Writing essays is a difficult job, and most students want to do better on their college and university essays.

Over the past few years, the number of essays that students write each term has exploded as more and more college work moves online and the combination of online learning and the need for assignments to be accessible to students with a variety of abilities has pushed more college work into essay format.

As a result, students are feeling more and more pressure to write more essays and to write better essays. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the ways that students like you can improve your academic success through better essay writing habits.

10 Ways to Get Started with Essay Writing

So how can you write for success? Here are ten ways to get started.

#1. Read the assignment carefully.

It might sound like an obvious place to start, but one of the most important ways to improve your essay writing skills is to be sure you are writing about the right thing.

One of the most frequent ways students lose points on their papers occurs when they do not include all of the requirements of their assignments in their essays.

Be sure you have read the essay question thoroughly and understand everything you need to include.

#2. Use the rubric as a guide.

Similarly, when an instructor provides a grading rubric, you are basically getting a cheat sheet that will show you exactly how to approach your assignment.

When you make use of the rubric to see exactly what you are being graded on, you can see the right way you approach each part of the paper and what you need to be sure to address completely in order to score maximum points on each part of the paper.

#3. Develop a research question.

Before you start writing your paper, you should formulate a question that you are hoping that your paper will answer. By having a research question in mind, you’ll be able to focus your research and writing process around answering that question. This, in turn, will make it easier and more effective for you to write your paper. You will produce a stronger document with a clearer core message. 

#4. Make use of your college or university library.

Your college or university maintains a library full of high-quality sources, many of which will not be available on the open web. Scholarly sources are some of the most important sources you can use in your paper because they are the most rigorous and reliable.

Be sure that you are taking advantage not just of the sources available in the library but also of the help that your school’s librarians can provide. Librarians are experts in finding information, and it would be beneficial to use your librarians to help you locate the best quality sources for your paper.

#5. Collect your research before you write.

To help speed up the writing process and make your writing more effective, you should collect quotations and facts that you hope to use before you begin writing your paper. By collecting these and writing your citations—both in-text citations and reference list entries—before you write, you won’t need to start and stop as you work on your paper draft.

#6. Develop a thesis statement.

The thesis statement is the most important sentence in your paper and will explain what your paper will demonstrate or prove. Don’t save it for last. Instead, write your thesis before you start writing your paper so you can use it as a guide to help you develop your assignment and link each section to your main idea.

#7. Outline your paper before you write.

Similarly, developing an outline before you write your paper can help you to write quicker and more effectively. An outline gives you the opportunity to work through issues of structure and evidence before you start writing, avoiding costly time spent rewriting should you reach a dead end.

#8. Save the introduction for last.

It’s often easier to save the introduction for last. That way, you can use the conclusion that you reach in the writing process to help you choose an introduction that will be most effective in setting up that conclusion. After all, you wouldn’t want to waste time crafting a great opening strategy only to have your paper take an unexpected detour, requiring a time-consuming rewrite when the introduction no longer fits.

#9. Always leave time for editing and proofreading.

Editing and proofreading are essential to the writing process and are not luxuries or optional. Make sure that your paper reaches its full potential by saving extra time at the end to carefully review it. Ideally, you should review your paper twice, the first time for editing issues such as confusing or unclear sentences or poor organization, and the second time for mechanical errors such as spelling and grammar.

#10. Consider using an essay writing service.

Buying a custom paper from a professional custom essay writing service can be an effective way to get expert help online to improve your academic papers. When you work with a legitimate essay-writing company, expert writers will help you develop a strong paper by producing a full model essay that shows you the right way to approach your exact topic. Using this kind of professional help can give you a leg up and ensure that your final paper is the strongest it can be.

Bottom Line

Imagine you need to write this article yourself. Imagine, someone decided to pay you to write an entry on essay writing tips for academic success. Now, think of the first five tips you would give to others. Write them down.

Here you have things you already know about essay writing and should use every time you need to compose an academic paper.

Do you really follow all of them? It is the same trick as with workouts and diet. If we ask you how to stay fit and be healthy, you will probably give us fifty tips you have already read online.

The trick is to actually follow those tips, not just know them. Essay writing can be a smooth ride if you do it properly and on time.