An essay is an effective tool for discussing, explaining, or evaluating any topic, issue, or event. Thus, the ability to write an essay is a very valuable skill for anyone to know. For no matter what reason an essay is being written the author should know how to make it an effective piece of literature. Naturally, one may think of this as a difficult and daunting task. However, there is a practical method to writing an essay that involves simple steps and logical thinking. Of course, not all essays are written exactly the same way; every essay is somehow unique. But it is safe to say that despite their individuality, many essays are created using a similar method.
The following is a general method that can be used when writing an essay:.
1 - The author should have a purpose for writing the essay. The essay may be a required assignment or an inspiration of their own. The author should have a firm grasp of what he is setting out to accomplish by writing the essay.
2 - All essays begin as an idea. The author should brainstorm and make very general thoughts on what will be said in his essay. Freewriting and outlining are both good ways to start the actual writing process. When freewriting, the author should write down whatever comes into his head relating to the essay, not worrying about punctuation or .
grammar. Outlining is more formal. An outline of an essay is basically a simple list of what each paragraph will say.
3 - After all of the authors ideas and basic plans for the essay have been established the author should then review and evaluate what he has written. Decisions should be made about what ideas work and what ideas do not. Anything irrelevant or unnecessary should be omitted. Only ideas that will better the essay should be used. The author may also wish to create a thesis sentence at this point. The thesis sentence should state the author's main idea and purpose of the paper.