How To Develop Good Essay Writing Skills: Vital Advice

Regardless of where you are in your school career, you’ll be expected to write lots of essays throughout. Whether you’re a middle school, in high school, or even in college, it’s never too early or too late to learn how to write well.

How do you develop the skills you’ll need to write effective and good essays? Let’s take a look.

Stay Organized

Organization is the secret behind many disciplines. It’s certainly no less true when it comes to writing papers in class.

Organization is key. Always make sure you have easy access to resources. Draft up an outline before you begin writing any draft- this will provide you with a foundation for what you’re going to discuss in your paper.

Understand Formatting Conventions

Most essays that you’ll be writing in grade school will usually follow a five-paragraph format consisting of an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion.

In college, however, you may be asked to keep a few different formats in mind: MLA, APA, and Chicago being the main ones. These determine the kinds of citations you’ll be using as well as determining how you’ll be organizing your paper. Study up on what’s involved. Websites like Purdue Owl offer useful tips on how to successfully write in these formats. You can also purchase a study guide and keep it on your desk for easy reference.

Research is Important

The key to an effective paper is knowing what you’re talking about. Always dedicate time to research. Properly cite your sources though. You don’t need to be accused of plagiarism.

Not all essays will require you to research. For instance, you may have an assignment that requires you to write about a personal experience. But that doesn’t mean you can’t take the same amount of care in preparing yourself for writing.

Brainstorming is key. Give yourself time to come up with ideas. Use bubble maps or scratch paper to write down and organize your ideas.

Feedback

One important tool you can easily take advantage of is feedback. Have a trusted family member or friend look over your work. You can even co-opt a tutor or your teacher to review your paper. Make a note of their feedback and see what you can improve on. Feedback is important in many disciplines. When you write a paper, it’s hard to objectively see how you can improve. Hearing from US Essay Writers can help counter-act this.