10 Proven Ways to Improve Your Essay Writing Skills in 2023
November 26. 2023 0 Comments
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- Essay
Most of us have been there: the task is to craft an engaging and well-written essay, but you keep getting feedback that your writing is unsatisfactory. The ability to write well is a form of communication that professors and employers appreciate. Anyone can produce a top-notch academic paper if they understand what they need to write an essay. Essays are based on a solid and debatable thesis, supported by well-written evidence. With many international students emigrating to find better learning opportunities abroad, good essays can make a difference in their success.
So, what can you do to improve your essay writing skills? In the following post, we give you a list of tips to support your English writing skills and effective techniques for essay writing.
Tips on How to Improve English Writing Skills
English-language essay writing skills are one of the most effective skills you can develop as a student. Good writing skills are often a ticket to success in a world-class university. Below, we give you tips to improve English writing skills.
Read, read, and read
Reading is closely related to writing, so read as much as you can. Reading is a great way to improve vocabulary, sentence structure, and grammar. If you make reading a habit, communicating ideas in academic essays will come easily. Once you read other people’s essays, attempt to write your own.
Brush up your grammar
Completing grammar exercises will help you brush up your English writing skills. Remember, grammar is more important when you write it than when you speak it since it’s usually more structured and formal in writing. Similarly, use a dictionary to clarify the meaning of words and learn synonyms to improve your vocabulary.
Follow a logical arc
A logical arc refers to the progression of ideas in an essay to ensure it’s easy to follow and enjoyable to read. For example, you can’t write a conclusion before describing the main ideas. Readers would not understand a summary of something they haven’t read. Learning to spot faulty logic can help you become a better writer.
Switch from passive to active voice
The active voice indicates clearly who is performing the action, making it more direct and easy to follow. On the other hand, using passive voice makes your essay less concise, more confusing, and harder to grab attention.
Get writing help from a professional
If your English writing skills are not yet up to par and you need help editing your draft, finishing a paper, or writing an essay from scratch, get reliable help from expert writers. There are a lot of professional services available online, but you can try essay writing help at CustomWritings whose professional writers are on standby 24/7 to assist students with various academic tasks in 75+ disciplines. You can sharpen your English grammar and writing skills by addressing essay helpers.
10 Verified Ways to Improve Essay Writing Skills
1. Read and understand the prompt
This may sound obvious, but it’s the most common reason for a disappointing grade in an essay. Take time to read the prompt carefully and underline any specific directions that tell you the main points to include and how long the paper should be. Use critical thinking to determine whether the essay question you’re answering in your head matches the one written in the prompt.
2. Write an outline to organize your ideas
Always use an outline to organize your points and supporting evidence. Essays have a basic format that you can use to develop an outline. Break down your points in a way that fits an introduction, main body, or conclusion format. An outline also makes it easy to link between ideas and topics.
3. Research to find evidence and sources to support your ideas
A good essay uses evidence and sources to support the main points. Thus, research is one of the most important skills needed to craft a good essay. You look for credible sources from databases, such as Google Scholar. Also, use multiple sources to consider more than one perspective and collect key facts to support your topic. Add citation information accordingly.
4. Build a solid thesis to support your arguments
A thesis statement is the pillar of your essay, and hence one of the most important skills used when writing an essay. A strong thesis will enable you to develop arguments to support your central opinion. Thus, create a clear and logical thesis that is debatable. Otherwise, you won’t find credible evidence to build compelling arguments.
5. Hook your readers from the get-go
No matter the type of essay you’re writing, you must strive to hook your reader’s interests immediately. You do this using an interesting hook. Otherwise, your attempts to persuade the reader may end before your essay starts. Use the first line to set the stage for your thesis.
6. The magic of PEE
Academic writing is very structured, and you demonstrate your professional skills in essay writing by your ability to keep the reader with you. To achieve this, follow a logical structure using the rule of PEE- point, example, and explain. This structure will keep you focused on the question and prompt you to provide details.
7. Create clear transitions between your ideas
Although too many transitions can affect the clarity and concision of an essay, they can be invaluable when connecting and separating ideas. They help you to express your ideas and improve the flow of your writing. Just make sure you confirm that you’ve used the right transition words based on the context.
8. Use the right vocabulary and improve your mechanics
Developing your vocabulary is one way of acquiring skills needed when writing an essay. The right vocabulary can help you to produce more effective essays. However, you don’t have to use jargon or the most complicated words, only the right words that say exactly what you mean. There are many resources available online to help with mechanics such as vocabulary, grammar, punctuation, spelling, style, flow, clarity, and organization.
9. Write a strong conclusion
A well-written and thoughtful conclusion can improve the reader’s opinion of your credibility. A strong conclusion starts by restating your thesis and major points. You can also make remarks to show the importance of your topic by indicating the implications of your argument.
10. Always edit and proofread your essay
One of the smartest things you can do before submitting an essay is to read your paper several times and check for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. You can also ask someone else to read the final draft and give you feedback on the tone, clarity, and readability of your paper. That way, you can get pointers to improve your essay writing skills.
Good Essay Writing Skills Are Not Rocket Science
To write a high-quality essay, you only need to take note of a few things discussed in this post. Still, writing essays in English is not something you can achieve immediately. To get it right, practice by writing samples on different topics to become more confident in your writing.