Introduction to Essay Writing

Instructor: Nagina Kanwal

University of the Punjab
Jhelum Campus
 Learn to Write an Essay: Benefits

• Learning to write essay offers at least three benefits.

• First of all, mastering the essay will help make you a better writer.
• For other courses, you'll often compose papers that will be variations on the
essay form—for example, examination essays, reports, and research papers.
Becoming comfortable with the basic structure of the traditional essay, with
its emphasis on a clear point and well-organized, logical support, will help
with almost every kind of writing that you have to do.
• Second, the discipline of writing an essay will strengthen your skills as a
reader and listener. As a reader, you'll become more critically aware of other
writers’ ideas and the evidence they provide (or fail to provide) to support
those ideas. Essay writing will also help you become a better speaker.
• You'll be more prepared to develop the three basic parts of an effective
speech—an appealing introduction, a solidly developed body, and a well-
rounded conclusion—because of your experience writing three-part essays.
 Contd.

• Most important, essay writing will make you a stronger

thinker.
• Creating an essay in which there is an overall thesis
statement and in which each of three supporting
paragraphs begins with a topic sentence is more
challenging than writing a free-form or expressive paper.
• Such an essay obliges you to carefully sort out, think
through, and organize your ideas.
• You'll learn to discover and express just what your ideas are
and to develop those ideas in a logical, reasoned way.
• Essay writing, in short, will train your mind to think clearly,
and that ability will prove to be of value in every phase of
your life.
 TYPES OF ESSAYS
• An essay is a form of writing, but there are many different essay
genres. Details about each genre's key features are given below. Some
commonly assigned essay genres include:
– Narrative, which is a non-fiction account of a personal experience. This is a
good option if you want to share a story about something you did, such as a
challenge you overcame or a favorite vacation you took.
– Expository, which is when you investigate an idea, discuss it at length, and
make an argument about it. This might be a good option if you want to
explore a specific concept or a controversial subject.
– Descriptive, which is when you describe a person, place, object, emotion,
experience, or situation. This can be a good way to express yourself creatively
through writing.
– Argumentative or persuasive essays require students to take a stance on a
topic and make an argument to support that stance.
– This is different from an expository essay in that students won't be discussing
a concept at length and then taking a position. The goal of an argumentative
essay is to take a position right away and defend it with evidence.
Kinds of Essays
 Effective Introductions

• Starting an essay can be one of the most

difficult parts of writing an essay.
• You may begin with an interesting anecdote,
and write an anecdotal intro in class.
• You may start with a shocking fact or statistic
that grabs readers' attention related to your
essay topic.
 How to write a strong thesis
• A thesis statement is the central claim of an
essay and it usually appears at the end of the
introduction.
• Make sure to identify the thesis in each of the
essays you read.
• Also, make sure to spend time in going over
how to write a thesis statement.
 Understanding Thesis Statements

• Effective essays center around a thesis, or main point, that a writer wishes to
express. This central idea is usually presented as a thesis statement in an essay's
introductory paragraph.
• A good thesis statement does two things.
• First, it tells readers an essay's topic.
• Second, it presents the writer's attitude, opinion, idea, or point about that topic.
For example, look at the following thesis statement:
• Owning a pet has several important benefits.
• In this thesis statement, the topic is owning a pet; the writer's main point is that
owning a pet has several important benefits.
• 1 Activity
• For each thesis statement below, single-underline the topic and highlight/bold the
main point that the writer wishes to express about the topic.
EXAMPLES
• Our company president should be fired for three main reasons.
• The Internet has led to new kinds of frustration in everyday life.
• 1. Our cafeteria would be greatly improved if several changes were made.
 Contd.
• 2. Celebrities are often poor role models because of the ways they
dress, talk, and behave.
• 3. My first night as a security guard turned out to be one of the
most frightening experiences of my life.
• 4. SUVs are inferior to cars because they are harder to control,
more expensive, and dangerous to the environment.
• 5. The twentieth century produced three inventions that
dramatically changed the lives of all Americans.
• 6. Advertisers target young people when marketing cigarettes,
alcohol, and adult movies.
• 7. Living in the city has certain advantages over living in the
suburbs.
• 8. Independent mom-and-pop stores are superior to larger chain
stores for a number of reasons.
 Writing a Good Thesis
• Now that you know how thesis statements work, you can begin writing
your own. To start, you need a topic that is neither too broad nor too
narrow.
• Suppose, for example, that an instructor asks you to write a paper on
marriage. Such a subject is too broad to cover in a five-hundred word
essay. You would have to write a book to support adequately any point
you might make about the general subject of marriage. What you
would need to do, then, is limit your subject.
• Narrow it down until you have a thesis that you can deal with
specifically in about five hundred words. In the box that follows are (1)
several general subjects, (2) a limited version of each general subject,
and (3) a thesis statement about each limited subject.
• For further practice:
• You may see other examples of general topics, limit these subjects and
create thesis statements.
Contd.
 Writing a thesis statement: Activity

• Write a thesis for each group of supporting statements. This activity will give you
practice in writing an effective essay thesis—one that is neither too broad nor too
narrow.
• It will also help you understand the logical relationship between a thesis and its
supporting details.

• 1. Thesis: ------------------------------------------------
• a. The Halloween can be very frightening for little children.
• b. Children can be struck by cars while wearing vision-obstructing masks and dark
• costumes.
• c. There are always incidents involving deadly treats: fruits, cookies, and candies
that contain razor blades or even poison.
• 2. Thesis: -----------------------------------------------
• a. First of all, I was a typical type A personality: anxious, impatient, and hard-
driving.
• b. I also have a family history of relatives with heart trouble.
• c. My unhealthy lifestyle, though, was probably the major factor.
 How to introduce and support your claims

Each of the body paragraphs in an expository or

argumentative essay should include a claim that is
supported by research. This may include things like
statistics, results of a study, or quotes by experts.
How to structure the body paragraphs with this
information.
– Spend time going over topic sentences, and then look
at how the authors of model essays have used topic
sentences to introduce their claims. Then, identify
where the author provides support for a claim and how
they expand on the source.
 How to conclude an essay
• Students sometimes get in a rush to be done with an essay
once they have covered all of their main points, so it is
common for conclusions to seem abrupt or awkward.
– Read a conclusion in a narrative essay that reflects on the
significance of an author's experience. You may write a
paragraph where they reflect on the experience they are writing
about.
– For an expository or argumentative essay, you might read/find
conclusions that restate the most important aspect of a topic or
that offer solutions for the future. You may write your own
conclusions that restate the most important parts of your
subject or that outline some possible solutions to the problem.
 Importance of brainstorming to generate ideas.

• Some brainstorming activities you could try include:

– Free-writing, which is when you write freely about anything that
comes to mind for a set amount of time, such as 10, 15, or 20
minutes.
– Clustering, which is when you write your topic or topic idea on a
piece of paper and then use lines to connect that idea to others.
– Listing, which is when you make a list of any and all ideas related
to a topic and then read through it to find helpful information for
your paper.
– Questioning, such as by answering the who, what, when, where,
why, and how of their topic.
– Defining terms, such as identifying all of the key terms related to
their topic and writing out definitions for each one.
 Different ways to organize your thoughts

• Once you have developed some preliminary ideas for your

essay, you may be wondering how to organize everything in a
way that makes sense. There are different approaches to
organizing an essay depending on the topic and the essay's
genre.
– For example, if you are writing narrative essays, then it might make
the most sense for you to describe the events of a story
chronologically.
– If you are writing expository or argumentative essays, then you
might need to start by answering the most important questions
about your topic and providing background information.
– For a descriptive essay, you might organize the descriptive
paragraphs into categories for each of the 5 senses, such as sight,
sound, smell, taste, and feel.
 The Writing Process

• This will explain and illustrate the sequence of

steps in writing an effective essay
• prewriting
• revising
• editing
Prewriting techniques
• There are five prewriting techniques that will
help you think about and develop a topic and
get words on paper:
• (1) free-writing, (2) questioning, (3) making a
list, (4) clustering, and (5) preparing a scratch
outline.
• These techniques help you think about and
create material, and they are a central part of
the writing process.
Technique 1: Free-writing

• Free-writing means jotting down in rough

sentences or phrases everything that comes to
mind about a possible topic. See if you can
write nonstop for ten minutes or more.
• Do not worry about spelling or punctuating
correctly, about erasing mistakes, about
organizing material, or about finding exact
words.
 Contd.
• Free-writing is a way to break through mental blocks
about writing.
• Since you do not have to worry about mistakes, you
can focus on discovering what you want to say about
a subject.
• Your initial ideas and impressions will often become
clearer after you have gotten them down on paper,
and they may lead to other impressions and ideas.
• Through continued practice in free-writing, you will
develop the habit of thinking as you write.
 Contd.
• Technique 2: Questioning
• In questioning, you generate ideas and details by asking
questions about your subject.
• Such questions include why, when, where, who, and how.
Ask as many questions as you can think of.
• Technique 3: Making a List
• In making a list, also known as brainstorming, you collect
ideas and details that relate to your subject.
• Pile these items up, one after another, without trying to
sort out major details from minor ones or trying to put the
details in any special order.
• Your goal is just to make a list of everything about your
subject that occurs to you.
 Technique 4: Clustering

• Clustering, also known as diagramming or mapping, is another strategy

that can be used to generate material for an essay.
• This method is helpful for people who like to do their thinking in a visual
way.
• In clustering, you use lines, boxes, arrows, and circles to show
relationships among the ideas and details that occur to you.
• Begin by stating your subject in a few words in the center of a blank sheet
of paper. Then, as ideas and details come to you, put them in boxes or
circles around the subject and draw lines to connect them to each other
and to the subject.
• Put minor ideas or details in smaller boxes or circles, and use connecting
lines to show how they relate as well.

Note: Clustering helps you “see” your ideas.

For Example
For example
 Technique 5: Preparing a Scratch Outline

• A scratch outline is an excellent sequel to the first four prewriting techniques.

• A scratch outline often follows free-writing, questioning, list-making, or
diagramming; or it may gradually emerge in the midst of these strategies.
• In fact, trying to make a scratch outline is a good way to see if you need to do
more prewriting.
• If you cannot come up with a solid outline, then you know you need to do
more prewriting to clarify your main point or its several kinds of support.
• In a scratch outline, you think carefully about the point you are making, the
supporting items for that point, and the order in which you will arrange those
items.
• The scratch outline is a plan or blueprint to help you achieve a unified,
supported, well-organized essay.
• When you are planning an essay consisting of an introduction, three supporting
paragraphs, and a conclusion, a scratch outline is especially important.
• It may be only a few words, but it will be the framework on which your whole
essay will be built.
 Contd.
• Here is the scratch outline that was prepared by the author on
movie going:
• A scratch outline like this one looks simple, but developing it often
requires a great deal of careful thinking.
• The time spent on developing a logical outline is invaluable, though.
• Once you have planned the steps that logically support your thesis,
you will be in an excellent position to go on to write an effective
essay.
• Movie going is a problem.
• 1. Inconvenience of going out
• 2. Tempting snacks
• 3. Other moviegoers
 Activity
• Following are six informal outlines. Complete them by adding a third logical
supporting point (c) that will parallel the two already provided (a and b). The first 2
has been done as an example:

• 1. The first day on a new job can be nerve-racking.

• a. Meeting new people
• b. Finding your way around a new place
• c. Learning new rules and procedures

• 2. My stepmother has three qualities I admire.

• a. Patience
• b. Thoughtfulness
• c. Sense of humor

• 3. The neighborhood grocery store is poorly managed.

• a. The checkout lines are always long.
• b. The aisles are dirty and under-stocked.
• c. ---------------------------------------------------
 Contd.
• 4. College students should live at home.
• a. Stay in touch with family
• b. Avoid distractions of dorm or apartment life
• c. ----------------------------------------

• 5. __________is the worst job I've ever had.

• a. Long hours
• b. Poor pay
• c. ---------------------------

• 6. College is stressful for many people.

• a. Worry about grades
• b. Worry about being accepted
• c. --------------------------------------
Writing a First Draft

• When you write a first draft, be prepared to put in

additional thoughts and details that did not emerge
during prewriting.
• Could leave a blank space or add a comment such as
“Do later” in case of any difficulty.
• Also, don't worry yet about grammar, punctuation, or
spelling. You don't want to take time correcting words
or sentences that you may decide to remove later.
• Instead, make it your goal to state your thesis clearly
and develop the content of your essay with plenty of
specific details.
 Revising

• Revising is as much a stage in the writing process as prewriting,

outlining, and doing the first draft.
• Revising means rewriting an essay, building on what has
already been done, to make it stronger.
• One writer has said about revision, “It's like cleaning house—
getting rid of all the junk and putting things in the right order.”
But it is not just “straightening up”; instead, you must be ready to
roll up your sleeves and do whatever is needed to create an
effective essay.
• Too many students think that the first draft is the essay. They
start to become writers when they realize that revising a rough
draft three or four times is often at the heart of the writing
process.
 Contd.
• Here are some quick hints that can help make revision easier.
• First, set your first draft aside for a while. A few hours will do,
but a day or two would be better. You can then come back to
the draft with a fresh, more objective point of view.
• Second, work from typed or printed text. You'll be able to see
the essay more impartially in this way than if you were just
looking at your own familiar handwriting.
• Next, read your draft aloud. Hearing how your writing sounds
will help you pick up problems with meaning as well as with
style.
• Finally, as you do all these things, add your thoughts and
changes above the lines or in the margins of your essay. Your
written comments can serve as a guide when you work on the
next draft.
 Contd.
• There are three stages to the revising process:
• • revising content
• • revising sentences
• • editing
 Revising Content

• To revise the content of your essay, ask these questions:

• 1. Is my essay unified?
• • Do I have a thesis that is clearly stated or implied in the introductory
paragraph of my essay?
• • Do all my supporting paragraphs truly support and back up my thesis?
• 2. Is my essay supported?
• • Are there three separate supporting points for the thesis?
• • Do I have specific evidence for each of the three supporting points?
• • Is there plenty of specific evidence for each supporting point?
• 3. Is my essay organized?
• • Do I have an interesting introduction, a solid conclusion, and an
accurate title?
• • Do I have a clear method of organizing my essay?
• • Do I use transitions and other connecting words?
 Revising Sentences

• To revise sentences in your essay, ask yourself the

following questions:
• 1. Do I use parallelism to balance my words and
ideas?
• 2. Do I have a consistent point of view?
• 3. Do I use specific words?
• 4. Do I use active verbs?
• 5. Do I use words effectively by avoiding slang,
clichés, pretentious language, and wordiness?
• 6. Do I vary my sentences?
 Editing

• After you have revised your essay for content and style,
you are ready to edit—check for and correct—errors in
grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
• Students often find it hard to edit their writing carefully.
• You may simply have to will yourself to perform this
important closing step in the writing process.
• Further, as you get into the habit of checking your
writing, you will also get into the habit of using the
sentence skills consistently. They are an integral part of
clear and effective writing.