A Step-By-Step Guide on How to Write an Essay
The essay writing process consists of three steps:
Planning: Conduct desk-based research to find topics that match your requirements. Develop an essay outline on the chosen essay topic.
Writing: Provide background to the topic, write the thesis statement or your central argument in the introduction, back your argument with evidence in the main body, and briefly summarise key arguments in the conclusion.
Proofreading and editing: Proofread the essay to fix mistakes relating to structure, coherence, transitioning, grammar, spelling, and organisation of your essay.
This essay writing guide takes you through an essay’s most important components, including the introduction, main body, and conclusion.
Step 1: Start Planning
Planning is an essential aspect of the essay writing process. Before you start writing, make sure you know the questions you aim to address and how you will do it.
Carefully read the essay brief: Read the assignment brief to make sure you understand the requirements, such as the deadline and the expected length.
Select a topic:
Most high schools require students to write on a pre-assigned topic. However, if you have the freedom to choose your own topic, make sure your selection aligns with your interests. It will be an uphill challenge to write on a topic that you find boring.
Conduct research:
Explore and read academic sources (both primary and secondary) to decide your position on the topic. These sources will also be used as evidence in the main body of the essay.
Develop the thesis statement:
Write the thesis statement to express the central argument of the essay. The thesis statement should make a claim, directly answering a question.
Write an outline:
Develop an essay outline to orchestrate the rough structure of your essay. This makes the writing part convenient and keeps you on the right track.
Step 2: Write the Introduction of an Essay
The essay introduction paragraph allows you to grab the attention of the readers. It provides background information about the topic and informs the readers of what the essay will be about.
The introduction typically comprises 10-15% of the total essay word count. Familiarise yourself with the critical objectives of the introduction before starting to write.
Develop a Strong Hook Statement
One of the critical requirements of the introduction paragraph is to be engaging enough to attract the reader’s curiosity. The first sentence of the introduction, also known as the hook, is used to grab the reader’s attention. Use quotes, suspenseful phrases, surprising facts, or bold statements to emphasise the significance of researching the topic.
For example, if you are writing an essay about “Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US elections”, then a hook in the opening statement of the essay can be written as below:
Example
“Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US election was nothing short of a revolution”
Introduce Background of the Topic
Once you have captured the readers’ interest through a strong and engaging first statement, the next step is to contextualise the background so the reader can understand your argument. This could involve providing facts and statistics, explaining complicated terms, or analysing an important academic paper or debate.
Refrain from getting into details at this stage. You will be able to provide an additional explanation in the main body.
Add a Thesis Statement
The last sentence of the introduction chapter comprises the thesis statement, which is the central argument you will present. The thesis statement allows the author to take a focused position on the topic. An example of a thesis statement from the essay “Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US elections” would be:
Donald Trump dashed all expectations from the very beginning of his presidential campaign. Significantly few people believed that he could make a comeback and win primaries. But he proved his critics wrong by winning a sweeping victory in the presidential race.
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Step 3: Write Main Body Paragraphs
This is the portion of the essay where you present your arguments, support them through evidence, and formulate your ideas. Here, you are expected to back your argument by analysing and interpreting the academic sources used.
How long should the main body text be?
Most high school essays follow the standard three-paragraph approach. Undergraduate and master’s level essays, on the other hand, are much longer. For example, the body of a graduate-level argumentative essay can comprise 5000-6000 words. Likewise, for an International Baccalaureate Programme extended essay of 4000 words, the body can take up 5-6 pages.
What Should be the Ideal Paragraph Structure?
The main body should follow a clear and logical structure. This means that paragraphs are of utmost importance, and each should focus on a specific idea or argument.
Use topic sentences to introduce each paragraph of the body. Each topic sentence expresses the main idea of the paragraph in which it occurs and forms a transition from the preceding paragraph. Make sure to create a link between sentences with the help of transition words.
Provide quotes, examples, and primary or secondary data as evidence. Make sure to evaluate the evidence material to show how it helped in formulating the central argument of your essay.
Example Paragraph from Essay’s Main Body
Step 4: Write The Conclusion of an Essay
This is the essay’s last paragraph, where the writer concludes the composition. The length of the conclusion should generally be 10-15% of the total text. If you want to write a perfect conclusion for your essay, you must be mindful of the following.
- Connect the dots between the points discussed in the main body of the essay.
- Discuss the upshot of your rationalisation. Spell out how it contributes to a new insight.
- Signify the relevance and magnitude of your hypothesis.
- Don’t forget to finish the conclusion with a catchy and noteworthy statement that leaves a strong final impression on the reader.
What Not to Include in the Conclusion
To make the conclusion as impressive as possible, always refrain from making the following mistakes;
- Introducing new evidence or arguments.
- Contradicting your previously made points.
- Weakening your point by mentioning other approaches and hypotheses.
- Incorporating concluding phrases like “To summarise”, “Finally”, or “To sum up”.
Now that you are familiar with the guidelines of how to write an essay, you are ready to start writing. Make sure to take your time and research the topic for better results!
Essay Checklist to Follow For Writing an Essay
