There’s nothing wrong with not being a pro straight away, but there is something wrong if you consistently make the same common mistakes over and over again.
To put you on your way to the top of the class we’ve put together a list of the 10 most common essay writing mistakes so that you can see for yourself where you might be going wrong. Take each one of them in turn, think about them, and then follow the advice below.
Fixating on the perfect title
Titles are important as they reflect the scope of the question that you’re being asked to answer. If you’ve already been given the question, start with a working title, and then get your arguments straight in your mind. That way you won’t spend half a day tweaking a title that you don’t yet have an essay to go with. You can always adjust the odd word during your second draft.
Spending hours on the introduction
Introductions should set the scene before you get to the real arguments and opinions in your essay. So many people spend their first couple of hours trying to write a perfect essay in the vain hope that the rest of the essay will flow naturally onto the page. Writing isn’t like that unfortunately, so draft something and move on. You’ll be amazed at how liberating you find it.
Not knowing your arguments before you start writing
Organize your arguments in your head before you put pen to paper and you’ll find your essay is far easier to write. If it helps, you can create a flowchart that shows how the various threads of your essay will follow on from one another. Can’t draw one? Then it’s clear that you have a little more thinking to do before you start on your first draft.
Treating subheadings and subsections as an afterthought
Once you have your flowchart, you need to start thinking about the various different sections your essay will be broken up into. The great thing about this approach is that you’re effectively turning one big essay into a dozen small articles. You’ll find each of them far less daunting, and you’ll be able to see your essay come together before your eyes.
Thinking of the word count as a suggestion, not a requirement
Writing double the word count is not a clever thing to do, it’s just being verbose. If you want to showcase your literary skills then say as much as you can within the allotted limit. It’s all about being precise and concise, not about writing as many pages as you possibly can in the hope of securing a top grade.
Skipping proofreading because you want to submit quickly
Before you Get Academic Help, consider whether you’re really giving yourself enough time to effectively proofread your work. It’s not the most enjoyable part of the writing process, but it can boost your final mark by several grades if you do it right.
Thinking of proofreading as the time when you fine tune your essay and take it to the next level is the best way to motivate yourself to do it. Skipping it is just doing half a job, and you don’t really want to do that do you?
Staring at the clock and fixating on your deadline
As the deadline approaches you might find you start to obsess about it. It’s natural to be heavily invested in an important project, but don’t let that feeling overwhelm you. Sitting and looking at the clock will just distract you and reduce the quality of your writing.
Working in a group
Group work is great when you’re discussing initial ideas and brainstorming, but it just doesn’t work with essay writing. If you’re invited to come over and write side by side with a few friends, just remember that you’ll likely be taking a break every time they do. Focus on the task at hand, work solo, and you’ll find that you get it done much better, and much quicker.
Writing in a style that’s too extravagant for the task at hand
We all love to drop in the occasional new word or flamboyant phrase we’ve seen used, but don’t go over the top with it. Remember who your audience is, and the level you’ve been asked to write to, and develop a style that’s appropriate.
Not reading widely in your free time The final mistake occurs months before the essay is due. Reading widely is a great way to familiarize yourself with different styles, approaches, and literary techniques. If you don’t take the time to read, then you’re ignoring thousands of potential hints and tips.
