Take notes during your essay research. As you come across useful information, note the author's name and source. This way, when you incorporate the content into your essay, you will know that it is not your own thought and, thus, requires attribution.
Build a works cited page for your essay. List all the sources -- books, journal articles and websites -- that you used to research your paper topic. List the sources alphabetically by the authors' last names. Refer to your style guide for detailed instructions on how to cite sources. Common style guides for college students include MLA, APA and the Chicago Manual of Style.
Attribute any quoted or paraphrased material to its original source. Follow this simple rule: If the sentence is not your own original thought, it needs attribution. Include an in-text citation that lists the author's name, year of publication and, in some cases, the page number, depending on your style guide. You can include this information as a parenthetical citation at the end of the sentence or introduce the referenced material with the author's name and publication date in the sentence.
Build an argument in your essay. While your researched content is essential to give your essay context and credibility, your essay should make an argument that is your own thought. A plagiarized essay will feature only the words of others; a well-written essay will weave others' ideas into the writer's original thoughts to support the essay's argument.
Write independently. Do not read a classmate's essay draft or work on your essay with other students. You risk using another student's words, intentionally or not, in your own essay if your peer's thoughts are in your mind as you write. A clear, focused mind allows you to use your own creativity to write and prevents you from mixing another person's thoughts into your essay.