Essays
Top tips
The first step in good essay writing is to plan your time. Break each essay task down into its different components (e.g. understanding the question, locating reading, reading and taking notes, writing a first draft etc.) and allocate time to work on each one.
When interpreting the essay question, pay attention to the task word (e.g. ‘discuss’, ‘describe’, ‘critically evaluate’) and bear in mind that simple description will rarely be enough; most essays will require some discussion or critical analysis.
Make sure that the sources you read to inform your essays are credible. Search engines like Google and websites aimed at the general public such as Wikipedia are not appropriate.
Avoid taking a big pile of books out of the library. The secret is to identify specific information; it is very easy to fall into the trap of reading too widely and losing sight of the question.
Never launch straight into writing; always take time to plan what you will write and how you will put it all together.
Keep focused on the essay question. It’s a good idea to write the question in your own words on a piece of paper, fold it like a card and sit it in front of you as you write your essay. That way the question will always be within your sight and you will be less likely to lose focus.
Don’t fall into the trap of writing a report rather than an essay. A report typically includes headings, sub headings and possibly bullet point summaries. An essay should be presented in continuous prose without headings.
Maintain momentum with your writing – you’ll find essay writing very hard if you only manage an hour or so every 4 or 5 days. It’s much easier and more productive to try and do a bit every day or every couple of days.
Always review your essay and be prepared to make changes. You are unlikely to be totally happy with it first time round so make sure that you allocate time to making some changes.
If you’ve been working on an essay intensely, it’s a good idea to leave it for a few days before reviewing it. If you review it as soon as you are finished it, you will be so immersed in it that the mistakes won’t stand out.
As you are reviewing your essay, ask yourself:
Has it answered the question?
Have I backed up points with references?
Have I used an appropriate writing style?
Essay structure
Essay introductions:
A good introduction gives a concise summary of the essay topic and outlines what will be covered in each of its sections.
You won’t be familiar with the precise content and layout of your essay until you have written it, so it’s often easier to write the introduction after you’ve written the rest of the essay.
Main body:
The main body of an essay consists of a background section and development of the key idea.
The background section (e.g. historical information, statistics, definitions of relevant concepts and other descriptive information) should not dominate your essay.
The development of the key idea is where the question should be answered and is the biggest/most important section. It should include some critical analysis.
Conclusion:
The purpose of a conclusion is to summarise the main points of an essay.
The conclusion should include an introductory sentence that restates the purpose of the essay and a summary of the key points. It should not include new material, reiteration of minor points or long quotations.