Before writing an essay, you need to clearly understand what the specific assignment entails. You can examine the course syllabus, talk with a teacher or discuss details with classmates. Students often find it helpful to take notes -- notes they can use when writing later.
Once you decide on the topic to write about, focus on what it is you want to convey. Many writers often have great ideas, but want to incorporate everything under one proverbial "umbrella," so to speak. You can help yourself narrow down a topic by writing at least three different essay titles or thesis statements, for example. A thesis statement should make a claim or relay some position on an argument.
Different kinds of essays express ideas in various ways. You should choose the correct style and stick with it. For example, an expository essay may require a bit of research that investigates the topic, while a narrative essay may not require any research at all. The former may require that a writer develop some academic argument toward a particular end, while the latter may allow an entirely subjective approach.
One important and simple step of writing an essay is in generating the outline. The main purpose of an outline is to help you map out the essay from start to finish. The various types of outlines include the alphanumeric, numbered, bulleted, and full sentence.
When you write a first draft of an essay, you need to concentrate on getting the ideas on paper. You can always go back and fix sentences or punctuation later. Avoid stopping or crossing too may items out as well. Skip the introduction at this point and just worry about getting down all of your thoughts.
Review the first draft to ensure that what you wrote still agrees with the thesis. If it doesn't, try reforming the main idea or rewriting the thesis. Many writers often find they need to restructure a bit at this point. Then begin revising and clarifying the draft.
After you've written a draft, then revised it, you'll need to read the essay in its entirety to see if any other areas need further attention. Be sure to correct spelling, grammar, punctuation, and any other mechanical or even technical aspects. Consider what an audience would think about what you've written and revise again if needed.
Writing an essay sometimes requires a bit of humility -- you'll need to have another pair of eyes to examine and proofread the paper again to find additional errors. You shouldn't be reticent about sharing the essay -- writers often denigrate their own work for fear of reprisal or embarrassment.
Rework the essay by finalizing all the basic elements within it. Be sure the essay has an introduction, a body (comprised of several or more paragraphs) and a conclusion -- paragraphs should have supporting detail about the main idea, conclusions summarize the main points of the entire essay and provide a way to tie it all together.
Works cited pages often require different formatting. MLA, APA, Chicago, and Turabian are four common citation styles. Make sure the works cited page is separate from the essay -- some formats no longer require writers incorporate URLs when citing Internet pages or links.