a comma, the FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (See our handout on commas for more info.) Connectors with a semicolon and comma: however, moreover, nevertheless, nonetheless, therefore

Example compound sentences:

Mr. Potato Head eats them for breakfast every day, but I don’t see the attraction.

Eating them makes him happy; however, he can’t persuade me.

• Scan your own text to find the compound connectors listed above. Circle them.
• Find the verb and the subject of the clauses on both sides of the connectors.
• Highlight your compound sentences with a color that’s different from the one you used to mark your simple sentences.

Pattern 3: Complex Sentence

One independent clause PLUS one or more dependent clauses. They can be arranged in these ways: (SV because SV.) or (Because SV, SV.) or (S, because SV, V.)

Connectors are always at the beginning of the dependent clause. They show how the dependent clause is related to the independent clause. This list shows different types of relationships along with the connectors that indicate those relationships:

• Cause/Effect: because, since, so that
• Comparison/Contrast: although, even though, though, whereas, while
• Place/Manner: where, wherever, how, however
• Possibility/Conditions: if, whether, unless
• Relation: that, which, who, whom
• Time: after, as, before, since, when, whenever, while, until

Examples of complex sentences:

He recommends them highly because they taste like chicken when they are hot.

Although chicken always appeals to me, I still feel skeptical about monkey.

Mrs. Potato Head, because she loves us so much, has offered to make her special monkey souffle for us.

She can cook it however she wants.

Although I am curious, I am still skeptical.

• Scan your own text to find the complex connectors listed above. Circle them.
• Find the verb and the subject of the clauses that goes with each connector, remembering that the dependent clause might be in between the subject and verb of the independent clause, as shown in the arrangement options above.
• Highlight your complex sentences with a color that’s different from the one you used to mark your simple sentences.

Pattern 4: Compound-Complex Sentence

Two or more independent clauses PLUS one or more dependent clauses. They can be arranged in these ways: (SV, and SV because SV.) or (Because SV, SV, but SV.)

Connectors: Connectors listed under Patterns 2 & 3 are used here. Find the connectors, then find the verbs and subjects that are part of each clause.

Mr. Potato Head said that he would share the secret recipe; however, if he does, Mrs. Potato Head will feed him to the piranhas, so we are both safer and happier if I don’t eat monkeys or steal recipes.

Try this: Use a fourth color to highlight the compound-complex sentences in your text (the ones with at least two independent and at least one dependent clauses).

Look at the balance of the four different colors. Do you see one color standing out? Do you notice one missing entirely? If so, examine your text carefully while you ask these questions:

• Could you separate some of the more complex sentences?
• Could you combine some of the shorter sentences?
• Can you use different arrangement options for each of the sentence patterns?
• Can you use different connectors if you change the order of the clauses?

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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How to Write the Perfect Essay

06 Feb, 2024 | Blog Articles , English Language Articles , Get the Edge , Humanities Articles , Writing Articles

You can keep adding to this plan, crossing bits out and linking the different bubbles when you spot connections between them. Even though you won’t have time to make a detailed plan under exam conditions, it can be helpful to draft a brief one, including a few key words, so that you don’t panic and go off topic when writing your essay.

If you don’t like the mind map format, there are plenty of others to choose from: you could make a table, a flowchart, or simply a list of bullet points.

Discover More

Thanks for signing up, step 2: have a clear structure.

Think about this while you’re planning: your essay is like an argument or a speech. It needs to have a logical structure, with all your points coming together to answer the question.

Start with the basics! It’s best to choose a few major points which will become your main paragraphs. Three main paragraphs is a good number for an exam essay, since you’ll be under time pressure. 

If you agree with the question overall, it can be helpful to organise your points in the following pattern:

• YES (agreement with the question)
• AND (another YES point)
• BUT (disagreement or complication)

If you disagree with the question overall, try:

• AND (another BUT point)

For example, you could structure the Of Mice and Men sample question, “To what extent is Curley’s wife portrayed as a victim in Of Mice and Men ?”, as follows:

• YES (descriptions of her appearance)
• AND (other people’s attitudes towards her)
• BUT (her position as the only woman on the ranch gives her power as she uses her femininity to her advantage)

If you wanted to write a longer essay, you could include additional paragraphs under the YES/AND categories, perhaps discussing the ways in which Curley’s wife reveals her vulnerability and insecurities, and shares her dreams with the other characters. Alternatively, you could also lengthen your essay by including another BUT paragraph about her cruel and manipulative streak.

Of course, this is not necessarily the only right way to answer this essay question – as long as you back up your points with evidence from the text, you can take any standpoint that makes sense.

Step 3: Back up your points with well-analysed quotations

You wouldn’t write a scientific report without including evidence to support your findings, so why should it be any different with an essay? Even though you aren’t strictly required to substantiate every single point you make with a quotation, there’s no harm in trying.

A close reading of your quotations can enrich your appreciation of the question and will be sure to impress examiners. When selecting the best quotations to use in your essay, keep an eye out for specific literary techniques. For example, you could highlight Curley’s wife’s use of a rhetorical question when she says, a”n’ what am I doin’? Standin’ here talking to a bunch of bindle stiffs.” This might look like:

The rhetorical question “an’ what am I doin’?” signifies that Curley’s wife is very insecure; she seems to be questioning her own life choices. Moreover, she does not expect anyone to respond to her question, highlighting her loneliness and isolation on the ranch.

Other literary techniques to look out for include:

• Tricolon – a group of three words or phrases placed close together for emphasis
• Tautology – using different words that mean the same thing: e.g. “frightening” and “terrifying”
• Parallelism – ABAB structure, often signifying movement from one concept to another
• Chiasmus – ABBA structure, drawing attention to a phrase
• Polysyndeton – many conjunctions in a sentence
• Asyndeton – lack of conjunctions, which can speed up the pace of a sentence
• Polyptoton – using the same word in different forms for emphasis: e.g. “done” and “doing”
• Alliteration – repetition of the same sound, including assonance (similar vowel sounds), plosive alliteration (“b”, “d” and “p” sounds) and sibilance (“s” sounds)
• Anaphora – repetition of words, often used to emphasise a particular point

Don’t worry if you can’t locate all of these literary devices in the work you’re analysing. You can also discuss more obvious techniques, like metaphor, simile and onomatopoeia. It’s not a problem if you can’t remember all the long names; it’s far more important to be able to confidently explain the effects of each technique and highlight its relevance to the question.

Step 4: Be creative and original throughout

Anyone can write an essay using the tips above, but the thing that really makes it “perfect” is your own unique take on the topic. If you’ve noticed something intriguing or unusual in your reading, point it out – if you find it interesting, chances are the examiner will too!

Creative writing and essay writing are more closely linked than you might imagine. Keep the idea that you’re writing a speech or argument in mind, and you’re guaranteed to grab your reader’s attention.

It’s important to set out your line of argument in your introduction, introducing your main points and the general direction your essay will take, but don’t forget to keep something back for the conclusion, too. Yes, you need to summarise your main points, but if you’re just repeating the things you said in your introduction, the body of the essay is rendered pointless.

Think of your conclusion as the climax of your speech, the bit everything else has been leading up to, rather than the boring plenary at the end of the interesting stuff.

To return to Of Mice and Men once more, here’s an example of the ideal difference between an introduction and a conclusion:

Introduction

In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men , Curley’s wife is portrayed as an ambiguous character. She could be viewed either as a cruel, seductive temptress or a lonely woman who is a victim of her society’s attitudes. Though she does seem to wield a form of sexual power, it is clear that Curley’s wife is largely a victim. This interpretation is supported by Steinbeck’s description of her appearance, other people’s attitudes, her dreams, and her evident loneliness and insecurity.

Overall, it is clear that Curley’s wife is a victim and is portrayed as such throughout the novel in the descriptions of her appearance, her dreams, other people’s judgemental attitudes, and her loneliness and insecurities. However, a character who was a victim and nothing else would be one-dimensional and Curley’s wife is not. Although she suffers in many ways, she is shown to assert herself through the manipulation of her femininity – a small rebellion against the victimisation she experiences.

Both refer back consistently to the question and summarise the essay’s main points. However, the conclusion adds something new which has been established in the main body of the essay and complicates the simple summary which is found in the introduction.

Hannah is an undergraduate English student at Somerville College, University of Oxford, and has a particular interest in postcolonial literature and the Gothic. She thinks literature is a crucial way of developing empathy and learning about the wider world. When she isn’t writing about 17th-century court masques, she enjoys acting, travelling and creative writing. 

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How to Write an Essay

Use the links below to jump directly to any section of this guide:

Essay Writing Fundamentals

How to prepare to write an essay, how to edit an essay, how to share and publish your essays, how to get essay writing help, how to find essay writing inspiration, resources for teaching essay writing.

Essays, short prose compositions on a particular theme or topic, are the bread and butter of academic life. You write them in class, for homework, and on standardized tests to show what you know. Unlike other kinds of academic writing (like the research paper) and creative writing (like short stories and poems), essays allow you to develop your original thoughts on a prompt or question. Essays come in many varieties: they can be expository (fleshing out an idea or claim), descriptive, (explaining a person, place, or thing), narrative (relating a personal experience), or persuasive (attempting to win over a reader). This guide is a collection of dozens of links about academic essay writing that we have researched, categorized, and annotated in order to help you improve your essay writing. 

Essays are different from other forms of writing; in turn, there are different kinds of essays. This section contains general resources for getting to know the essay and its variants. These resources introduce and define the essay as a genre, and will teach you what to expect from essay-based assessments.

Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab

One of the most trusted academic writing sites, Purdue OWL provides a concise introduction to the four most common types of academic essays.

"The Essay: History and Definition" (ThoughtCo)

This snappy article from ThoughtCo talks about the origins of the essay and different kinds of essays you might be asked to write. 

"What Is An Essay?" Video Lecture (Coursera)

The University of California at Irvine's free video lecture, available on Coursera, tells  you everything you need to know about the essay.

Wikipedia Article on the "Essay"

Wikipedia's article on the essay is comprehensive, providing both English-language and global perspectives on the essay form. Learn about the essay's history, forms, and styles.

"Understanding College and Academic Writing" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This list of common academic writing assignments (including types of essay prompts) will help you know what to expect from essay-based assessments.

Before you start writing your essay, you need to figure out who you're writing for (audience), what you're writing about (topic/theme), and what you're going to say (argument and thesis). This section contains links to handouts, chapters, videos and more to help you prepare to write an essay.

How to Identify Your Audience

"Audience" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This handout provides questions you can ask yourself to determine the audience for an academic writing assignment. It also suggests strategies for fitting your paper to your intended audience.

"Purpose, Audience, Tone, and Content" (Univ. of Minnesota Libraries)

This extensive book chapter from Writing for Success , available online through Minnesota Libraries Publishing, is followed by exercises to try out your new pre-writing skills.

"Determining Audience" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This guide from a community college's writing center shows you how to know your audience, and how to incorporate that knowledge in your thesis statement.

"Know Your Audience" ( Paper Rater Blog)

This short blog post uses examples to show how implied audiences for essays differ. It reminds you to think of your instructor as an observer, who will know only the information you pass along.

How to Choose a Theme or Topic

"Research Tutorial: Developing Your Topic" (YouTube)

Take a look at this short video tutorial from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to understand the basics of developing a writing topic.

"How to Choose a Paper Topic" (WikiHow)

This simple, step-by-step guide (with pictures!) walks you through choosing a paper topic. It starts with a detailed description of brainstorming and ends with strategies to refine your broad topic.

"How to Read an Assignment: Moving From Assignment to Topic" (Harvard College Writing Center)

Did your teacher give you a prompt or other instructions? This guide helps you understand the relationship between an essay assignment and your essay's topic.

"Guidelines for Choosing a Topic" (CliffsNotes)

This study guide from CliffsNotes both discusses how to choose a topic and makes a useful distinction between "topic" and "thesis."

How to Come Up with an Argument

"Argument" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

Not sure what "argument" means in the context of academic writing? This page from the University of North Carolina is a good place to start.

"The Essay Guide: Finding an Argument" (Study Hub)

This handout explains why it's important to have an argument when beginning your essay, and provides tools to help you choose a viable argument.

"Writing a Thesis and Making an Argument" (University of Iowa)

This page from the University of Iowa's Writing Center contains exercises through which you can develop and refine your argument and thesis statement.

"Developing a Thesis" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This page from Harvard's Writing Center collates some helpful dos and don'ts of argumentative writing, from steps in constructing a thesis to avoiding vague and confrontational thesis statements.

"Suggestions for Developing Argumentative Essays" (Berkeley Student Learning Center)

This page offers concrete suggestions for each stage of the essay writing process, from topic selection to drafting and editing. 

How to Outline your Essay

"Outlines" (Univ. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill via YouTube)

This short video tutorial from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shows how to group your ideas into paragraphs or sections to begin the outlining process.

"Essay Outline" (Univ. of Washington Tacoma)

This two-page handout by a university professor simply defines the parts of an essay and then organizes them into an example outline.

"Types of Outlines and Samples" (Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab)

Purdue OWL gives examples of diverse outline strategies on this page, including the alphanumeric, full sentence, and decimal styles. 

"Outlining" (Harvard College Writing Center)

Once you have an argument, according to this handout, there are only three steps in the outline process: generalizing, ordering, and putting it all together. Then you're ready to write!

"Writing Essays" (Plymouth Univ.)

This packet, part of Plymouth University's Learning Development series, contains descriptions and diagrams relating to the outlining process.

"How to Write A Good Argumentative Essay: Logical Structure" (Criticalthinkingtutorials.com via YouTube)

This longer video tutorial gives an overview of how to structure your essay in order to support your argument or thesis. It is part of a longer course on academic writing hosted on Udemy.

Now that you've chosen and refined your topic and created an outline, use these resources to complete the writing process. Most essays contain introductions (which articulate your thesis statement), body paragraphs, and conclusions. Transitions facilitate the flow from one paragraph to the next so that support for your thesis builds throughout the essay. Sources and citations show where you got the evidence to support your thesis, which ensures that you avoid plagiarism. 

How to Write an Introduction

"Introductions" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page identifies the role of the introduction in any successful paper, suggests strategies for writing introductions, and warns against less effective introductions.

"How to Write A Good Introduction" (Michigan State Writing Center)

Beginning with the most common missteps in writing introductions, this guide condenses the essentials of introduction composition into seven points.

"The Introductory Paragraph" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post from academic advisor and college enrollment counselor Grace Fleming focuses on ways to grab your reader's attention at the beginning of your essay.

"Introductions and Conclusions" (Univ. of Toronto)

This guide from the University of Toronto gives advice that applies to writing both introductions and conclusions, including dos and don'ts.

"How to Write Better Essays: No One Does Introductions Properly" ( The Guardian )

This news article interviews UK professors on student essay writing; they point to introductions as the area that needs the most improvement.

How to Write a Thesis Statement

"Writing an Effective Thesis Statement" (YouTube)

This short, simple video tutorial from a college composition instructor at Tulsa Community College explains what a thesis statement is and what it does. 

"Thesis Statement: Four Steps to a Great Essay" (YouTube)

This fantastic tutorial walks you through drafting a thesis, using an essay prompt on Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter as an example.

"How to Write a Thesis Statement" (WikiHow)

This step-by-step guide (with pictures!) walks you through coming up with, writing, and editing a thesis statement. It invites you think of your statement as a "working thesis" that can change.

"How to Write a Thesis Statement" (Univ. of Indiana Bloomington)

Ask yourself the questions on this page, part of Indiana Bloomington's Writing Tutorial Services, when you're writing and refining your thesis statement.

"Writing Tips: Thesis Statements" (Univ. of Illinois Center for Writing Studies)

This page gives plentiful examples of good to great thesis statements, and offers questions to ask yourself when formulating a thesis statement.

How to Write Body Paragraphs

"Body Paragraph" (Brightstorm)

This module of a free online course introduces you to the components of a body paragraph. These include the topic sentence, information, evidence, and analysis.

"Strong Body Paragraphs" (Washington Univ.)

This handout from Washington's Writing and Research Center offers in-depth descriptions of the parts of a successful body paragraph.

"Guide to Paragraph Structure" (Deakin Univ.)

This handout is notable for color-coding example body paragraphs to help you identify the functions various sentences perform.

"Writing Body Paragraphs" (Univ. of Minnesota Libraries)

The exercises in this section of Writing for Success  will help you practice writing good body paragraphs. It includes guidance on selecting primary support for your thesis.

"The Writing Process—Body Paragraphs" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

The information and exercises on this page will familiarize you with outlining and writing body paragraphs, and includes links to more information on topic sentences and transitions.

"The Five-Paragraph Essay" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post discusses body paragraphs in the context of one of the most common academic essay types in secondary schools.

How to Use Transitions

"Transitions" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill explains what a transition is, and how to know if you need to improve your transitions.

"Using Transitions Effectively" (Washington Univ.)

This handout defines transitions, offers tips for using them, and contains a useful list of common transitional words and phrases grouped by function.

"Transitions" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

This page compares paragraphs without transitions to paragraphs with transitions, and in doing so shows how important these connective words and phrases are.

"Transitions in Academic Essays" (Scribbr)

This page lists four techniques that will help you make sure your reader follows your train of thought, including grouping similar information and using transition words.

"Transitions" (El Paso Community College)

This handout shows example transitions within paragraphs for context, and explains how transitions improve your essay's flow and voice.

"Make Your Paragraphs Flow to Improve Writing" (ThoughtCo)

This blog post, another from academic advisor and college enrollment counselor Grace Fleming, talks about transitions and other strategies to improve your essay's overall flow.

"Transition Words" (smartwords.org)

This handy word bank will help you find transition words when you're feeling stuck. It's grouped by the transition's function, whether that is to show agreement, opposition, condition, or consequence.

How to Write a Conclusion

"Parts of An Essay: Conclusions" (Brightstorm)

This module of a free online course explains how to conclude an academic essay. It suggests thinking about the "3Rs": return to hook, restate your thesis, and relate to the reader.

"Essay Conclusions" (Univ. of Maryland University College)

This overview of the academic essay conclusion contains helpful examples and links to further resources for writing good conclusions.

"How to End An Essay" (WikiHow)

This step-by-step guide (with pictures!) by an English Ph.D. walks you through writing a conclusion, from brainstorming to ending with a flourish.

"Ending the Essay: Conclusions" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This page collates useful strategies for writing an effective conclusion, and reminds you to "close the discussion without closing it off" to further conversation.

How to Include Sources and Citations

"Research and Citation Resources" (Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab)

Purdue OWL streamlines information about the three most common referencing styles (MLA, Chicago, and APA) and provides examples of how to cite different resources in each system.

EasyBib: Free Bibliography Generator

This online tool allows you to input information about your source and automatically generate citations in any style. Be sure to select your resource type before clicking the "cite it" button.

CitationMachine

Like EasyBib, this online tool allows you to input information about your source and automatically generate citations in any style. 

Modern Language Association Handbook (MLA)

Here, you'll find the definitive and up-to-date record of MLA referencing rules. Order through the link above, or check to see if your library has a copy.

Chicago Manual of Style

Here, you'll find the definitive and up-to-date record of Chicago referencing rules. You can take a look at the table of contents, then choose to subscribe or start a free trial.

How to Avoid Plagiarism

"What is Plagiarism?" (plagiarism.org)

This nonprofit website contains numerous resources for identifying and avoiding plagiarism, and reminds you that even common activities like copying images from another website to your own site may constitute plagiarism.

"Plagiarism" (University of Oxford)

This interactive page from the University of Oxford helps you check for plagiarism in your work, making it clear how to avoid citing another person's work without full acknowledgement.

"Avoiding Plagiarism" (MIT Comparative Media Studies)

This quick guide explains what plagiarism is, what its consequences are, and how to avoid it. It starts by defining three words—quotation, paraphrase, and summary—that all constitute citation.

"Harvard Guide to Using Sources" (Harvard Extension School)

This comprehensive website from Harvard brings together articles, videos, and handouts about referencing, citation, and plagiarism. 

Grammarly contains tons of helpful grammar and writing resources, including a free tool to automatically scan your essay to check for close affinities to published work. 

Noplag is another popular online tool that automatically scans your essay to check for signs of plagiarism. Simply copy and paste your essay into the box and click "start checking."

Once you've written your essay, you'll want to edit (improve content), proofread (check for spelling and grammar mistakes), and finalize your work until you're ready to hand it in. This section brings together tips and resources for navigating the editing process. 

"Writing a First Draft" (Academic Help)

This is an introduction to the drafting process from the site Academic Help, with tips for getting your ideas on paper before editing begins.

"Editing and Proofreading" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page provides general strategies for revising your writing. They've intentionally left seven errors in the handout, to give you practice in spotting them.

"How to Proofread Effectively" (ThoughtCo)

This article from ThoughtCo, along with those linked at the bottom, help describe common mistakes to check for when proofreading.

"7 Simple Edits That Make Your Writing 100% More Powerful" (SmartBlogger)

This blog post emphasizes the importance of powerful, concise language, and reminds you that even your personal writing heroes create clunky first drafts.

"Editing Tips for Effective Writing" (Univ. of Pennsylvania)

On this page from Penn's International Relations department, you'll find tips for effective prose, errors to watch out for, and reminders about formatting.

"Editing the Essay" (Harvard College Writing Center)

This article, the first of two parts, gives you applicable strategies for the editing process. It suggests reading your essay aloud, removing any jargon, and being unafraid to remove even "dazzling" sentences that don't belong.

"Guide to Editing and Proofreading" (Oxford Learning Institute)

This handout from Oxford covers the basics of editing and proofreading, and reminds you that neither task should be rushed. 

In addition to plagiarism-checkers, Grammarly has a plug-in for your web browser that checks your writing for common mistakes.

After you've prepared, written, and edited your essay, you might want to share it outside the classroom. This section alerts you to print and web opportunities to share your essays with the wider world, from online writing communities and blogs to published journals geared toward young writers.

Sharing Your Essays Online

Go Teen Writers

Go Teen Writers is an online community for writers aged 13 - 19. It was founded by Stephanie Morrill, an author of contemporary young adult novels. 

Tumblr is a blogging website where you can share your writing and interact with other writers online. It's easy to add photos, links, audio, and video components.

Writersky provides an online platform for publishing and reading other youth writers' work. Its current content is mostly devoted to fiction.

Publishing Your Essays Online

This teen literary journal publishes in print, on the web, and (more frequently), on a blog. It is committed to ensuring that "teens see their authentic experience reflected on its pages."

The Matador Review

This youth writing platform celebrates "alternative," unconventional writing. The link above will take you directly to the site's "submissions" page.

Teen Ink has a website, monthly newsprint magazine, and quarterly poetry magazine promoting the work of young writers.

The largest online reading platform, Wattpad enables you to publish your work and read others' work. Its inline commenting feature allows you to share thoughts as you read along.

Publishing Your Essays in Print

Canvas Teen Literary Journal

This quarterly literary magazine is published for young writers by young writers. They accept many kinds of writing, including essays.

The Claremont Review

This biannual international magazine, first published in 1992, publishes poetry, essays, and short stories from writers aged 13 - 19.

Skipping Stones

This young writers magazine, founded in 1988, celebrates themes relating to ecological and cultural diversity. It publishes poems, photos, articles, and stories.

The Telling Room

This nonprofit writing center based in Maine publishes children's work on their website and in book form. The link above directs you to the site's submissions page.

Essay Contests

Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards

This prestigious international writing contest for students in grades 7 - 12 has been committed to "supporting the future of creativity since 1923."

Society of Professional Journalists High School Essay Contest

An annual essay contest on the theme of journalism and media, the Society of Professional Journalists High School Essay Contest awards scholarships up to $1,000.

National YoungArts Foundation

Here, you'll find information on a government-sponsored writing competition for writers aged 15 - 18. The foundation welcomes submissions of creative nonfiction, novels, scripts, poetry, short story and spoken word.

Signet Classics Student Scholarship Essay Contest

With prompts on a different literary work each year, this competition from Signet Classics awards college scholarships up to $1,000.

"The Ultimate Guide to High School Essay Contests" (CollegeVine)

See this handy guide from CollegeVine for a list of more competitions you can enter with your academic essay, from the National Council of Teachers of English Achievement Awards to the National High School Essay Contest by the U.S. Institute of Peace.

Whether you're struggling to write academic essays or you think you're a pro, there are workshops and online tools that can help you become an even better writer. Even the most seasoned writers encounter writer's block, so be proactive and look through our curated list of resources to combat this common frustration.

Online Essay-writing Classes and Workshops

"Getting Started with Essay Writing" (Coursera)

Coursera offers lots of free, high-quality online classes taught by college professors. Here's one example, taught by instructors from the University of California Irvine.

"Writing and English" (Brightstorm)

Brightstorm's free video lectures are easy to navigate by topic. This unit on the parts of an essay features content on the essay hook, thesis, supporting evidence, and more.

"How to Write an Essay" (EdX)

EdX is another open online university course website with several two- to five-week courses on the essay. This one is geared toward English language learners.

Writer's Digest University

This renowned writers' website offers online workshops and interactive tutorials. The courses offered cover everything from how to get started through how to get published.

Writing.com

Signing up for this online writer's community gives you access to helpful resources as well as an international community of writers.

How to Overcome Writer's Block

"Symptoms and Cures for Writer's Block" (Purdue OWL)

Purdue OWL offers a list of signs you might have writer's block, along with ways to overcome it. Consider trying out some "invention strategies" or ways to curb writing anxiety.

"Overcoming Writer's Block: Three Tips" ( The Guardian )

These tips, geared toward academic writing specifically, are practical and effective. The authors advocate setting realistic goals, creating dedicated writing time, and participating in social writing.

"Writing Tips: Strategies for Overcoming Writer's Block" (Univ. of Illinois)

This page from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's Center for Writing Studies acquaints you with strategies that do and do not work to overcome writer's block.

"Writer's Block" (Univ. of Toronto)

Ask yourself the questions on this page; if the answer is "yes," try out some of the article's strategies. Each question is accompanied by at least two possible solutions.

If you have essays to write but are short on ideas, this section's links to prompts, example student essays, and celebrated essays by professional writers might help. You'll find writing prompts from a variety of sources, student essays to inspire you, and a number of essay writing collections.

Essay Writing Prompts

"50 Argumentative Essay Topics" (ThoughtCo)

Take a look at this list and the others ThoughtCo has curated for different kinds of essays. As the author notes, "a number of these topics are controversial and that's the point."

"401 Prompts for Argumentative Writing" ( New York Times )

This list (and the linked lists to persuasive and narrative writing prompts), besides being impressive in length, is put together by actual high school English teachers.

"SAT Sample Essay Prompts" (College Board)

If you're a student in the U.S., your classroom essay prompts are likely modeled on the prompts in U.S. college entrance exams. Take a look at these official examples from the SAT.

"Popular College Application Essay Topics" (Princeton Review)

This page from the Princeton Review dissects recent Common Application essay topics and discusses strategies for answering them.

Example Student Essays

"501 Writing Prompts" (DePaul Univ.)

This nearly 200-page packet, compiled by the LearningExpress Skill Builder in Focus Writing Team, is stuffed with writing prompts, example essays, and commentary.

"Topics in English" (Kibin)

Kibin is a for-pay essay help website, but its example essays (organized by topic) are available for free. You'll find essays on everything from  A Christmas Carol  to perseverance.

"Student Writing Models" (Thoughtful Learning)

Thoughtful Learning, a website that offers a variety of teaching materials, provides sample student essays on various topics and organizes them by grade level.

"Five-Paragraph Essay" (ThoughtCo)

In this blog post by a former professor of English and rhetoric, ThoughtCo brings together examples of five-paragraph essays and commentary on the form.

The Best Essay Writing Collections

The Best American Essays of the Century by Joyce Carol Oates (Amazon)

This collection of American essays spanning the twentieth century was compiled by award winning author and Princeton professor Joyce Carol Oates.

The Best American Essays 2017 by Leslie Jamison (Amazon)

Leslie Jamison, the celebrated author of essay collection  The Empathy Exams , collects recent, high-profile essays into a single volume.

The Art of the Personal Essay by Phillip Lopate (Amazon)

Documentary writer Phillip Lopate curates this historical overview of the personal essay's development, from the classical era to the present.

The White Album by Joan Didion (Amazon)

This seminal essay collection was authored by one of the most acclaimed personal essayists of all time, American journalist Joan Didion.

Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace (Amazon)

Read this famous essay collection by David Foster Wallace, who is known for his experimentation with the essay form. He pushed the boundaries of personal essay, reportage, and political polemic.

"50 Successful Harvard Application Essays" (Staff of the The Harvard Crimson )

If you're looking for examples of exceptional college application essays, this volume from Harvard's daily student newspaper is one of the best collections on the market.

Are you an instructor looking for the best resources for teaching essay writing? This section contains resources for developing in-class activities and student homework assignments. You'll find content from both well-known university writing centers and online writing labs.

Essay Writing Classroom Activities for Students

"In-class Writing Exercises" (Univ. of North Carolina Writing Center)

This page lists exercises related to brainstorming, organizing, drafting, and revising. It also contains suggestions for how to implement the suggested exercises.

"Teaching with Writing" (Univ. of Minnesota Center for Writing)

Instructions and encouragement for using "freewriting," one-minute papers, logbooks, and other write-to-learn activities in the classroom can be found here.

"Writing Worksheets" (Berkeley Student Learning Center)

Berkeley offers this bank of writing worksheets to use in class. They are nested under headings for "Prewriting," "Revision," "Research Papers" and more.

"Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism" (DePaul University)

Use these activities and worksheets from DePaul's Teaching Commons when instructing students on proper academic citation practices.

Essay Writing Homework Activities for Students

"Grammar and Punctuation Exercises" (Aims Online Writing Lab)

These five interactive online activities allow students to practice editing and proofreading. They'll hone their skills in correcting comma splices and run-ons, identifying fragments, using correct pronoun agreement, and comma usage.

"Student Interactives" (Read Write Think)

Read Write Think hosts interactive tools, games, and videos for developing writing skills. They can practice organizing and summarizing, writing poetry, and developing lines of inquiry and analysis.

This free website offers writing and grammar activities for all grade levels. The lessons are designed to be used both for large classes and smaller groups.

"Writing Activities and Lessons for Every Grade" (Education World)

Education World's page on writing activities and lessons links you to more free, online resources for learning how to "W.R.I.T.E.": write, revise, inform, think, and edit.

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• Downloads of 1983 LitCharts Lit Guides
• Teacher Editions for every Lit Guide
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How to Write an Essay

How To Write An Essay

‍ Start by thoroughly analyzing the question to grasp its essence. Define your central argument or thesis. Support your argument with a combination of solid evidence, logical reasoning, and references to scholarly works. Ensure the essay is well-organized, presenting ideas coherently. Maintain clear and concise writing throughout. Finally, accurately cite all sources and evidence used, adhering to appropriate academic referencing standards.

All you need to know about essay writing is right here. So, let’s take some consistent baby steps.

Read through our guide until the end, and in time, you’ll become an exceptional essay writer, and the process will become automatic and natural to you. ‍ ‍

Pre-writing Tips

Get to know pre-writing tips to help you figure out how to write a good essay. Before you start writing, consider all of the following without skipping any steps:

• Truly understand your task : Make sure you grasp what the essay task is asking.
• Brainstorming : You can try to use techniques like mind mapping and freewriting to let yourself generate ideas in a free flow.
• Create an outline : You’ll save yourself some time and effort by outlining. This helps you structure your ideas and main points.
• Consider your audience : Make sure you remember who you’re writing for.

Lay the groundwork for your essay writing by considering the points above. If you want a smoother process, then work smart and not hard. 

Learning The Importance of Essay Structure

Structure and adaptation are important when it comes to figuring out how to write a good essay.

Organizing Your Essay Writing Process Effectively

Make sure that your college essay is well-structured. This is crucial, and it ensures you are presenting your arguments as logically and comprehensively as possible. You need your ideas to flow smoothly and to engage your audience. 

By organizing your essay, you convey your ideas logically and creatively. This boosts your power to not just inform but to persuade as well. Master how to write an essay in an organized manner, and you've already mastered half of it.

Adapt To Different Prompts

Adapting to various prompts involves fitting your writing to the specific requirements. Do this by remembering these tips: 

• Analyze the prompt.
• Identify the essay type and topic.
• Tailor your writing style, tone, and approach to the criteria.

If you need help to write an essay don't forget Studyfy, since you'll find plenty of writing help on the platform.

Picking Your Topic

Picking the right topic is a crucial element in how to write a compelling essay. The right topic captures your audience’s interest easily. Moreover, the right topic also resonates with YOU. Still confused? If you need help writing an essay, you know where to go.

And please, do be mindful of the following: 

• Consider what you’re interested in and what you already have prior knowledge of.
• Take into account who your audience is.
• Take into account the essay’s purpose and aim.
• Make sure that your chosen topic is actually manageable to write but also allows for in-depth analysis and exploration.

Creating A Good Title

If you want to draw your audience in from the get-go and if you want to come off strong, after choosing your topic, you’ll want to create a captivating title. It should be engaging and relevant. Does this confuse you? You can send a “ write my essay ” order on Studyfy right now, and it’s off your hands and into an expert’s hands.

Here are a few pointers to remember: 

• Create a title that’s relevant to your essay’s thesis but is also capturing/engaging. The first impression you give to your readers can set the whole tone for how they take in your essay.
• Be concise but also descriptive. Find the good middle. 

Building Your Thesis, Body, and Conclusion

Writing an essay can be rewarding once you get the hang of it. If you learn and apply effective ways to construct and write its parts, you can truly create something impressive. The three central pillars of your essay are your thesis, body, and conclusion.

Whether you're writing admissions essays, five paragraph essay, argumentative essays or other types of college essays, the paragraph structure is very similar for any particular topic.

Like acts of a play, each part is vital. We’re going to learn the exact ways in which you can write great theses, bodies, and conclusions. Read carefully. 

Crafting a Compelling Central Argument - Guiding Your Essay's Direction

Good essay writing means starting with an effective and well-thought-out thesis statement. Think of your thesis statement as a compass. It serves to guide your writing. It needs to be clear and have conviction. Remember these pointers when making one: 

• Zero in on the best potential “core” idea : After brainstorming, you should have a list of ideas you can sift through. Find the best one with the most potential to develop.
• Take a stance while being informative : Thesis statements should represent your stance. They don’t merely inform. It needs to open up to debate or a perspective you want to prove/convey in the entirety of your essay. 
• Be precise and engaging : Be specific but engaging at the same time when writing your thesis statement.
• Remain flexible : When you write, remember that the topic has a chance of evolving or changing. Your thesis should reflect/change with it. If you need to refine it as you write, you should. Just make sure it’s relevant/related to what you’re writing.

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How To Write A Great Academic Essay Body: The Main Arguments

• Start with a Topic Sentence, setting the paragraph's focus like a mini-thesis.
• Elaborate on the Topic Sentence.
• Present Supporting Evidence.
• Examine and Interpret the Evidence.
• Establish how it supports your main argument.
• Conclude with a Transition to the next point.

Your body paragraphs are where you’ll develop your arguments that support your thesis. This is where you will present evidence and examples in a cohesive and impactful way through your writing. Always reference back to your thesis statement so as not to go off-topic. Remember these pointers: 

• Arrange your points logically : This means ensuring each paragraph transitions seamlessly to the next. By structuring logically, you strengthen your arguments and persuasiveness, and you remain coherent. You convey your ideas smoothly to the reader. 
• Develop each point completely : You should finish exploring and developing a point in its wholeness. Use evidence, present strong examples, and show the reader your unique stance/thoughts on the argument. 
• Use transitions : For seamless reading, use academically approved transition words, like “Furthermore” or “Additionally.” 

The foundation of learning how to do an essay properly is by understanding that each part of the essay is a cohesive whole. To provide context means to glue the first sentence to the main argument and, for example, tie the main stages with transitional phrases.

How To Write An Essay: Ending with Impact

Another crucial element of how to write essays effectively is writing a strong conclusion. You should reinforce your thesis statements and your main points in this part. Here is what you need to remember: 

• Revisit your thesis statement : Rephrase, reiterate and showcase your developed arguments.
• Emphasize key findings and thoughts : Rewrite and recap the key points in your college essay to help your audience retain your core arguments.
• Conclude with a strong thought : Conclude with a call-to-action, idea, or provocative question that encourages the reader to explore the topic of your essay even after they’ve read your entire paper.
• Keep it concise : Be concise and focused in your conclusion. Don’t introduce new information. 

Bonus Tips: Improving Your Style and Argumentation

We’ve gone through all the main information you’ll need for essay writing, but you should know some of these additional tips to truly step up your writing game. Another way to step up your writing game is to consider Studyfy’s admission essay writing service and other writing services. Let’s dive deeper into bettering your style and arguments.

Becoming A Master Persuader

To become a true master at essay writing and never need help with writing an essay, you’ll want to practice the art of persuasion. You want to sway and influence your readers by engaging them deeply in your arguments. Remember these points: 

• Analyze your audience : When tailoring your voice and writing for your audience, you should also tailor your ARGUMENTS to them so they resonate. Try to speculate your audience’s perspectives, values, beliefs, and thought patterns. This will give you a deeper insight when developing your arguments. 
• Use strong opening sentences : Make sure to grab your readers’ attention right from the start. 
• Persuasive language : Using words and sentences that foster a sense of importance and urgency and ignite curiosity. Integrate persuasive language throughout your essay, like call-to-actions, emotional appeals, rhetorical questions, inclusive language, and testimonials. 

Appeal to Ethos, Pathos, and Logos

When writing an essay, a good way to strengthen your argumentation is to appeal to ethos (credibility), pathos (emotion), and logos (logic) in your readers. Take a look at these pointers: 

• Establishing credibility (appealing to ethos) : Use reliable sources, cite experts, use strong evidence, and use testimonials. By showing your audience you're backing up your arguments with credible facts, you strengthen your persuasion power. 
• Connect on an emotional level (appealing to pathos) : When you have their heart, you have them. Use vivid language, relatable anecdotes, and examples, and tap into the power of emotion.
• Logical reasoning is powerful (appealing to logos) : Using facts and logical points to present clear data and statistics can strengthen your argument significantly. An argument that has solid evidence is hard to deny. 

Bonus Tips: Empowering Your Writing Skills

When pondering on how to make an essay better, it’s important to look beyond the obvious advice. In this section, we remind you to go above and beyond. Let’s find out some additional techniques that you can apply to your essay writing to improve it even further.

Infusing Your Voice Into Your Writing

Overwhelmed by the amount of things you need to learn for essay writing? You can always pay for essay services and get a professional’s help any time. Now, to infuse your voice into your essay writing, take note of these pointers:

• Be authentic and share your perspective : Your beliefs, experiences, and values should not be completely avoided when writing. If relevant to the topic, your stance can provide a fresh and new angle on your essay, and it can help your essay stand out.
• Do not be afraid to be creative : Play with language by using metaphors, descriptive language, similes, and other literary tools. It makes your writing memorable and enjoyable when done right.

Cross-Referencing

If you need help with writing an essay to make it better, try to integrate interdisciplinary concepts into your writing. Cross-referencing other fields like history, psychology, science, and literature to provide deeper insights into your arguments can strengthen your essay. Ensure your references add to your arguments, and don’t go off-topic.

Develop Flexibility In Perception

Another way to empower your writing skills and determine how to write an excellent essay is to view and present arguments and statements from different angles. This niche skill is invaluable. If you learn how to master it, you can be a very persuasive writer. Find ways to examine and defend both sides of a topic. Present counter-arguments, and so on.

This requires a lot of practice to use effectively but is easily one of the best things you can develop in essay writing and life. Usually, an argumentative essay is a successful essay if its body paragraphs create a basic structure of opposing context for a specific topic. Your writing process and your introduction paragraph can open the way for the entire essay to delve into opposing topics.

Make sure to do proper research, develop a good idea about what the topics are different or similar to, and, for example, explain your main thesis in a few paragraphs. A clear thesis makes the main body almost write itself - in any type of essay, including an argumentative essay.

Bonus Tips: Remaining Ethical In Writing

Remaining ethical and upholding integrity and credibility in your essay writing is key to passing academia since your professors will double-check your work to make sure you haven’t engaged in cheating. How do you write an essay while remaining ethical? Let’s find out.

How To Avoid Plagiarizing

You’ll need to avoid plagiarizing completely. The degree of punishment you can get for plagiarizing will vary from institution to institution, with some proving to be more lenient while others will be less forgiving. Need help? Try Studyfy’s custom essay writing service and get an expert writer to help you.

 Remember these points to save yourself the grief: 

• Remember : Plagiarism isn’t only copying text; it’s also using other people’s data, ideas, concepts, and so on without properly crediting them. 
• You SHOULD paraphrase : Master paraphrasing by reinterpreting the information you’ve examined. Use your own words. 
• Improve research and note-taking skills : If you research effectively and take notes on the data you collect, it will be easier to distinguish your original ideas from your resources.

Essay Checklist

If you’ve read everything thoroughly and applied what’s been stated in our guide, you should be much better at writing essays. To further improve your experience, here’s an essay checklist you can use to make sure you’ve done everything you need to. 

Remember to focus on the formatting issues as well, including common mistakes, passive voice, too much everyday experience, and ambiguous word choice.

Checklist Item

• Strong and Clear Thesis Statement
• Effective Introduction
• Well-developed Arguments
• Evidence and Support
• Paragraph Structure
• Transitions
• Strong Conclusion
• Correct Citations and References
• Plagiarism-free
• Editing, Proofreading, and Revision
• Complied With Word Count
• Correct Formatting

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Which key elements make up a strong essay structure?

A strong introduction that grabs the audience and introduces the thesis statement effectively. A body that presents ideas and arguments that support the thesis. A conclusion that sums up the main points of the essay and reintroduces the thesis in light of the arguments stated. This is how to write an essay in English effectively.

How do I write a clear and strong thesis statement?

If you’re asking yourself, “How do I write an essay that has a strong thesis statement?” We remind you to narrow your ideas and zero in on a key idea. This idea should be specific, and it should be an idea that you can fully develop and explore.

This blog is here to provide guidance and ease the essay writing process - we're here for you from the moment you start writing to the moment you reach the central point and reach the next paragraph.

What can I do to ensure my essay is engaging and persuasive?

Be sure your introduction is compelling and uses strong, active verbs. Your arguments should be presented logically, and you should back them up with strong evidence. Make sure to use persuasive language like rhetorical questions, analogies, metaphors, inclusive words, call-to-actions, etc. Varying sentence structures will keep readers interested.

To keep the reader on the hook, most essays use clever paragraphs, a clear thesis, a robust main body, and a polished final draft.

What’s the best way to write an essay?

The best way to write a college essay is to be prepared. Read our guide thoroughly and give yourself enough time to write the whole essay. Don’t start at the last minute. 

When you begin writing, your writing process is in its first draft. What's important is that you remember that an essay outline is not the final essay, and your college essay can change and adapt as you go. Whether an introductory paragraph, main points or conclusion paragraph, make sure to catch the reader's attention and lead with concrete examples.

And don't forget to focus on editing. Double-check the line spacing, structure, outline, number of paragraphs, word choice, and the cohesion of the final paragraph.

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Tips and tricks for crafting engaging and effective essays.

Writing essays can be a challenging task, but with the right approach and strategies, you can create compelling and impactful pieces that captivate your audience. Whether you’re a student working on an academic paper or a professional honing your writing skills, these tips will help you craft essays that stand out.

Effective essays are not just about conveying information; they are about persuading, engaging, and inspiring readers. To achieve this, it’s essential to pay attention to various elements of the essay-writing process, from brainstorming ideas to polishing your final draft. By following these tips, you can elevate your writing and produce essays that leave a lasting impression.

Understanding the Essay Prompt

Before you start writing your essay, it is crucial to thoroughly understand the essay prompt or question provided by your instructor. The essay prompt serves as a roadmap for your essay and outlines the specific requirements or expectations.

Here are a few key things to consider when analyzing the essay prompt:

• Read the prompt carefully and identify the main topic or question being asked.
• Pay attention to any specific instructions or guidelines provided, such as word count, formatting requirements, or sources to be used.
• Identify key terms or phrases in the prompt that can help you determine the focus of your essay.

By understanding the essay prompt thoroughly, you can ensure that your essay addresses the topic effectively and meets the requirements set forth by your instructor.

Researching Your Topic Thoroughly

One of the key elements of writing an effective essay is conducting thorough research on your chosen topic. Research helps you gather the necessary information, facts, and examples to support your arguments and make your essay more convincing.

Here are some tips for researching your topic thoroughly:

By following these tips and conducting thorough research on your topic, you will be able to write a well-informed and persuasive essay that effectively communicates your ideas and arguments.

Creating a Strong Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a crucial element of any well-crafted essay. It serves as the main point or idea that you will be discussing and supporting throughout your paper. A strong thesis statement should be clear, specific, and arguable.

To create a strong thesis statement, follow these tips:

• Be specific: Your thesis statement should clearly state the main idea of your essay. Avoid vague or general statements.
• Be concise: Keep your thesis statement concise and to the point. Avoid unnecessary details or lengthy explanations.
• Be argumentative: Your thesis statement should present an argument or perspective that can be debated or discussed in your essay.
• Be relevant: Make sure your thesis statement is relevant to the topic of your essay and reflects the main point you want to make.
• Revise as needed: Don’t be afraid to revise your thesis statement as you work on your essay. It may change as you develop your ideas.

Remember, a strong thesis statement sets the tone for your entire essay and provides a roadmap for your readers to follow. Put time and effort into crafting a clear and compelling thesis statement to ensure your essay is effective and persuasive.

Developing a Clear Essay Structure

One of the key elements of writing an effective essay is developing a clear and logical structure. A well-structured essay helps the reader follow your argument and enhances the overall readability of your work. Here are some tips to help you develop a clear essay structure:

1. Start with a strong introduction: Begin your essay with an engaging introduction that introduces the topic and clearly states your thesis or main argument.

2. Organize your ideas: Before you start writing, outline the main points you want to cover in your essay. This will help you organize your thoughts and ensure a logical flow of ideas.

3. Use topic sentences: Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence that introduces the main idea of the paragraph. This helps the reader understand the purpose of each paragraph.

4. Provide evidence and analysis: Support your arguments with evidence and analysis to back up your main points. Make sure your evidence is relevant and directly supports your thesis.

5. Transition between paragraphs: Use transitional words and phrases to create flow between paragraphs and help the reader move smoothly from one idea to the next.

6. Conclude effectively: End your essay with a strong conclusion that summarizes your main points and reinforces your thesis. Avoid introducing new ideas in the conclusion.

By following these tips, you can develop a clear essay structure that will help you effectively communicate your ideas and engage your reader from start to finish.

Using Relevant Examples and Evidence

When writing an essay, it’s crucial to support your arguments and assertions with relevant examples and evidence. This not only adds credibility to your writing but also helps your readers better understand your points. Here are some tips on how to effectively use examples and evidence in your essays:

• Choose examples that are specific and relevant to the topic you’re discussing. Avoid using generic examples that may not directly support your argument.
• Provide concrete evidence to back up your claims. This could include statistics, research findings, or quotes from reliable sources.
• Interpret the examples and evidence you provide, explaining how they support your thesis or main argument. Don’t assume that the connection is obvious to your readers.
• Use a variety of examples to make your points more persuasive. Mixing personal anecdotes with scholarly evidence can make your essay more engaging and convincing.
• Cite your sources properly to give credit to the original authors and avoid plagiarism. Follow the citation style required by your instructor or the publication you’re submitting to.

By integrating relevant examples and evidence into your essays, you can craft a more convincing and well-rounded piece of writing that resonates with your audience.

Editing and Proofreading Your Essay Carefully

Once you have finished writing your essay, the next crucial step is to edit and proofread it carefully. Editing and proofreading are essential parts of the writing process that help ensure your essay is polished and error-free. Here are some tips to help you effectively edit and proofread your essay:

1. Take a Break: Before you start editing, take a short break from your essay. This will help you approach the editing process with a fresh perspective.

2. Read Aloud: Reading your essay aloud can help you catch any awkward phrasing or grammatical errors that you may have missed while writing. It also helps you check the flow of your essay.

3. Check for Consistency: Make sure that your essay has a consistent style, tone, and voice throughout. Check for inconsistencies in formatting, punctuation, and language usage.

4. Remove Unnecessary Words: Look for any unnecessary words or phrases in your essay and remove them to make your writing more concise and clear.

5. Proofread for Errors: Carefully proofread your essay for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. Pay attention to commonly misused words and homophones.

6. Get Feedback: It’s always a good idea to get feedback from someone else. Ask a friend, classmate, or teacher to review your essay and provide constructive feedback.

By following these tips and taking the time to edit and proofread your essay carefully, you can improve the overall quality of your writing and make sure your ideas are effectively communicated to your readers.

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British Council Netherlands

How to write an essay in english, by ielts expert, 29 june 2023 - 16:15.

Many students say writing is the worst part of their English, but it’s often just a case of confidence. With practice, and the tips in this post, you can gain the confidence you need to maximise your English and really show it off. This post will look at the three stages of writing - planning, writing the text and reading it back.

If you are preparing for an exam, please be aware that for the latest information on exam format you should always go straight to the source –  IELTS website . You can practice  free online IELTS Academic Writing tests  or  General Training Writing tests . You can also practice writing your answer by downloading an  IELTS Writing Answer Sheet .

Planning is an integral part of your writing. You might say “I don’t plan”, but somewhere in your subconscious, you do! By raising your awareness of your own planning process you can improve enormously. As a teacher, I see many students who plan and many who don’t. In general, the students that plan produce much better work, so if you are in the “no plan” camp, you should at least experiment with some of the ideas coming up.

Planning 1: Address the question

If you are writing for a class assignment or an exam, it is crucial that you address the question given. Adequate planning (five minutes is better than nothing) will keep you on track. 

Start by breaking the question down into its parts. There will usually be two or three aspects to the question. You want not only to cover all aspects of the question, but also make it obvious to your teacher or the examiner that you have done so, and the best way to demonstrate this is to give each aspect its own paragraph.

Planning 2: Brainstorm vocabulary as well as ideas

Once you have identified your paragraphs, think about what vocabulary you have at your disposal. Perhaps you would like to write one paragraph from a particular angle, but when you start planning you might find there are holes in your vocabulary and you are better able to write from a different angle. Choose ideas which best overlap with what you can clearly state in English.

Planning 3: Write chunks of language

Even with all the vocabulary in the world, some ideas are complex to express in writing. Causality, speculation and hypothetical scenarios are all abstract concepts which make it more challenging to say exactly what you want, but these are also an opportunity to push your English ability to the max and show your grammatical range. 

Sound out in your head how you will make your arguments, and when you get stuck, try writing this part down in your plan. It might be a whole sentence of just a clause. This will help you decide if you have enough English ability to get across a really impressive idea, or if you need to simplify your thoughts in order to remain clear to the reader.

Writing the text 1: Use your plan!

I have seen many students write logical, competent plans that address the question, only to go off on a random tangent when they start writing! 

Of course, you might change some things as you go along, for example if you have a new idea, but keeping an eye on your plan will prevent you from getting distracted and bring you back to the question you must answer. It will also keep you aware of how you are doing for word count and time.

Writing the text 2: Write your introduction last

You should at least consider this idea. The purpose of an introduction is to tell the reader what they are going to read, so how can you write the introduction when you haven’t written the content yet?

Introductions are fiddly to write on a blank canvas, but much easier when we already have the content written in front of us.

If you are writing on paper, it is still possible to write the introduction last - you just need to leave a few lines for it.

Writing the text 3: Make sure your introduction and conclusion match

Your introduction and conclusion should also match the content of your main body paragraphs. This might seem obvious, but I wish I had a euro for every time I have seen an introduction passionately in favour of something followed by body paragraphs and a conclusion that were passionately against.

This problem can be avoided by writing your conclusion last, as suggested above. It will also be avoided by planning, and thinking a little more deeply how you feel about the question before you start. When I say a little more deeply, I’m talking about a minute or so, not hours.

Writing the text 4: Use linkers

Linkers are often misunderstood as simply a way of showing “formal English” but in fact, we use linkers all the time, even when chatting with friends. We use them in speech and in writing to indicate “I’m going to add to what was just said,”  “I’m going to contradict what was just said,” and generally to help the listener or reader understand where we are going next.

After writing the text

This is another area where many students are very reluctant - you need to read what you wrote! 

Check for spelling errors, missing third person s, capital letters, whatever errors you are prone to make… and if you don’t know what errors you are prone to make, it’s because you aren’t checking your writing, so you need to start today! You can be the expert on your own writing strengths and weaknesses, and this will just make you better and better.

Moreover, you should read back your text because it’s enjoyable to see how skillfully you put your ideas down and how convincing your arguments are. You did it! Well done! Enjoy the moment with some positivity!

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• Essay Writing

Introduction

In the simplest terms, an essay is a short piece of writing which is set around a specific topic or subject. The piece of writing will give information surrounding the topic but will also display the opinions and thoughts of the author. Oftentimes, an essay is used in an academic sense by way of examination to determine whether a student has understood their studies and as a way of testing their knowledge on a specific subject. An essay is also used in education as a way of encouraging a student to develop their writing skills.

Moreover; an essay is a focused piece of writing designed to inform or persuade. There are many different types of essays, but they are often defined in four categories: argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays. Argumentative and expository essays are focused on conveying information and making clear points, while narrative and descriptive essays are about exercising creativity and writing in an interesting way. At the university level, argumentative essays are the most common type. 

Types of Essay Writing

When it comes to writing an essay, there is not simply one type, there are, quite a few types of essay, and each of them has its purpose and function which are as follows:

Narrative Essays

A narrative essay details a story, oftentimes from a particular point of view. When writing a narrative essay, you should include a set of characters, a location, a good plot, and a climax to the story. It is vital that when writing this type of essay you use fine details which will allow the reader to feel the emotion and use their senses but also give the story the chance to make a point. 

Descriptive Essay

A descriptive essay will describe something in great detail. The subject can be anything from people and places to objects and events but the main point is to go into depth. You might describe the item’s color, where it came from, what it looks like, smells like, tastes like, or how it feels. It is very important to allow the reader to sense what you are writing about and allow them to feel some sort of emotion whilst reading. That being said, the information should be concise and easy to understand, the use of imagery is widely used in this style of essay. 

Expository Essay

An expository essay is used as a way to look into a problem and therefore compare it and explore it. For the expository essay, there is a little bit of storytelling involved but this type of essay goes beyond that. The main idea is that it should explain an idea giving information and explanation. Your expository essay should be simple and easy to understand as well as give a variety of viewpoints on the subject that is being discussed. Often this type of essay is used as a way to detail a subject which is usually more difficult for people to understand, clearly and concisely.

Argumentative Essay

When writing an argumentative essay, you will be attempting to convince your reader about an opinion or point of view. The idea is to show the reader whether the topic is true or false along with giving your own opinion. You must use facts and data to back up any claims made within the essay. 

Format of Essay Writing

Now there is no rigid format of an essay. It is a creative process so it should not be confined within boundaries. However, there is a basic structure that is generally followed while writing essays.

This is the first paragraph of your essay. This is where the writer introduces his topic for the very first time. You can give a very brief synopsis of your essay in the introductory paragraph. Generally, it is not very long, about 4-6 lines. 

This is the main crux of your essays. The body is the meat of your essay sandwiched between the introduction and the conclusion. So the most vital content of the essay will be here. This need not be confined to one paragraph. It can extend to two or more paragraphs according to the content.

This is the last paragraph of the essay. Sometimes a conclusion will just mirror the introductory paragraph but make sure the words and syntax are different. A conclusion is also a great place, to sum up, a story or an argument. You can round up your essay by providing some morals or wrapping up a story. Make sure you complete your essays with the conclusion, leave no hanging threads.

Writing Tips

Give your essays an interesting and appropriate title. It will help draw the attention of the reader and pique their curiosity

 Keep it between 300-500 words. This is the ideal length, you can take creative license to increase or decrease it

 Keep your language simple and crisp. Unnecessary complicated and difficult words break the flow of the sentence.

 Do not make grammar mistakes, use correct punctuation and spelling five-paragraph. If this is not done it will distract the reader from the content

  Before beginning the essay, organize your thoughts and plot a rough draft. This way you can ensure the story will flow and not be an unorganized mess.

Understand the Topic Thoroughly-Sometimes we jump to a conclusion just by reading the topic once and later we realize that the topic was different than what we wrote about.  Read the topic as many times as it takes for you to align your opinion and understanding about the topic.

Make Pointers-It is a daunting task to write an essay inflow as sometimes we tend to lose our way of explaining and get off-topic, missing important details. Thinking about all points you want to discuss and then writing them down somewhere helps in covering everything you hoped to convey in your essay.

Develop a Plan and Do The Math-Essays have word limits and you have to plan your content in such a way that it is accurate, well-described, and meets the word limit given. Keep a track of your words while writing so that you always have an idea of how much to write more or less. 

Essays are the most important means of learning the structure of writing and presenting them to the reader.

FAQs on Essay Writing

1. Writing an Essay in a format is important?

Yes, it is important because it makes your content more streamlined and understandable by the reader. A set format gives a reader a clear picture of what you are trying to explain. It also organises your own thoughts while composing an essay as we tend to think and write in a haphazard manner. The format gives a structure to the writeup.

2. How does Essay writing improve our English?

Essay writing is a very important part of your English earning curriculum, as you understand how to describe anything in your words or how to put your point of view without losing its meaning

3.  How do you write a good essay?

Start by writing a thorough plan. Ensure your essay has a clear structure and overall argument. Try to back up each point you make with a quotation. Answer the question in your introduction and conclusion but remember to be creative too.

4.  What is the format of writing an essay?

A basic essay consists of three main parts: introduction, body, and conclusion. This basic essay format will help you to write and organize an essay. However, flexibility is important. While keeping this basic essay format in mind, let the topic and specific assignment guide the writing and organization.

5.  How many paragraphs does an essay have?

The basic format for an essay is known as the five paragraph essay – but an essay may have as many paragraphs as needed. A five-paragraph essay contains five paragraphs. However, the essay itself consists of three sections: an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. Below we'll explore the basics of writing an essay.

6.  Can you use the word you in an essay?

In academic or college writing, most formal essays and research reports use third-person pronouns and do not use “I” or “you.” An essay is the writer's analysis of a topic.  “You” has no place in an essay since the essay is the writer's thoughts and not the reader's thoughts.

7.  What does bridge mean in an essay?

A bridge sentence is a special kind of topic sentence. In addition to signaling what the new paragraph is about, it shows how that follows from what the old paragraph said. The key to constructing good bridges is briefly pointing back to what you just finished saying.

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Each method can be used separately or in combination with any of the others. Learning which methods best suit your purpose will help when you create outlines and write first drafts of paragraphs and essays.

Back to Top

LEARN TO NARRATE

Use narration to recall an event or explain how a process works. A narrative is a story. It arranges information in chronological (time) order; one event in a story or one step in a process follows another just as it happened.

Narratives contain action words—verbs and adverbs—that help move the story or process along and make it more interesting. They also use transitions such as first, then, soon, after, and suddenly, which maintain coherence and show movement from one event to the next.

Read this paragraph from Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings . It recalls a childhood incident when neighborhood children mocked her and her grandmother. Action words are in red; transitions are in blue:

Before the girls got to the porch, I heard their laughter crackling and popping like pine logs in a cooking stove. I suppose my lifelong paranoia was born in those cold, molasses-slow minutes. They came finally to stand on the ground in front of Momma. At first they pretended seriousness. Then one of them wrapped her right arm in the crook of her left, pushed out her mouth and started to hum. I realized that she was aping my grandmother.

LEARN TO DESCRIBE

Use description when you need to explain the nature of people, places, and things. It's always a good idea to start a physical description by relying on your five senses to gather details about what your subject looks, sounds, feels, smells, or even tastes like.

Unlike narration, which presents information from beginning to end, description can be arranged in any pattern you think best. Usually, the pattern is spatial, presenting things as they appear in space. But each writer chooses his or her own perspective—the position from which to view a subject. And each decides where to begin and where to end.

Read this paragraph from Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings . Angelou doesn't simply describe her subjects' appearance; she uses description to explain their characters. She also uses it to reveal her emotional reaction to their behavior.

The dirt of the girls' cotton dresses continued on their legs, feet, arms, and faces to make them all of a piece. Their greasy uncolored hair hung down, uncombed, with a grim finality. I knelt to see them better, to remember them for all time. The tears that had slipped down my dress left unsurprising dark spots, and made the front yard blurry and even more unreal. The world had taken a deep breath and was having doubts about continuing to revolve.

LEARN TO EXPLAIN, CONVINCE, AND PERSUADE

Narration and description can also be used to explain an idea or statement, to convince readers that an opinion is correct, or to persuade them to do something. But such purposes also lend themselves to other methods.

USING ILLUSTRATION

Illustration explains abstract ideas by providing clear, specific, and concrete examples. Take this paragraph from "A Few Kind Words for Superstition" by Robertson Davies:

Many superstitions are so widespread and so old that they must have risen from a depth of human mind that is indifferent to race or creed. Orthodox Jews place a charm on their doorposts; so do (or did) the Chinese. Some peoples of Middle Europe believe that when a man sneezes, his soul, for that moment, is absent from his body, and they hasten to bless him, lest he should be seized by the Devil. How did the Melanesians come by the same idea? Superstition seems to have a link with some body or belief that far antedates the religions we know—religions which have no place for such comforting little ceremonies and charities.

There are two concrete examples here:

• Orthodox Jews place a charm . . . .
• Some peoples of Middle Europe believe . . . .

USING COMPARISON/CONTRAST

A comparison explains similarities. A contrast explains differences. The first half of the following paragraph compares a harpsichord and a piano. The second half contrasts these instruments.

USING DEFINITION

A definition identifies a term and sets it apart from all other terms that may be related to it. Often, definitions begin by mentioning the general class to which a term belongs. Then they provide specifics to distinguish the term from other members of that class. For example, if you were to define whale, you might start by saying it is an aquatic mammal. Then you could talk about its size, shape, varieties, environment, breeding habits, and so on.

Read this paragraph. Try to determine the general class to which the subject belongs; then find specifics that distinguish it from other members of that class.

The viola is a stringed instrument in the violin family. It is only slightly larger than the violin and is tuned at a lower pitch. Like its smaller relative, the viola is held on the shoulder under the chin and is played with a bow. While the violin has many uses, the viola is used mainly in orchestral and chamber music.

COMBINING METHODS OF DEVELOPMENT

One method of development can be used in combination with others. Reread the paragraph defining the viola. Pick out examples of comparison and contrast.

USING CLASSIFICATION

Classification—distinguishing types or classes—can help you explain a great deal of seemingly unrelated information in an organized and easy-to-follow manner. Take this paragraph that explains stringed instruments:

There are many types of stringed instruments. The violin family is made up of the violin, viola, cello, and double bass. Fretted instruments (frets are strips that show players where to put their hands) include the banjo, mandolin, lute, ukulele, and guitar. Related to these instruments are the lyre and the harp. The dulcimer, zither, and psaltery form another family, whose strings are stretched over flat sound boxes. Finally, there are the keyboard stringed instruments such as the piano, clavichord, and harpsichord.

USING CAUSE AND EFFECT

The cause-and-effect method is useful in explaining why something happens. Take this paragraph on the causes of avalanches:

An avalanche is a huge snow slide that rushes down the side of a mountain, carrying large trees, rocks, and other debris in its path. Avalanches are similar to landslides but can be more dangerous and destructive. Avalanches can occur when huge amounts of new snow fall on layers of snow and ice that have become unstable because of melting. They can also be triggered by explosions or earthquakes.

Read the paragraph on avalanches again:

Where is definition used in this paragraph? How about comparison?

MASTER FOUR PATTERNS OF ARRANGEMENT

As you have learned, there are several ways to develop details in a paragraph. These methods—narration, description, comparison/contrast, definition, classification, illustration, and cause and effect—relate to the paragraph's purpose. You should also learn patterns of arrangement—ways to organize details in a paragraph.

There are four basic patterns, but there are as many variations on such patterns as there are writers who use them. Study these four patterns of arrangement. You can use any of them regardless of the method of development you choose.

GENERAL-TO-SPECIFIC PATTERN

The pattern that begins with a general statement followed by specific supporting details can be used to argue a point or make an abstract idea clear. In the next paragraph, the writer starts with the idea that living with an alcoholic parent is difficult. This is the topic sentence. She then gives details to explain how difficult this problem is.

The nights that my mother was home were nightmares. She sat on the living room couch with a case of Budweiser, just drinking, listening to music, and talking to herself. On many occasions, she turned up the record player so high that the police stopped by our house late at night to ask that she lower the volume. I spent those evenings sitting up with my crying sister reassuring her that everything would be all right, while the sounds of Paul Anka vibrated into her bedroom. My brother went for long walks and sometimes didn't return until school was dismissed the next afternoon. The day after, I would find my mother sitting on the couch surrounded by beer cans and slumped over one corner of the couch. The record player would still be running, with the needle in the center of the record, playing nothing. (Author anonymous, "Mom")

SPECIFIC-TO-GENERAL PATTERN

This pattern can help you create suspense or build to an emotional high point. The following paragraph starts with a specific detail that leads to a more general topic sentence.

I was too cold now. My teeth were chattering, my feet frozen like lifeless stumps. I looked up to the heavens and screamed in agony, damning the fates. I lit another cigarette and expressed my dismay over the two friends who had accompanied me on this pilgrimage. Suddenly, I spotted them walking back to the car, their heads down, shoulders hunched, and hands buried deep within their coat pockets. I knew there was no need to talk. I understood immediately that they had found no help. I handed the keys and the lighter to Jason. He fumbled with them for a few minutes, but with no luck. Robert walked to the park bench and sat down. I looked away from them. My own frustration was compounded by the pain in their eyes. I felt another surge of self-pity. The dull agony of the cold, the biting pain of the wind, the guilt of endangering the lives of my friends: it was all too much to bear. (Bill McGlynn, "Taking the Blame")

QUESTION-TO-ANSWER PATTERN

Beginning with a question can capture the reader's attention. It is also an easy way to arrange information. After asking the question, you can fill the rest of the paragraph or essay with details that answer or relate to it.

What's so bad about junk food? A great deal. For example, it usually contains artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives—additives that pose serious health hazards and, over the long run, may cause cancer. In addition, much junk food is packed with sugar, fats, or cholesterol. It adds inches to our waistlines, clogs our arteries, and disturbs our metabolism. Most important, junk food contains few nutrients. Eating cotton candy, potato chips, and chocolate bars may satisfy our hunger, but for that very reason it keeps us from eating the foods we need to stay healthy. (Nicholas Cannino, "The Junk-Food Junkie")

ORDER-OF-IMPORTANCE PATTERN

Fiction writers often save the most important or startling information for last. This technique helps them maintain suspense and create emphasis. You can use this pattern whether your purpose is to tell a story, describe a scene, explain an idea, or defend an opinion. The next paragraph is a good example.

I am divorced now, free and alone, a woman of 45 with children who have gone off to finish school, to start families, and to spin out lives of their own. I got married when I was nineteen. Back then, some young people got married because they were genuinely in love, but too many of those I knew tied the knot for the wrong reasons. Some sought security; some, companionship, romance, or sex. A few even "had to" get married. But the most compelling reason to wed in those days was that everyone else was doing it, and nobody wanted to be left behind. (Lena Schmidt, "Time to Grow Up")

	in this website. If you already have a username and password, enter it below. If this is your first visit to this site, you can (it'll be on a card that came with your textbook) to register, or . Email address: Password: ( to log out) to edit your profile. Send mail as: '); } else { document.write(' '); } } else { document.write(' '); } // --> Instructor email: '); } else { document.write(' '); } // --> TA email: '); } else { document.write(' '); } } else { document.write(' '); } // --> Other email: '); } else { document.write(' '); } } else { document.write(' '); } // --> ( to log out) to edit your profile. Send mail as: '); } else { document.write(' '); } // --> TA email: '); } else { document.write(' '); } // --> Other email: '); } else { document.write(' '); } // --> Search for: Search in: U.S. Locations UMGC Europe Learn Online Find Answers 855-655-8682 Current Students Online Guide to Writing and Research Thinking strategies and writing patterns, explore more of umgc. Online Guide to Writing Patterns for Presenting Information Specific-to-General Pattern Vandal! Thief! Traitor! Murderer! Details matter. They also get attention. Though the categories listed above do lack a certain level of detail, they carry more emotional resonance than, say, “criminal!” Sometimes you need to get the attention of your audience, and generalizations will not do. For this reason, the specific-to-general pattern is here to help. Similar to its opposite (the general-to-specific pattern), the specific-to-general pattern does what its name suggests. It begins with details and leads the reader to a generalization, which may be a thesis or conclusion. In addition to getting the reader’s attention, this pattern also creates suspense and curiosity as you lead the reader through your thinking to your concluding statement. The details listed above are quite dramatic, but a subtler approach, using the same pattern, can be just as effective. Example of a Specific-to-General Progression Here’s what it feels like to turn 60: weird. On the one hand, you’re still going to the gym and to dinner parties. Sixty-year-olds still perform surgery on people who could choose other doctors. There’s no dithering yet—the senescence is almost undetectable. But on the other hand, you have been on this Earth for a really, really long time. I have a photograph of myself at age 3, standing on the docks of Cork Harbor, about to sail to New York. When I look at the picture of that small child on her sturdy legs in the foggy past, I don’t feel any connection to her. The photograph looks like something I would discover after many days on Ancestry.com. It looks like a snapshot of my own great-aunt. There’s a reason the photograph looks like it’s from another time. Because it is from another time; it was taken more than half a century ago. How can I be in a photograph from that long ago? The math makes sense, but my own life doesn’t (Flanagan, 2021, paras. 3-5) Example Explained The paragraph above contains two specific-to-general progressions. First, the author begins with a specific age and how it feels. She also presents us with a mystery. Why does turning 60 feel weird? From there, the author begins to explain, providing details that are still specific, but less so. The author ends the first progression with a tentative explanation of why turning 60 feels weird, offering two general, but contrasting, observations about turning 60. The author begins her second general-to-specific progression with a specific photograph. She follows that with an account of her personal feelings. Though these feelings are recent, they are not as timebound as the photograph or her age, and so the progression continues to become more general. Finally, the progression ends with a reflection on the passage of time, aging, and life itself. The author also solves the overall mystery. Turning 60 feels weird because she feels disconnected from the past. Key Takeaways The specific-to-general pattern can be used in a variety of places, but it usually works best when introducing a work: a paper, an article, or a book. The specific-to-general pattern is a great way to grab your audience's attention from the start. Mailing Address: 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD 20783 This work is licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License . © 2022 UMGC. All links to external sites were verified at the time of publication. UMGC is not responsible for the validity or integrity of information located at external sites. Table of Contents: Online Guide to Writing Chapter 1: College Writing How Does College Writing Differ from Workplace Writing? What Is College Writing? Why So Much Emphasis on Writing? Chapter 2: The Writing Process Doing Exploratory Research Getting from Notes to Your Draft Introduction Prewriting - Techniques to Get Started - Mining Your Intuition Prewriting: Targeting Your Audience Prewriting: Techniques to Get Started Prewriting: Understanding Your Assignment Rewriting: Being Your Own Critic Rewriting: Creating a Revision Strategy Rewriting: Getting Feedback Rewriting: The Final Draft Techniques to Get Started - Outlining Techniques to Get Started - Using Systematic Techniques Thesis Statement and Controlling Idea Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Freewriting Writing: Getting from Notes to Your Draft - Summarizing Your Ideas Writing: Outlining What You Will Write Chapter 3: Thinking Strategies A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone A Word About Style, Voice, and Tone: Style Through Vocabulary and Diction Critical Strategies and Writing Critical Strategies and Writing: Analysis Critical Strategies and Writing: Evaluation Critical Strategies and Writing: Persuasion Critical Strategies and Writing: Synthesis Developing a Paper Using Strategies Kinds of Assignments You Will Write Patterns for Presenting Information: Critiques Patterns for Presenting Information: Discussing Raw Data Patterns for Presenting Information: General-to-Specific Pattern Patterns for Presenting Information: Problem-Cause-Solution Pattern Patterns for Presenting Information: Specific-to-General Pattern Patterns for Presenting Information: Summaries and Abstracts Supporting with Research and Examples Writing Essay Examinations Writing Essay Examinations: Make Your Answer Relevant and Complete Writing Essay Examinations: Organize Thinking Before Writing Writing Essay Examinations: Read and Understand the Question Chapter 4: The Research Process Planning and Writing a Research Paper Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Ask a Research Question Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Cite Sources Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Collect Evidence Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Decide Your Point of View, or Role, for Your Research Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Draw Conclusions Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Find a Topic and Get an Overview Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Manage Your Resources Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Outline Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Survey the Literature Planning and Writing a Research Paper: Work Your Sources into Your Research Writing Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Human Resources Research Resources: What Are Research Resources? Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Electronic Resources Research Resources: Where Are Research Resources Found? - Print Resources Structuring the Research Paper: Formal Research Structure Structuring the Research Paper: Informal Research Structure The Nature of Research The Research Assignment: How Should Research Sources Be Evaluated? The Research Assignment: When Is Research Needed? The Research Assignment: Why Perform Research? Chapter 5: Academic Integrity Academic Integrity Giving Credit to Sources Giving Credit to Sources: Copyright Laws Giving Credit to Sources: Documentation Giving Credit to Sources: Style Guides Integrating Sources Practicing Academic Integrity Practicing Academic Integrity: Keeping Accurate Records Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Paraphrasing Your Source Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Quoting Your Source Practicing Academic Integrity: Managing Source Material - Summarizing Your Sources Types of Documentation Types of Documentation: Bibliographies and Source Lists Types of Documentation: Citing World Wide Web Sources Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - APA Style Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - CSE/CBE Style Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - Chicago Style Types of Documentation: In-Text or Parenthetical Citations - MLA Style Types of Documentation: Note Citations Chapter 6: Using Library Resources Finding Library Resources Chapter 7: Assessing Your Writing How Is Writing Graded? How Is Writing Graded?: A General Assessment Tool The Draft Stage The Draft Stage: The First Draft The Draft Stage: The Revision Process and the Final Draft The Draft Stage: Using Feedback The Research Stage Using Assessment to Improve Your Writing Chapter 8: Other Frequently Assigned Papers Reviews and Reaction Papers: Article and Book Reviews Reviews and Reaction Papers: Reaction Papers Writing Arguments Writing Arguments: Adapting the Argument Structure Writing Arguments: Purposes of Argument Writing Arguments: References to Consult for Writing Arguments Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Anticipate Active Opposition Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Determine Your Organization Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Develop Your Argument Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Introduce Your Argument Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - State Your Thesis or Proposition Writing Arguments: Steps to Writing an Argument - Write Your Conclusion Writing Arguments: Types of Argument Appendix A: Books to Help Improve Your Writing Dictionaries General Style Manuals Researching on the Internet Special Style Manuals Writing Handbooks Appendix B: Collaborative Writing and Peer Reviewing Collaborative Writing: Assignments to Accompany the Group Project Collaborative Writing: Informal Progress Report Collaborative Writing: Issues to Resolve Collaborative Writing: Methodology Collaborative Writing: Peer Evaluation Collaborative Writing: Tasks of Collaborative Writing Group Members Collaborative Writing: Writing Plan General Introduction Peer Reviewing Appendix C: Developing an Improvement Plan Working with Your Instructor’s Comments and Grades Appendix D: Writing Plan and Project Schedule Devising a Writing Project Plan and Schedule Reviewing Your Plan with Others By using our website you agree to our use of cookies. Learn more about how we use cookies by reading our  Privacy Policy . Common Essay Structures / Patterns of Development Patterns of development overview. Most academic essays have an overall structure – introduction leading to a thesis, body, conclusion. Essays also have topic sentences and units of support that constitute the body, and these topic sentences and units of support need to be ordered logically in a way that’s appropriate to the essay’s thesis. In addition to the concept of the thesis indicating a general, logical order for the support, there are actually many different ways to think about and organize information in the body of an essay, using different patterns of development. These patterns, referred to academically as “rhetorical modes,” mirror the ways in which humans think about their worlds and organize their thoughts in order to communicate. The concept of rhetorical modes actually goes back to ancient civilizations. Though it seems particularly pressing in our current social media, online-all-the-time culture, the idea of “information overload” has troubled humans for centuries. Despite these concerns, many of our ancestors found productive ways to manage information overload. And their strategies remain helpful today. Ancient rhetoricians, including Aristotle and Cicero, developed techniques that writers used to gather, categorize, and explore common features in sets of information. They identified “topoi,” or patterns, which were those general features shared in any idea or argument regardless of the content of that argument, including definition, relationship, and/or division. For instance, ancient rhetoricians might ask “Is the argument about a definition?” If they discovered that a definition was, in fact, controversial, then they knew they could follow certain common patterns and use common strategies. Other common patterns included comparison and cause-and-effect. Knowing that these common patterns of human thought exist, will help you as a writer to both develop and organize information in your essays. The following image identifies common patterns. Although it refers to “paragraph” patterns, understand that these are also common patterns for whole essays. Consider these common patterns of thought and consider specific ways in which you’ve applied each thinking pattern in your everyday life. 1. Narration The purpose of narration is to tell a story or relate an event. Narration is an especially useful tool for sequencing or putting details and information into some kind of logical order, usually chronological. Literature uses narration heavily, but it also can be useful in non-fiction, academic writing for strong impact. 2. Description The purpose of description is to recreate, invent, or visually present a person, place, event, or action so that the reader can picture that which is being described. It is heavily based on sensory details : sight, sound, smell, feel, taste. It’s common to see examples used in all kinds of situations—an idea can be considered too general or abstract until we see it in action. Exemplification extends this idea even further: it carries one or more examples into great detail, in order to show the details of a complex problem in a way that’s easy for readers to understand. 4. Definition Defintion moves beyond a dictionary definition to deeply examine a word or concept as we actually use and understand it. 5. Process Analysis Analyzing a process can also be thought of as “how-to” instruction. Technical writing includes a lot of process analysis, for instance. Academic writing can incorporate process analysis to show how an existing problem came to be, or how it might be solved, by following a clear series of steps. 6. Classification/Division Classification takes one large concept, and divides it into individual pieces. A nice result from this type of writing is that it helps the reader to understand a complex topic by focusing on its smaller parts. This is particularly useful when an author has a unique way of dividing the concepts, to provide new insight into the ways it could be viewed. 7. Comparison/Contrast Comparison focuses on similarities between things, and contrast focuses on their differences. We innately make comparisons all the time, and they appear in many kinds of writings. The goal of comparison and contrast in academic essays is generally to show that one item is superior to another, based on a set of evaluations included as part of the writing. 8. Cause/Effect If narration offers a sequence of events, cause/effect essays offer an explanation about why that sequence matters. Cause/effect writing is particularly powerful when the author can provide a cause/effect relationship that the reader wasn’t expecting, and as a result see the situation in a new light. 9. Problem/Solution This type of academic writing has two equally important tasks: clearly identifying a problem, and then providing a logical, practical solution for that problem. Establishing that a particular situation IS a problem can sometimes be a challenge–many readers might assume that a given situation is “just the way it is,” for instance. Often in your academic studies, you will be asked to apply a specific thinking pattern in an essay assignment. For example: Compare the economic theories of Maynard Keynes and Milton Friedman. (comparison and contrast) Discuss the effects of the U.S. civil war on the U.S. cotton industry during and in the decade immediately after the war. (cause and effect) Identify the different literary techniques that Faulkner applies in his short story, “A Rose for Emily,” explaining how he uses each technique to add to the suspense of the story. (division and classification, example) Discuss Piaget’s stages of child development in reference to case studies #1: Rebecca, and #2: Luke. (process analysis) Even if you are not directly asked to apply a specific thinking pattern, you may want to use one to help you develop and organize your insights. The four patterns noted above – comparison and contrast, cause and effect, division and classification, and process analysis – are very common in academic as well as everyday thinking and writing. Patterns of Development Overview. Revision and adaptation of the page Rhetorical Modes at https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-englishcomposition1/chapter/text-rhetorical-modes/. Authored by : Susan Oaks. Provided by : Empire State College, SUNY OER Services. Project : College Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike Rhetorical Modes. Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wm-englishcomposition1/chapter/text-rhetorical-modes/ . Project : English Composition I. License : CC BY: Attribution image of human head graphic with puzzle pieces . Authored by : Tumisu. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/en/mental-health-mental-health-head-3337026/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved image of choosing paragraph patterns. Authored by : GrinnPidgeon. Provided by : flickr. Located at : https://flic.kr/p/a9oiLS . License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike image of colorful puzzle pieces. Authored by : stux. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/en/puzzle-colorful-color-3155663/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved The Ultimate Guide to Writing Styles, With Examples Seasoned writers each have their own distinct methods and approaches that set their writing apart from others. An author’s writing style is the culmination of all the unique techniques, habits, and choices they make.  Because it’s so abstract and fluid, writing style can be difficult to pin down—even for the writers themselves! Evaluating the way famous authors write is hard enough, but what if you want to develop or enhance your own writing style?  Strike the right tone Grammarly helps you communicate the way you intend Write with Grammarly Here’s a tip: You don’t have to guess whether you’re using certain words correctly or breaking  grammar rules in your writing. Just  copy and paste your writing to check your grammar and get instant feedback on whether your sentences have misspellings, punctuation errors, or any structural mistakes. This guide explains the fundamentals to help you understand. We’ll cover the different elements of writing styles, compare the writing styles of famous authors, and even give some tips on how to improve your own writing style.  First, let’s get a definitive answer to the essential question: What is writing style? Have you ever been in a group chat where you knew who was writing without seeing their name? Chances are, you were so familiar with that person’s writing style that you recognized it right away.  The writing choices an author makes tend to follow patterns. When a writer finds a technique or habit they like, they stick with it, often throughout their entire career. Put all those writing choices together, and the writing takes on a unique “voice” that “sounds” different from other writing.  However, just because a writer uses one writing style doesn’t mean they’re tied to it forever. Writers are free to change up their style as needed, even within the same work, just by altering their techniques and making different choices. Some sections might call for a serious style, while just a few paragraphs later a playful one is needed. We all change up our communication styles depending on our needs. The language and tone you use with friends is different than the language you use with teachers or coworkers. Writing is no different.  While it’s difficult to define writing style, don’t make the mistake of conflating it with the  types of writing . For example,  narrative writing is a type of writing, but you can do it in any number of styles : playful, somber, clinical, casual, etc. The same can be said for expository, persuasive, and  descriptive writing .  The components of writing style In a sense, all writing choices are equal, but they evoke different responses in the reader. If the author wants to make the reader laugh, they’ll make different writing choices than an author who wants to scare their reader, or teach their reader, or persuade their reader.  While all the minutiae of writing choices ultimately affect the final style, it helps to break them down into three main categories: word choice, structure, and punctuation.  Word choice Words each carry their own special emotional connotations and contextual associations, so writers must choose the words that best match their desired outcome. To put it another way, if a writer wants to be formal, they’ll choose words that sound formal.  This is true even when words technically have the same meanings. Consider the difference between these three phrases:  getting let go getting fired getting canned Each refers to the same thing—the termination of employment—but they each have their own special connotations. “Getting let go” is often a euphemism for termination, used to politely protect someone’s feelings; “getting fired” is the standard, but would come across as insensitive in a formal environment; and “getting canned” is more colloquial, best used in a joking or casual setting.  Writers are free to use any words they want but should consider the connotations if they’re aiming for a particular style.  Structure (sentence and paragraph) Just like words can have the same meaning with different connotations, so too can individual sentences and paragraphs. By rearranging their structure, an author can change how the sentence is interpreted, sometimes drastically.  Hippopotamuses kill more humans than sharks do.  Sharks kill fewer humans than hippopotamuses do.  Both sentences are saying the same thing, but have slightly different connotations. The first is more factual and straightforward, but the second is more dramatic, saving the intended surprise until the end.  Structure also accounts for the lengths of sentences. Some writers, such as Ernest Hemingway, are known for their quick, to-the-point sentences, which create a fast-paced and urgent writing style. Other writers, namely Charles Dickens, favor long, descriptive sentences, which create a vivid and immersive writing style.  The same principles that apply to sentence structure can also apply to paragraph structure. Some authors have paragraphs that last more than a page, while others never write paragraphs longer than four sentences. Both are equally viable, but the choice should align with one’s writing style.  Punctuation  Have you noticed that some writers never use semicolons while others can’t stop? The choice of punctuation affects how sentences are read, so it has a direct impact on writing style.  More than anything, punctuation affects pacing. Commas, periods, colons, and other punctuation marks all denote pauses in text, similar to a rest in music. Excessive punctuation tends to draw out the writing and slow it down—a good technique for building suspense or encouraging reflection.  Writers can use punctuation any way they’d like. More often than not, writers follow punctuation rules. Sometimes they break them for stylistic reasons, for example writing one continuous run-on sentence across pages to represent a stream of consciousness.  Examples of writing styles from famous authors Let’s look at some excerpts and quotes from famous authors to illustrate writing style in action. So you can see the difference style makes, all of our examples are about the same topic: the common house cat.  “Of all God’s creatures, there is only one that cannot be made slave of the leash. That one is the cat. If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve the man, but it would deteriorate the cat.” The style Twain uses here is very respectful, using absolutes (“Of all God’s creatures”) and comparisons to show admiration, along with poetic phrases to engage the reader like “slave of the leash.” “I am glad you have a Cat, but I do not believe it is so remarkable a cat as My Cat.” Eliot plays with grammar style to capitalize the words “Cat” and “My” to subtly show reverence.  William S. Burroughs “Only thing can resolve conflict is love, like I felt for Fletch and Ruski, Spooner, and Calico. Pure love. What I feel for my cats present and past. Love? What is it? Most natural painkiller what there is. LOVE.” While Eliot “plays” with grammar, Burroughs flat-out abandons it for incomplete sentences, writing in all caps, and inconsistent commas. The erratic writing style, however, supports the passion and emotional message he’s trying to communicate.  Charles Bukowski “when I am feeling all I have to do is watch my cats I study these they are my Poetry offers more leeway for breaking grammar rules, so poets enjoy extra freedom to develop their writing styles. Bukowski speaks plainly with no metaphors or hidden meanings, so when he says directly “they are my teachers,” it carries more impact because we know he’s telling the truth.  3 ways to develop your own writing style 1 read more. The more writing styles you expose yourself to, the more options you have to emulate in your writing. Reading a diverse range of styles, especially outside of what you’re used to, can teach you new techniques and literary devices —but you won’t discover them unless you look.  2 Play to your strengths Do you have an excellent vocabulary? It’ll be easier for you to find the perfect word for every situation. Do you have a talent for realistic descriptions? Give yourself space to write longer, more detailed sentences. Your writing style should reflect your particular skills as a writer, so use it to accent your best features.  3 Do what comes naturally   What type of writer are you? Are you the Meticulous Plotter , or maybe an Escape Artist ? Let your writing style develop on its own based on what comes naturally to you. You’ll find yourself drawn to certain techniques or words over others because they fit your personality. That’s really all writing style is: the writer’s personality shining through.  This article was originally written in 2019 by Daniel Potter. It’s been updated to include new information. Have a language expert improve your writing Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free. Knowledge Base How to write an argumentative essay | Examples & tips How to Write an Argumentative Essay | Examples & Tips Published on July 24, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023. An argumentative essay expresses an extended argument for a particular thesis statement . The author takes a clearly defined stance on their subject and builds up an evidence-based case for it. Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text Upload your document to correct all your mistakes in minutes Table of contents When do you write an argumentative essay, approaches to argumentative essays, introducing your argument, the body: developing your argument, concluding your argument, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about argumentative essays. You might be assigned an argumentative essay as a writing exercise in high school or in a composition class. The prompt will often ask you to argue for one of two positions, and may include terms like “argue” or “argument.” It will frequently take the form of a question. The prompt may also be more open-ended in terms of the possible arguments you could make. Argumentative writing at college level At university, the vast majority of essays or papers you write will involve some form of argumentation. For example, both rhetorical analysis and literary analysis essays involve making arguments about texts. In this context, you won’t necessarily be told to write an argumentative essay—but making an evidence-based argument is an essential goal of most academic writing, and this should be your default approach unless you’re told otherwise. Examples of argumentative essay prompts At a university level, all the prompts below imply an argumentative essay as the appropriate response. Your research should lead you to develop a specific position on the topic. The essay then argues for that position and aims to convince the reader by presenting your evidence, evaluation and analysis. Don’t just list all the effects you can think of. Do develop a focused argument about the overall effect and why it matters, backed up by evidence from sources. Don’t just provide a selection of data on the measures’ effectiveness. Do build up your own argument about which kinds of measures have been most or least effective, and why. Don’t just analyze a random selection of doppelgänger characters. Do form an argument about specific texts, comparing and contrasting how they express their thematic concerns through doppelgänger characters. Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check. An argumentative essay should be objective in its approach; your arguments should rely on logic and evidence, not on exaggeration or appeals to emotion. There are many possible approaches to argumentative essays, but there are two common models that can help you start outlining your arguments: The Toulmin model and the Rogerian model. Toulmin arguments The Toulmin model consists of four steps, which may be repeated as many times as necessary for the argument: Make a claim Provide the grounds (evidence) for the claim Explain the warrant (how the grounds support the claim) Discuss possible rebuttals to the claim, identifying the limits of the argument and showing that you have considered alternative perspectives The Toulmin model is a common approach in academic essays. You don’t have to use these specific terms (grounds, warrants, rebuttals), but establishing a clear connection between your claims and the evidence supporting them is crucial in an argumentative essay. Say you’re making an argument about the effectiveness of workplace anti-discrimination measures. You might: Claim that unconscious bias training does not have the desired results, and resources would be better spent on other approaches Cite data to support your claim Explain how the data indicates that the method is ineffective Anticipate objections to your claim based on other data, indicating whether these objections are valid, and if not, why not. Rogerian arguments The Rogerian model also consists of four steps you might repeat throughout your essay: Discuss what the opposing position gets right and why people might hold this position Highlight the problems with this position Present your own position , showing how it addresses these problems Suggest a possible compromise —what elements of your position would proponents of the opposing position benefit from adopting? This model builds up a clear picture of both sides of an argument and seeks a compromise. It is particularly useful when people tend to disagree strongly on the issue discussed, allowing you to approach opposing arguments in good faith. Say you want to argue that the internet has had a positive impact on education. You might: Acknowledge that students rely too much on websites like Wikipedia Argue that teachers view Wikipedia as more unreliable than it really is Suggest that Wikipedia’s system of citations can actually teach students about referencing Suggest critical engagement with Wikipedia as a possible assignment for teachers who are skeptical of its usefulness. You don’t necessarily have to pick one of these models—you may even use elements of both in different parts of your essay—but it’s worth considering them if you struggle to structure your arguments. Regardless of which approach you take, your essay should always be structured using an introduction , a body , and a conclusion . Like other academic essays, an argumentative essay begins with an introduction . The introduction serves to capture the reader’s interest, provide background information, present your thesis statement , and (in longer essays) to summarize the structure of the body. Hover over different parts of the example below to see how a typical introduction works. The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education. The use of the internet in academic contexts is on the rise, and its role in learning is hotly debated. For many teachers who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. This concern, while understandable, is misguided. The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its critical benefits for students and educators—as a uniquely comprehensive and accessible information source; a means of exposure to and engagement with different perspectives; and a highly flexible learning environment. The body of an argumentative essay is where you develop your arguments in detail. Here you’ll present evidence, analysis, and reasoning to convince the reader that your thesis statement is true. In the standard five-paragraph format for short essays, the body takes up three of your five paragraphs. In longer essays, it will be more paragraphs, and might be divided into sections with headings. Each paragraph covers its own topic, introduced with a topic sentence . Each of these topics must contribute to your overall argument; don’t include irrelevant information. This example paragraph takes a Rogerian approach: It first acknowledges the merits of the opposing position and then highlights problems with that position. Hover over different parts of the example to see how a body paragraph is constructed. A common frustration for teachers is students’ use of Wikipedia as a source in their writing. Its prevalence among students is not exaggerated; a survey found that the vast majority of the students surveyed used Wikipedia (Head & Eisenberg, 2010). An article in The Guardian stresses a common objection to its use: “a reliance on Wikipedia can discourage students from engaging with genuine academic writing” (Coomer, 2013). Teachers are clearly not mistaken in viewing Wikipedia usage as ubiquitous among their students; but the claim that it discourages engagement with academic sources requires further investigation. This point is treated as self-evident by many teachers, but Wikipedia itself explicitly encourages students to look into other sources. Its articles often provide references to academic publications and include warning notes where citations are missing; the site’s own guidelines for research make clear that it should be used as a starting point, emphasizing that users should always “read the references and check whether they really do support what the article says” (“Wikipedia:Researching with Wikipedia,” 2020). Indeed, for many students, Wikipedia is their first encounter with the concepts of citation and referencing. The use of Wikipedia therefore has a positive side that merits deeper consideration than it often receives. An argumentative essay ends with a conclusion that summarizes and reflects on the arguments made in the body. No new arguments or evidence appear here, but in longer essays you may discuss the strengths and weaknesses of your argument and suggest topics for future research. In all conclusions, you should stress the relevance and importance of your argument. Hover over the following example to see the typical elements of a conclusion. The internet has had a major positive impact on the world of education; occasional pitfalls aside, its value is evident in numerous applications. The future of teaching lies in the possibilities the internet opens up for communication, research, and interactivity. As the popularity of distance learning shows, students value the flexibility and accessibility offered by digital education, and educators should fully embrace these advantages. The internet’s dangers, real and imaginary, have been documented exhaustively by skeptics, but the internet is here to stay; it is time to focus seriously on its potential for good. If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools! Ad hominem fallacy Post hoc fallacy Appeal to authority fallacy False cause fallacy Sunk cost fallacy College essays Choosing Essay Topic Write a College Essay Write a Diversity Essay College Essay Format & Structure Comparing and Contrasting in an Essay  (AI) Tools Grammar Checker Paraphrasing Tool Text Summarizer AI Detector Plagiarism Checker Citation Generator An argumentative essay tends to be a longer essay involving independent research, and aims to make an original argument about a topic. Its thesis statement makes a contentious claim that must be supported in an objective, evidence-based way. An expository essay also aims to be objective, but it doesn’t have to make an original argument. Rather, it aims to explain something (e.g., a process or idea) in a clear, concise way. Expository essays are often shorter assignments and rely less on research. At college level, you must properly cite your sources in all essays , research papers , and other academic texts (except exams and in-class exercises). Add a citation whenever you quote , paraphrase , or summarize information or ideas from a source. You should also give full source details in a bibliography or reference list at the end of your text. The exact format of your citations depends on which citation style you are instructed to use. The most common styles are APA , MLA , and Chicago . The majority of the essays written at university are some sort of argumentative essay . Unless otherwise specified, you can assume that the goal of any essay you’re asked to write is argumentative: To convince the reader of your position using evidence and reasoning. In composition classes you might be given assignments that specifically test your ability to write an argumentative essay. Look out for prompts including instructions like “argue,” “assess,” or “discuss” to see if this is the goal. Cite this Scribbr article If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator. Caulfield, J. (2023, July 23). How to Write an Argumentative Essay | Examples & Tips. Scribbr. Retrieved August 12, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/academic-essay/argumentative-essay/ Is this article helpful? Jack Caulfield Other students also liked, how to write a thesis statement | 4 steps & examples, how to write topic sentences | 4 steps, examples & purpose, how to write an expository essay, what is your plagiarism score. 136 IMAGES How to organize and arrange? 14 Understanding Writing Patterns How to Write an Essay WRITING AN ESSAY & PATTERN OF ESSAY WRITING AN ESSAY & PATTERN OF ESSAY how to write a great essay in an english language with the help of two COMMENTS How to Structure an Essay The basic structure of an essay always consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. But for many students, the most difficult part of structuring an essay is deciding how to organize information within the body. This article provides useful templates and tips to help you outline your essay, make decisions about your structure, and ... Essay Structure: The 3 Main Parts of an Essay Basic essay structure: the 3 main parts of an essay. Almost every single essay that's ever been written follows the same basic structure: Introduction. Body paragraphs. Conclusion. This structure has stood the test of time for one simple reason: It works. It clearly presents the writer's position, supports that position with relevant ... The Beginner's Guide to Writing an Essay Essay writing process. The writing process of preparation, writing, and revisions applies to every essay or paper, but the time and effort spent on each stage depends on the type of essay.. For example, if you've been assigned a five-paragraph expository essay for a high school class, you'll probably spend the most time on the writing stage; for a college-level argumentative essay, on the ... Writing Patterns A writing pattern is a specific way of organizing ideas to convey a certain type of argument. 1:25: Writing patterns are also sometimes referred to as patterns of organization, rhetorical modes, or rhetorical styles. 1:34: The writing pattern an author uses will vary based on the desired purpose. 1:40 Mastering the art of essay writing in English An essay is a written composition that presents and supports a particular idea, argument, or point of view. It's a way to express your thoughts, share information, and persuade others to see things from your perspective. Essays come in various forms, such as argumentative, persuasive, expository, and descriptive, each serving a unique purpose. Example of a Great Essay An essay is a focused piece of writing that explains, argues, describes, or narrates. In high school, you may have to write many different types of essays to develop your writing skills. Academic essays at college level are usually argumentative : you develop a clear thesis about your topic and make a case for your position using evidence ... Sentence Patterns In its simplest form, an English sentence has two parts: a subject and a verb that express a complete thought when they are together. The subject shows who or what is doing the action. It is always some form of noun or pronoun. The verb shows the action or the state of being. It can be an action verb, like "run," or a state verb, like ... How to Write the Perfect Essay Step 2: Have a clear structure. Think about this while you're planning: your essay is like an argument or a speech. It needs to have a logical structure, with all your points coming together to answer the question. Start with the basics! It's best to choose a few major points which will become your main paragraphs. How to Write an Essay How to Find Essay Writing Inspiration. If you have essays to write but are short on ideas, this section's links to prompts, example student essays, and celebrated essays by professional writers might help. You'll find writing prompts from a variety of sources, student essays to inspire you, and a number of essay writing collections. How To Write An Essay Define your central argument or thesis. Support your argument with a combination of solid evidence, logical reasoning, and references to scholarly works. Ensure the essay is well-organized, presenting ideas coherently. Maintain clear and concise writing throughout. Finally, accurately cite all sources and evidence used, adhering to appropriate ... Tips for Writing Effective Essays: A Comprehensive Guide 2. Organize your ideas: Before you start writing, outline the main points you want to cover in your essay. This will help you organize your thoughts and ensure a logical flow of ideas. 3. Use topic sentences: Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence that introduces the main idea of the paragraph. How to write an essay in English Planning 1: Address the question. If you are writing for a class assignment or an exam, it is crucial that you address the question given. Adequate planning (five minutes is better than nothing) will keep you on track. Start by breaking the question down into its parts. There will usually be two or three aspects to the question. Thinking Strategies and Writing Patterns The general-to-specific pattern is a common pattern in college writing. Although you can use it as an overall essay structure, writers find it most useful when writing introductions. Here are some examples. Introduce an essay or other, larger work. Introduce essay examination answers. Introduce or transition into a discussion of synthesized ... Essay Writing Moreover; an essay is a focused piece of writing designed to inform or persuade. There are many different types of essays, but they are often defined in four categories: argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays. Argumentative and expository essays are focused on conveying information and making clear points, while narrative ... Paragraph Patterns As you have learned, there are several ways to develop details in a paragraph. These methods—narration, description, comparison/contrast, definition, classification, illustration, and cause and effect—relate to the paragraph's purpose. You should also learn patterns of arrangement—ways to organize details in a paragraph. The Four Main Types of Essay An essay is a focused piece of writing designed to inform or persuade. There are many different types of essay, but they are often defined in four categories: argumentative, expository, narrative, and descriptive essays. Argumentative and expository essays are focused on conveying information and making clear points, while narrative and ... Paragraph Structure: How to Write Strong Paragraphs Like other forms of writing, paragraphs follow a standard three-part structure with a beginning, middle, and end. These parts are the topic sentence, development and support, and conclusion. Topic sentences, also known as "paragraph leaders," introduce the main idea that the paragraph is about. Thinking Strategies and Writing Patterns Key Takeaways. The specific-to-general pattern can be used in a variety of places, but it usually works best when introducing a work: a paper, an article, or a book. The specific-to-general pattern is a great way to grab your audience's attention from the start. Mailing Address: 3501 University Blvd. East, Adelphi, MD 20783. Patterns of Development Overview Although it refers to "paragraph" patterns, understand that these are also common patterns for whole essays. Consider these common patterns of thought and consider specific ways in which you've applied each thinking pattern in your everyday life. 1. Narration. The purpose of narration is to tell a story or relate an event. Writing 101: The 8 Common Types of Essays Writing 101: The 8 Common Types of Essays. Written by MasterClass. Last updated: Jun 7, 2021 • 3 min read. Whether you're a first-time high school essay writer or a professional writer about to tackle another research paper, you'll need to understand the fundamentals of essay writing before you put pen to paper and write your first sentence. Academic Paragraph Structure Table of contents. Step 1: Identify the paragraph's purpose. Step 2: Show why the paragraph is relevant. Step 3: Give evidence. Step 4: Explain or interpret the evidence. Step 5: Conclude the paragraph. Step 6: Read through the whole paragraph. When to start a new paragraph. Writing Styles: What They Are and How to Achieve Yours 1Read more. The more writing styles you expose yourself to, the more options you have to emulate in your writing. Reading a diverse range of styles, especially outside of what you're used to, can teach you new techniques andliterary devices—but you won't discover them unless you look. 2Play to your strengths. How to Write an Argumentative Essay Make a claim. Provide the grounds (evidence) for the claim. Explain the warrant (how the grounds support the claim) Discuss possible rebuttals to the claim, identifying the limits of the argument and showing that you have considered alternative perspectives. The Toulmin model is a common approach in academic essays. essay homework paper phd project resume review speech study thesis