Essay Writing

Note
 This brief chapter covers some of the main ideas of essay writing. Since each chapter of this book is designed to be independent, some material overlaps that found in other chapters in the assignments section.

Essays are a common form of assessment at university, especially for those doing humanities degrees. Writing a great essay is hard, but writing a good essay isn’t difficult provided you allow yourself adequate time and approach it systematically. There is no exact definition of an essay, but generally it is a short piece of writing that explores a particular topic or argues a particular perspective. In academic writing, the essay will often consist of a thesis statement followed by a series of points that support the thesis statement. Essays normally have a standard structure consisting of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. In terms of length, undergraduate essays are usually assigned in the range of 1000 - 3000 words.

This chapter covers the main concepts that you should be aware of when it comes to writing an essay. For those students who have chosen a degree that requires a lot of essay writing, it is recommended that you take time to explore essay writing skills in more depth before the start of your degree. That will make your life so much easier since you can focus on the assigned topic and worry less about the technical aspects of writing.

Tip
 Universities often offer essay writing support. See what resources your university provides.

Elements of a good essay

A good essay typically has the following elements:

  • Directly answers the question

  • Readable

  • Focused

  • Shows a good understanding of the topic

  • Has a clear and logical structure

  • Maintains cohesion

  • Has appropriate depth

  • Sticks to the word limit

  • Properly researched

  • Has a correct reference list

Academic tone

Academic essays are expected to have a formal tone. Some instructors may be stricter than others, but it is safer to stick to the following guidelines:

Things NOT to do in academic essays

  • Use contractions (can’t, didn’t, mightn’t, shouldn’t etc)

  • Begin a sentence with "and" or "because"

  • Use slang (lit, sucks, no cap, cooked, salty, crash out, etc)

  • Use conversational language (kind of, sort of, gonna, wanna, etc)

  • Use exclamations (Awesome! So Cool!)

Steps to produce an essay

Essays often take much longer than expected. If you are new to academic writing, you probably aren’t good at estimating how long it will take. Even experienced essay writers sometimes encounter unexpected roadblocks. Start early to avoid panic and having to rush.

The process of producing an essay

  1. Understand the topic / question

  2. Plan

  3. Locate information

  4. Read and take notes

  5. Create an outline

  6. Expand the outline into a draft

  7. Edit and proofread

Making an outline

An essay will be much easier to write if you make a plan or outline first. An outline can take a form similar to the following:

Point 1
    Elaboration
    Evidence

Point 2
    Elaboration
    Evidence

etc

The exact number of points needed depends on the word count of the essay. Thinking about the logical arrangement of the points in outline form is much easier than writing the essay and then trying to rearrange the logic.

Common errors in essay writing

One of the most common errors is not directly addressing the topic assigned. With a deadline approaching, it’s tempting to start writing immediately. But spending some time thinking about the question / topic is essential in order to actually answer properly. Other common errors include:

  • Mistakes in referencing.

  • Inappropriate references. Uses popular rather than scholarly sources.

  • Too many direct quotes. Essay is mostly copy and pasting from other authors.

  • Lacks structure.

  • Goes outside the allowable word limits.

  • Doesn’t flow. The essay doesn’t guide the reader through the topic.

Basic structure of an essay

An essay typically follows a standard structure which consists of the following elements:

  1. Introduction: Gives a preview of what will be covered in the essay.

  2. Development / Body: Covers a series of main ideas.

  3. Conclusion: Reviews the main ideas covered in the development.

  4. References: Lists the sources used in the essay in the correct format.

Introduction

The role of the introduction is to set the context and to show how the essay will develop. The introduction necessarily provides limits to the scope and focus of the essay. The length of the introduction depends on the overall word count of the essay, but is typically 5 to 10% of the total length. Most introductions include a thesis statement which is the main point or central argument of the essay. Often it is better to postpone writing the beginning of the essay. Instead, write the body and then come back to the beginning once your arguments are clearer.

One way of structuring an introduction is to begin with some background information. This could be a few sentences or, for longer essays, a whole paragraph. There’s no rule that the introduction to an essay is only a single paragraph, although this is the norm for short essays. After the background, it is common to have a thesis statement. The thesis statement is the main theme or central argument that the essay is built around. It encapsulates the author’s response to the assignment topic. A good thesis statement takes a clear stand on an issue, and is specific enough to adequately support with evidence and facts within the essay’s word limit.

Following the thesis statement, the introduction can continue with a brief outline of the structure and main arguments of the essay that will be elaborated on in the body of the essay.

Elements of an introduction

  • Background

  • Thesis Statement

  • Essay outline

Body

The body of the essay is a series of paragraphs that develops your central argument. Each paragraph develops one main point. A common structure for a paragraph is to start with a sentence that gives the main point of the paragraph, then provide more detail and supporting evidence. All paragraphs should support the central argument of your thesis statement. If they don’t, consider whether they belong in the essay.

The number of paragraphs in the body of an essay depends on the length of an essay. For a 1500-word essay, expect to have six to eight paragraphs as a general guideline. The paragraphs should flow naturally from one to the next with the connections between them obvious. This enables the reader to easily follow the discussion.

One way of structuring body paragraphs is to use the PEEL (Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link) technique. Essentially, this and other similar techniques recommend first introducing a main idea, then adding necessary evidence and explanation to support this idea, and finally linking this back to the overarching theme of the essay. Remember that PEEL and similar tools are guidelines, in some cases you might prefer a slightly different arrangement.

In order to build support for your argument, one approach is to consider counterarguments and counterexamples and then provide evidence against them. If you are going to do this, signpost the counterargument to the reader using phrases like "some might argue that" or "critics might claim".

Purpose of a body paragraph

  • Make a point.

  • Provide the evidence to support that point.

  • Relate point back to the thesis statement.

Conclusion

The conclusion doesn’t introduce any new ideas, instead it briefly summarises the main discussion points and shows how these ideas support the original thesis statement. In terms of length, the conclusion shouldn’t be any more than 10% of the total word count.

Purpose of the conclusion

  • Summarise the key points in the essay.

  • Repeat the thesis statement using a different wording.

  • Make recommendations or predictions.

A strong conclusion draws together your main arguments, shows how they relate to the thesis statement, and makes clear to the reader your response to the essay question.

Citing your sources

A very important aspect of essay writing is citing the sources you have used. There are many different citation styles such as the American Psychological Association (APA), Modern Language Association (MLA), or Chicago Style. When writing an essay, check which style your department prefers. Failure to cite sources properly will not only see you lose marks, but also could see you accused of academic misconduct.

Reasons for citing sources

  • Gives credit to the original authors.

  • Traces the origin of ideas.

  • Points readers to further research.

  • Provides evidence for your claims.

Avoid plagiarism

Caution
 Be very careful about intentional or unintentional plagiarism. It could see you getting zero on an assignment.

Plagiarism is the representation of another author’s words or ideas as your own. This could be intentional or unintentional but is serious regardless. Intentional plagiarism occurs when the writer deliberately deceives the reader about the source of information. This can occur when the writer copies someone else’s assignment, or copies an article without attribution. In contrast, unintentional plagiarism is when there is no intent to deceive. The copying may occur through poor paraphrasing or poor note-taking practices. For example a student could copy a passage directly from notes they have made not realising it’s a direct quote rather than their own words.

Tip
 When taking notes for an essay, carefully distinguish direct quotes from your own words.

Every year many students commit plagiarism. Although sometimes the penalties aren’t that severe for first year students, being accused of plagiarism can still be a stressful experience. In later years, plagiarism, especially if it is a repeat offence, can see you fail your course or even be kicked out of university.

How to avoid plagiarism

  • Start early on the essay to avoid any temptation.

  • Check with your instructor or other students if you are confused about the rules.

  • Keep your work organised.

  • Take careful notes and distinguish between direct quotes and your own words.

  • Understand proper paraphrasing.

  • Learn how to reference properly.

It is important to retain your sources, research notes, and draft versions of the essay in order to show the process of producing the final essay. If you are ever falsely accused of plagiarism, you have evidence to defend yourself. Being accused of plagiarism or other forms of academic conduct isn’t like a criminal court case where the university has to prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Instead, you may end up in the situation of having to convince the university of your innocence.

Tip
 Sometimes students are falsely accused of plagiarism. Keep a comprehensive record of the materials and process used to produce your essay. This makes it much easier to prove your innocence.

Overcoming procrastination

Procrastination occurs when faced with a task that is difficult and boring. The more difficult and boring it is, the more we want to put it off. This book contains a whole chapter on strategies for dealing with procrastination. We give a basic summary of these below.

Some strategies for dealing with procrastination

  • Put away sources of distraction such as your phone.

  • Install software to block access to distracting websites.

  • Break down the large task of the essay into smaller, more manageable sub-tasks.

  • Just get started. Work for 20 minutes then take a short break.

  • Take healthy breaks, but have a plan to get back to work.

  • Recognise excuses you commonly use and have rebuttals prepared.

  • Don’t be too hard on yourself if you encounter setbacks.

  • Think about why you chose the degree and why the essay is important.

  • Consider the future you who will be stressed and have to do the essay in a rush if you don’t tackle it now.

Caution
 Background music can sometimes be helpful, but avoid music that is loud, has lyrics, or is otherwise distracting.

Students often feel overwhelmed by the blank page and where to start. Don’t think you have to conjure up a 1500 or 3000-word essay out of thin air. By following a systematic plan, and completing one step at a time, the whole process becomes less daunting. If you are struggling to write full paragraphs, start by jotting down a rough outline and some ideas. These can be rearranged later and expanded into complete paragraphs.

Tip
 Break down the essay into a series of small tasks with closer deadlines.

Remember that this is a university assignment. Trying to write a perfect essay can make the task seem too intimidating. Aim for a quality essay within the time you have available. Getting the essay done now will mean it won’t be hanging over your head and causing stress later.

Tip
 A series of shorter writing sessions is less intimidating than a single large commitment.

How to write an essay with limited time

Sometimes despite our best efforts, we leave an essay till a day or two before it is due. The first thing to do is to consider whether you have a legitimate excuse and to check your university’s extension policy. It may be that you are eligible for an extension of a few days. If you can’t get an extension, what are the penalties for a late essay? If the penalty is only 5% per day, it might be worthwhile to spend an extra day or two to write a better essay rather than rush to meet a deadline.

Tip
 Know your university’s policies on extensions and late assignments.

If you must meet the deadline, consider the following approach which is applicable to most subjects.

An abbreviated process to produce an essay quickly

  • Quickly read a recent textbook chapter or review article on the topic. This becomes your base source.

  • Use the base source to quickly outline an essay without resorting to plagiarism.

  • Use the keywords from your base source to look for recent influential articles using an academic search engine.

  • Use the abstracts only from these articles to add additional evidence to your essay.

Warning
 Don’t use generative AI to identify references. At the time this book was written, AI was notoriously bad at this and will just make up references.

Essay techniques

Evaluating your essay

After finishing your essay, try reading just the introduction and conclusion. The reader should be able to get a good idea of the essay’s main topic and arguments without having to ready the body. Next, try reading just the first sentence of each paragraph in the body. Do the ideas sit together cohesively? Do they support the main argument?