Essay Drafting Skills

WRITING / Essay Drafting

Academic Essay Drafting

Many writers follow a similar plan:

Steps in drafting an academic essay

Step 1: Develop your main idea

Step 2: Consider your audience

Step 3: Discover your strategy using key words

Step 4: Generate ideas by asking questions

Step 5: Generate ideas by answering your questions

Step 6: Write a draft

Step 7: Break your draft into parts

Step 8: Write your topic sentences

Step 9: Organize: connect and arrange your sections

Step 10: Support your ideas: facts, examples, details, comments, evaluation

Step 11: Work on your paragraph structure

Step 12: Write or rewrite your thesis

Step 13: Write your introduction

Step 14: Write your conclusion

Step 15: Revise your full draft

Once you have written your first draft then ‘revise it’

How’s your main idea? Is it clear?
Have you followed the assignment? Does it answer the key points of the question?
Are your ideas on track? Do they link clearly to the question?
Do you need to develop anything further?
How are your paragraphs? Good clear topic sentences? Examples? Evidence?
Is your draft well organized? Good connections throughout? Paragraphs link together?
Did you include transitions? Links between paragraphs?
Do you have an introduction? Does it provide background and a thesis (your main stance)?
Do you have a conclusion? Does it summarise the main ideas? Does it connect to the thesis?
How are your sentences? Have someone read your essay and check for mistakes.