Academic Writing Guide: Organizing Your Essay Writing Process

Writing an essay can take a considerable amount of time, which is okay when you want an exceptional piece for submission. In many cases it depends on the length of the essay and when the assignment is due. You can get an idea of what your writing process will consist of based on what you know about your topic. If you need to conduct research or have your paper edited by someone, these elements can affect how much time you will plan for your writing process. The following points offer additional insight on what you can do when organizing your essay content.

• Establish a writing schedule or set aside time to write your essay. Essay writing is somewhat tedious and time consuming. It may not seem so bad when you plan your time in advance. This way you can organize thoughts and ideas you want to include in your paper. Depending on your deadline you can spread out the writing process by an hour or so a day.
• Brainstorm topic ideas and take time to think about them before finalizing. You may want to schedule a brainstorming session to take time to think about a good topic. This is a good time to review essay guidelines and think about content your instructor will want to see from you.
• Use an outline to break up the writing process. This is one of the most important elements of writing. This helps to organize talking points and you understand each section of your essay and what it should include. You can create an outline to help match your writing schedule. For instance, you can work on your introduction on one day, work on body paragraphs for a couple of days, then work on your conclusion, and so on.
• Define essential elements that make up your essay before you start writing. Once you select a topic think about details that will help make it stand out. This means you will need a strong thesis statement and supporting evidence to help readers understand your main idea. Think about what research you may need to conduct or quotes you may want to include.
• Establish your writing plan first and keep your deadline in mind. Your writing plan may vary somewhat from your writing schedule, but they can be in sync. This would include resources needed, editing and proofreading needs, and etc.