Essay writing is one of the basic assignments students receive in colleges and universities. At the same time, most students do not like writing essays as they lack the necessary essay writing skills. One has to obtain good critical, analytical, and writing skills to complete top-quality papers. It is essential to have good English Competency and properly apply all these skills in writing.
Some students may either lack the required skills or be unaware that they obtain those, as they may not know what to do and how to apply them in writing. It is possible to practice essay writing skills. The recommendations provided below may help you improve your writing skills and ensure that your next paper will be awesome.
Train Grammar
Grammar is one of the basic skills in essay writing. If your content is perfect and ideas are logical, but writing and grammar are poor, no one will read your essay. It is essential to train grammar. The basic grammar rules you need to learn are articles use, subject agreement, and the sequence of words in a sentence. There are many other rules of English grammar. However, if you learn how to apply these, you will develop your language competency further.
Punctuation is also important. Mind commas and full stops. Do not overuse semi-colons and question marks. Exclamation marks are rarely acceptable in academic writing as the style should be formal, not emotional.
Focus on active voice, and avoid passive voice. When writing a paper, avoid using unnecessary words. Each statement should have a value; unnecessary wording may spoil an impression from your essay.
Read Much
Extensive reading is one of the strategies that can help you develop your writing skills. When you read books, you see how the sentences are developed. You may also write down some constructions and interesting phrases. Depending on the essay topic, you may need to refer to some particular terms. Reading some specialized literature may help you choose proper wording and apply it in your writing. Reading expands your outlook. When you know much information, you have much to tell. Essay writing is not limited to presenting the ideas you have learned in the flow of the course. It is always more interesting to read some unique ideas. Professors read the same lectures all the time, and they usually receive similar essays, be original, and insert the ideas you have obtained from other sources. Just ensure that you read regularly, and it will help you write better.
Select Proper Vocabulary
When writing an essay, ensure that you properly choose your vocabulary. First, you should avoid repetitions. It is not a good idea to use the same words for expressing similar ideas. You need to repeat the same idea in your essay if it is your main theme, but you should do it using different words.
Second, avoid jargon and specific terms. If you are writing an essay on a specific topic but to a large audience, ensure that you explain terms and complicated words.
Finally, never use words you do not understand. You should always check the meaning of the words you use in your essay.
Use academic Language
Essay writing requires you to use academic language. Here is a list of what is expected from you:
1) Objective and specific language; no general statements. Always write to the point exactly what you wish to say.
2) Refer to class materials and vocabulary used there. You will not come across jargon and slang in your class materials.
3) Use full sentences to express your ideas. Academic writing presupposes that you correctly develop your sentences. Avoid such words as “cool”, “pretty’, “perfectly”, etc. You also need to write full constructions, not shortened, e.g., it is instead of it’s.
Always Write Drafts
Working on an essay is a complicated procedure, but you may try to create an impression that it is more than easy. There is such good practice as writing each new paragraph on a separate paper. It helps you see a whole paragraph and easily edit it. Ensure that you have included all the necessary ideas without confusing those with the previous paragraphs.
Develop the Paragraph
Essay writing is an abstract notion, which means writing sentences that are logically connected. Each sentence is a part of a paragraph. In case a paragraph is properly developed, the sentences flow smoothly and logically connected. It results in perfect essay writing. Overall, an essay consists of three major paragraphs, the introduction, the main body, and the conclusion.
The introduction should summarize the basic idea of the paper and make a claim regarding the purpose of an essay.
The main body may be from one to several paragraphs depending on the length of an essay. An essay writer should ensure that each paragraph in the main body reflects the thesis statement and comprises one specific idea.
The conclusion should restate the thesis statement and summarize the main aspects of the essay.
Read and Rereading
Paper editing may be a time-consuming procedure because it is a guarantee that the paper is perfectly written and flows logically. There are different editing strategies that you may use to proofread your paper.
1) Start to edit your essay from the end. In this case, you will start reading from the last sentence focusing on the words and their meaning more precisely.
2) Reading aloud. This strategy helps you not only to see the words and sentences but also to hear them, which may also serve as a better means for finding mistakes.
Other Common Pieces of Advice
1) Write regularly as if it is your job
2) Ask someone to comment on your writing
3) Borrow the writing style of authors you like
4) Analyze the writing style of authors you adore
5) Take writing classes
6) Always develop a plan and edit your essay
7) Be straightforward