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Essay writing manual: how to be unique

So you have to write an essay. Since the eons of time, students have felt reluctance for writing essays, maybe even bordering on loathing. What is it about essay writing that causes such distaste? Perhaps it could be the unclear guidelines of the assignment, or maybe the hours spent researching and the even more hours spent writing and correcting and writing some more.

Essay writing doesn’t have to be that tedious though. Did you know that if you learn a few simple steps to writing, you can be an expert writer in no time? First of all, here’s a condensed version of an essay writing manual for you.

How to write a unique essay

  1. Choose a topic of interest. Some students know right away what they want to write about; others struggle needlessly, wasting precious writing time. Remember this is an opportunity to share and express your interests, beliefs, values, passions etc. Don’t choose something bland and boring! Let your curiosity lead you. Look in library books or online for ideas. Find something intriguing that hasn’t been explored in great detail in some facet or another. Remember you just need a unique viewpoint on the topic.
  2. Organize your research and your writing process. It always helps to have a plan in place before you begin. For example:
    • Day 1: choose topic
    • Day 2-3 research
    • Day 4 write essay
    • Day 5 proofread and edit

    Of course, you may want to break it down into smaller steps or adjust the timeline. Whatever works for you.

  3. Research and write. These are listed together because they can almost be done simultaneously. A lot of background writing can be accomplished during the research phase. Of course, this is just rough drafting. Once the research has been completed and you have some pages of rough draft copy, it’s time to put everything in order.
  4. Form an outline and finish writing. The outline will help you put all the main points into an order that makes sense. Once the outline is in place, it’s pretty simple to just fill in all the information you want to include. If you find you have writer’s block, just sit down and free write. Just put down everything that comes into your mind and you can find where it fits later.
  5. Proofread, edit and revise. Never skip this step! It’s equally as important as the ones before it. You literally can’t turn out a great essay without polishing up what you’ve already done.