Essay Writing

Note: Writing an essay requires writing paragraphs. Click here if you need to review how to write a good paragraph: the five sentence paragraph (Click on Writers Web at the bottom of the left column).

Writing an essay sounds difficult, but broken into steps, the process is not difficult.

The first step is to know your topic--have you the knowledge and research on which to write? Click here for help.

Once you have the knowledge and information, the rest is a matter of organization.

If you missed the class lessons on essay writing, click here for sites that review the basics and more. For a self-guided lesson, click Lesson.

Organizational parts of an essay

Introduction

Grabber beginning

Subtopic statements

Thesis statement

Body

First Subtopic Paragraph

Second Subtopic Paragraph

Third Subtopic Paragraph

Conclusion

Summarize thesis statement and main ideas

Leave reader with a thought

Brief Summary of Essay Parts

Links take you to detailed explanations.

An Introduction starts with a grabber beginning, lists your subtopics, and ends with the thesis statement.

The body of your essay includes separate paragraphs for each subtopic. Each subtopic paragraph should have at least five sentences:

1) The subtopic of your introduction is the topic sentence of the paragraph.
2) Follow the topic sentence with at least three supporting sentences giving details, explanations, or evidence to prove that subtopic.

3) End the paragraph with a concluding summary statement of your topic sentence.

The conclusion of your essay summarizes or resetates your thesis statement and main ideas. It should also leave your reader thinking about your ideas.

Getting Started

Begin with an outline or web of your ideas. Then write your essay. For sample essays, click here. To make sure you have included all the parts, click to these checklists.

Introduction

See below or examples of grabber beginnings, which include startling information or statistics, anecdotes (short stories), dialogue, questions, quotes, summary information, or historical background.

http://members.tripod.com/~lklivingston/essay/intro.html

http://www.kcmetro.cc.mo.us/maplewoods/writeplace/writingintros.html

See below for an sample thesis statements:

http://members.tripod.com/~lklivingston/essay/thesis.html

http://www.kcmetro.cc.mo.us/maplewoods/writeplace/thesisstatement.html

http://english.ttu.edu/uwc/thesis.htm