We've all been there: the task is to write an engaging and knowledgeable essay, but the page is staring back, dauntingly empty. Being aware of the different skills that go into writing a good essay can make tackling this first step much easier and help you improve your writing once you get going. So, if you're not sure where to start, don't worry! We will explore tips and tricks to help you develop the skills you need to write an essay that is clear, informative, and will impress your reader.
Essay writing skills: examples
When writing an essay, there are different elements and skills to consider. For example:
The essay format - this refers to the physical appearance of your essay. How will it be arranged on the page?
The essay content - this refers to what you will write. What will your essay be about and what points will you make?
Essay writing skills - this refers to the ability to turn your ideas into words. How will you convey your thoughts and argument to the reader in a clear, concise way?
Now, let's explore these in more detail!
Essay writing skills: format example
It is important to understand the basic format of an essay. This way, you will be able to plan your content around the basic format of an essay: the introduction, main body, and conclusion.
Introduction
The introduction is the opening paragraph of your essay. It tells the reader about the topic you are writing about and briefly states the main points you will expand on throughout the main body of your essay. An introduction usually contains:
- A hook: a memorable sentence to draw your reader in and give them something to think about.
- Background information: contextual information that gives your reader a better understanding of the topic you are exploring in your essay.
- Essay brief and outline of main points: this tells the reader what your essay is about and the things you will be writing about throughout the main body of the essay.
Other words for 'essay brief' that you may be familiar with include 'thesis' or 'main argument'.
Main Body
The main body is split into different paragraphs. This is where you expand on your ideas or your argument to show the reader that you are able to analyse and interpret information effectively while also forming your own opinion on the topic. A good structure to follow when writing the main body paragraph is PEE. This stands for: point, evidence, explain:
- Point: a statement relating to your essay brief.
- Evidence: back up your point with examples (this is where your research comes in handy!). This can be in the form of a quote or paraphrase, both of which must be properly cited.
- Explain: analyse your evidence; go into detail about what it shows and how it relates to your topic.
Conclusion
The conclusion is the final paragraph of your essay. It summarises the main points made throughout your essay and gives the reader something to think about when bringing the essay to a close. A conclusion usually does these three things:
- Reviews the main point of your essay brief.
- Summarises the main points of your argument.
- Offers a recommendation/improvement/question.
Critical Thinking Skills in Essay Writing
In the main body of your essay, it's your chance to show off your critical thinking skills and let the reader know how knowledgeable you are about your essay topic!
But, what is critical thinking? Let's begin by looking at the meaning:
Critical thinking refers to the process of analysing and evaluating information in a skilful way.
Critical thinking helps to strengthen your point of view and enhance the way you express your ideas. It also helps you to reflect on your own opinion and also to question the views of others. In short, critical thinking involves not just taking things at face value.
Critical thinking also enables you to read between the lines, i.e., by considering meanings that may not be initially obvious. When thinking critically, you should consider the following:
- What does the evidence suggest or imply?
- Are there any positive or negative connotations?
- Do I agree or disagree with other points of view?
- What is my own opinion on the topic?
- Who wrote the evidence; are they biased?
- Is there anything the researcher/writer missed or didn't acknowledge?
- Is the research credible and reliable?
Improve your English Essay Writing Skills
We will now look at a few things you can do to help improve your English essay writing skills. It is important to note that these are simply suggestions; everyone writes in different ways and will find different things helpful!
Steps to writing an essay
There are different steps you can take before, during, and after writing an essay to ensure that your thoughts are well organised and your work is clear.
Before
Before writing an essay, it can be very helpful to write down your initial ideas to help you plan out what you want to focus on in your writing.
Fig. 1 - Mind map example.
Planning for an essay can be done in various ways. You could organise your thoughts by creating a mind map like the one shown above, for example, or you could write a list.
Whichever way is best for you, you should begin by focusing on your essay brief or question. It is important to have a good understanding of the main purpose of your essay or the question you will be answering. This will make it easier to plan out the rest of the writing. It may be useful to highlight any keywords in the brief/question so that you know what to focus on when writing.
You could highlight instruction verbs as these can help you to understand exactly what the question is asking you to do. Examples include:
- Argue
- Compare
- Analyse
- Criticise
- Discuss
- Examine
- Explain
When planning your essay, you should also ask yourself the following questions:
What is the brief/question telling me to do?
Do I understand the purpose of my essay?
Do I have to argue for or against something?
Can I develop this in the main body of my essay?
You could separate your plan into different sections to help determine the main points you will make in each paragraph:
Essay brief/question: Explore the ways slang can either have a positive or negative impact on teenagers.
- Introduction
- Body paragraph 1: helps to build a sense of community and belonging
- Body paragraph 2: encourages independence away from older generations
- Body paragraph 3: (counter argument) teens could be perceived as lazy and too informal
- Conclusion
During
Now you've finished your plan, it's time to look at each section of your essay in more detail and start writing.
When stating the brief in your introduction, consider the following questions:
When outlining the main points and/or argument you will make in your introduction, consider the following questions:
Am I arguing for or against something?
What am I trying to prove to the reader?
What key points will I further expand on in the body of my essay?
Am I going to be discussing/analysing any theories?
During the writing of the main body of your essay, you should ensure that your ideas are clear and flow well. A good way to do this is to link your writing back to the brief. Linking back to the brief is important to show that you understand it fully and your argument clearly relates to it.
If you are answering the question:
'Do you agree or disagree that the internet has positively impacted communication?'
You could link your paragraph back to the question by writing:
'This shows that the internet has/has not (depending on your argument) positively impacted communication because…'
Linking can also be done between paragraphs – think of your paragraphs like a chain!
You could link the final idea of one paragraph to the next idea of the following paragraph. This will help to create a coherent flow and will ensure that all of your ideas relate to one another.
Another way to make sure your ideas are clear is to make sure your vocabulary is not too complicated. Although you may think that advanced vocabulary is more impressive, it is often unnecessary! Complicated language may cause confusion between you and the reader, as they may not understand the meaning of the words and could get distracted from the main purpose of your essay.
Because of this, it is better to stick to vocabulary that you are familiar with, as this will ensure your writing is concise and your main points are easier to understand for the reader.
When writing your conclusion, you could consider the following questions:
What is the main message of my essay?
What ideas did I raise in the main body of my essay?
What is my overall opinion of the topic?
How did I contribute to the study of my topic?
After
After you have finished writing, you should allow yourself time to proofread your work to ensure that you have not made any obvious mistakes such as spelling or grammar errors.
Put your proofreading abilities to the test! Can you spot the errors in the following essay writing example?
It could be argued that the internet has had a positive impact on communication one reeson for this is ability to contact people quickly. Social media platforms such as facebook and instagram have enabled people to to engage in instant messaging, which lets people eficiently send and receive messages at a fast speed.
Below is the correct version of the text. The parts that have been corrected are highlighted:
It could be argued that the internet has had a positive impact on communication. One reason for this is the ability to contact people quickly. Social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram have enabled people to engage in instant messaging, which lets people efficiently send and receive messages at a fast speed.
Essay Writing Skills - Key Takeaways
- An essay usually follows the following format: introduction, main body, and conclusion.
- Critical thinking refers to the process of analysing and evaluating information in a skilful way.
- Before writing an essay, it is useful to create a plan, e.g., with a mind map or list.
- To make your essay flow well, make sure to link back to the question and provide connections between paragraphs.
- To ensure your ideas are clear, don't use vocabulary that is too complex.
- After writing, proofread your work to check for mistakes.
Explanations 
Exams 
Magazine 
