An academic essay is a centered piece of writing that uses facts, analysis, and interpretation to formulate an idea or argument. As a student, you may be required to write a variety of essays. An essay’s content and duration are determined by your academic level, topic of study, and course requirements. Most university essays, on the other hand, are argumentative in nature, with the aim of persuading the reader of a specific point of view.
Essay writing process
Every essay or paper follows the same writing method of planning, writing, and revisions, but the amount of time and effort expended on - stage varies depending on the type of essay. For example, if you’re writing a five-paragraph expository essay for a high school class, you’ll probably spend the most time on the writing stage; on the other hand, if you’re writing a college-level argumentative essay, you’ll need to spend the most time on the research stage.
Preparation for writing an essay
Until you begin writing, make sure you know exactly what you’re going to say and how you’re going to say it. There are a few important steps you can take to ensure you’re ready: Recognize your assignment: What is the purpose of this paper? What is the assignment’s duration and due date? Is there something you need to discuss with your professor or teacher? Decide on a topic:
Writing the introduction
The tone of your essay is established in the introduction. It should pique the reader’s curiosity while also letting them know what to expect. The introduction usually accounts for 10–20 percent of the total document.
Get the reader’s attention.
The first sentence of your introduction should pique the attention and curiosity of your reader. The hook is a term used to describe the first sentence of a paragraph. It could be a perplexing question, a startling truth, or a daring statement.
Writing the main body
The body of your essay is where you support your thesis with arguments, proofs, and creation of your ideas. Its goal is to present, interpret, and evaluate the data and sources you’ve gathered to back up your claim.
Length of the body text
The length of the body of the essay is determined by the form of essay. The body of your essay should make up 60–80% of its total length. This could be just three paragraphs for a high school essay, but for a graduate school essay of 6,000 words, the body could be 8–10 pages long.
Paragraph structure
It is important to divide your essay into paragraphs in order to give it a logical structure. Each paragraph should be focused on a single main idea or point. A subject sentence introduces the concept. In general, the subject sentence should continue from the previous paragraph and introduce the argument that will be made in this paragraph. To make explicit distinctions between sentences, transition terms may be used.
Writing the conclusion
The last paragraph of an article is the end. It can take up no more than 10–15 percent of the text on average. A good essay conclusion is as follows:
Back to your thesis
Brings the key points together.
Demonstrates why your point of view is important.
A clear conclusion should end with a memorable or impactful sentence that leaves a lasting impression on the reader.
What not to include in a conclusion
There are a few things you can stop doing in order to make your essay’s conclusion as good as possible. The following are the most common errors:
Including new proof or claims
Undermining the points (for example, “This is only one of many approaches”).
Using closing phrases like “To summarise…” or “To sum up…”
The primary goal of the introduction is to present your view (also known as the “thesis” or “argument”) on the topic at hand, but successful introductory paragraphs accomplish far more. For example, before you get to the thesis statement, the essay should start with a “hook” that draws the reader in and makes them want to keep reading. In this article, we’ll look at some examples of successful hooks.