Article by Christian Viñas

Good writing starts with a process. Whether you are about to write a thesis paper, an academic letter, an essay report, or an endorsement letter to the higher-ups of your college, dean or otherwise, it pays to be formal. Besides, the rewards of writing properly are still relevant even after graduation.

However, while the beginning, middle, and end of a story can be hard to construct, even a one-page report can be confusing. Sometimes, you have to find the eponymous ‘muse’ or battle ‘writing’s block’ in order to start or finish a paragraph; and one paragraph alone can be confusing if you don’t know what, why, or how to write it effectively.

If you give yourself plenty of time to plan and develop your essay, though, then you won’t have to stress about it. Luckily, here are some guidelines to help you out with your writing:

4 Tips on How to Write Produce Great Written Content for School

4. Brainstorm with Friends.

While look for a topic for a one-page report about your recent lesson or a group project, it’s best to consider the best approach to the topic you’ve been assigned to. By brainstorming with friends and schoolmates, you can craft an outline and create a list for your desired topic, how you will write it (using bullet points), and present it clearly to your professor/adviser.

Sample:

* What can we learn from cults?

* Why is archaeology important in every culture?

* How does mummification work?

By presenting a broad question, you can narrow down and pinpoint your, well, point in focusing on the sample topic.

3. Write the First Draft.

After gathering together of your notes and the books you need to support the broad question you presented, start writing down deeper thoughts on the topic. Make sure that you have the end goal for your topic here. If an area of your personal expertise is architecture,  for example, you can start to write sentences connecting archaeology to architecture, and later to word culture. It doesn’t even have to start with your expertise, just write freely. You can smooth things out later, anyway.

Don’t worry, no one will read your ‘rough draft’, and if you’re in a group, it’s more effective if everyone in your group writes his or her ideas on the topic. Think of it as elaborate brainstorming, one where unsaid thoughts can be expressed by every individual of the group. It will be needed for the next step, which is…

2. Avoid Clustering.

Most of what I wrote in my high-school and college years included the occasional clustering of topics, usually on longer topics for thesis papers and research reports. One minute I’m talking about “Corporate Humanization and its Effect on the Global Market in the next 20 years” and the next thing I know, I’m talking about the size of coffee cups because of the said corporation formerly using bigger cups. The point is: you need to revise your outlines and ideas from your ‘rough draft’ to avoid the ‘clustering’ of unnecessary opinions for your topics.

Yes, revisions can be excruciating. Reading what you wrote, even what you wrote just a  few minutes ago, and examining your thoughts and cutting them to stick to your outlined topic is important. Remember: if it doesn’t fit the end goal of your paper, it needs to be cut.

1. Proofread Before Submitting.

Not reading your work will only make you look sloppy and careless. Proper proofreading should involve checking your punctuation and grammar. Does it maintain a single tone? Does the conclusion correlates with your topic?

If you are not sure if you properly executed what you wrote, have a friend to proofread it for you. And when it’s done, read it again. Once you are satisfied, you can produce the final copy and present it. 

These are the pointers that I use when writing. I hope that you find them useful them, too.