How to Start an Essay Format

Challenges abound when writing an essay because of the need to produce original, in-depth content. However, a how to start an essay format can help make this process smoother. 

An essay format helps you see how your content makes sense and how it all fits together.

There are many ways to write an essay and a million possible topics, but the best ones all have the same basic structure. In this article, you’ll get to find out the best format to use when starting your essay.

How to Start an Essay Writing Your Thesis

The term “essay” is used to describe various types of writing that express the author’s viewpoint on a subject. Essays can be about formal academic writing, economics, science, love- anything!

It can be a one-paragraph or a two-page essay. It can be 250 words or 1000 words.

Before beginning to write, you should keep in mind your essay’s subject, its type, and intended audience. Your essay’s thesis, or main point, is the most vital component.

The thesis statement expresses the argument you’re making in your paper. Essays can go off on related tangents but must always circle back to the thesis statement.

Always know what your thesis is going to be before you start writing. For help, ask yourself, “What is the one thing I want my reader to remember when they are done reading my essay?”

One good strategy is to state your thesis in the first sentence of your essay. You can also state it in the topic phrase, if that makes more sense. Remember to bring it up repeatedly in the essay, especially in the final paragraph.

The remaining content of your essay should serve to back up your argument. Use whatever works best: hard data, personal anecdotes, deductive reasoning, or even just good old-fashioned persuasion. The idea is to develop your central argument further rather than diverge into unrelated areas.

Format on How to Start an Essay in 5 Basic Steps

It’s essential to stick to a systematic procedure for writing anything. Writing a critical essay requires effort, patience, and the use of the writer’s craft and the principles of critical thinking.

The procedure is the same whether it’s an essay, research paper, term paper, report, assignment, quiz, or essay.

We advise using the typical five-step writing method when starting an essay:

1. Planning

Brainstorming is a great technique to get your ideas together before you sit down to write. Get as many ideas as possible based on your prompt or thesis. Create as many as possible in the allotted time, and discard the ones that don’t pan out.

2. Research

Your essay’s preparation step includes creating an outline and gathering supporting materials. Check out what you’ve come up with after all that thinking.

You should first identify the essential arguments that will help you prove your thesis and then arrange them in a logical and developing framework.

The next step is to incorporate your essay format, which we will discuss in greater detail below.

3. Sort out the supporting data or citations

When writing citations, follow the rules of your style guide. MLA, APA, and Chicago are the most widely used scholarly style guides.

Each has its own unique set of rules and standards for citing different types of sources. Sources include newspaper articles, websites, speeches, and YouTube videos.

3. Drafting

This is where you will do most of the heavy lifting of your essay by composing the bulk of the first draft. Remember that this is just a first draft and not the final product, so you can afford to make some mistakes. You will miss the point if you worry about correcting every single word.

4. Revising

Even if writing in a stream of consciousness produces the best first drafts, a well-organized revising and polishing process is important.

All drafts are part of the revision phase. Consider all the details you overlooked in the original draft and address them. Consider making changes after a feedback session or even in the final draft.

Revision is also a time to make sure you have your facts straight. One thing is certain – that first draft isn’t making your essay flawless.

5. Check Structure and Flow

Focus on the fundamentals of writing, such as avoiding the passive voice and complex issues, such as word choice and clarity.

Use an online editor to polish your writing if you’re not convinced you have a firm grasp on the craft. It will suggest improvements to your sentence structure and word choice and make other modifications as you type.

Run-on sentences, sentence fragments, passive voice are some of the many that can be avoided with the assistance of an online editor.

5. Proofreading

Proofreading entails checking the entire document for errors. The whole text must be reread, and its structure and flow must be checked for mistakes.

You should check for grammatical and spelling errors and consistency. Ensure the essay meets the minimum word and character count requirement. You may also use an online writing assistant to help you proofread your essay.

This last step ensures the paper is polished and all of your work is neat and professional. Enjoy the final product!

Wrapping Up

The steps on how to write an essay are based on the 5-step process an essay outline may require. At the same time, this process can be adjusted to suit your writing style according to your content.