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Essay Format
There are lots of different approaches to essay format. Some universities will mandate the font you use, line spacing, punctuation and the like, others are less strict. Make sure that you're following your university's format requirements and you're on the rig-ht track. But beyond simple issues like page layout, there's lots of things you can do to make your format more engaging, and make your essay more enjoyable to read.
Choose a format that suits your essay
Different essays need different formats. History or literature essays tend to be largely textual, whereas a sociology essay, for example, might feature graphical representations of data.
It can be easier to write an essay that's got different kinds of content in it - let's say, a pie chart - because the variation can inspire you and give you things to write about. When you've just got text it can be easy to get bogged down and not know where to go next. Throw in a chart, a graph or a table and you can comment on the data it describes at some length. Before you know it you've got half your essay written. But if you are going to include graphics, make sure they're relevant. Don't just throw them in for the sake of it, it will make your essay look weak and poorly planned.
So if you are writing an essay that's just text, mix it up a bit. Separate your work into different sections, use a number of headings or sections. Refer back to your introduction. Did you jot down your five headline areas for further discussion when you were drafting your introduction? Well, why not use them as headings? Norman Davies' Rising '44, a history of the Warsaw Uprising, is a little over a thousand pages long. But it's sparky and engaging all the way through. How does he do it? He uses a mixture of quotations from primary sources, narrative, and historical discussion and analysis. Give it a try yourself - why stick to boring old essay formats.
Include quotes, other criticism and journals
We talked earlier on about using other sources of information. Most universities will publish guidance on how quotations ought to be included and attributed - some will go for single quotes, others double quotes. Some like the reference included after the quotation, others prefer you to list your references at the end of the essay. Take the guesswork out - just ask one of your lecturers for a style guide, and then stick to it. If there isn't one, you could use the free style guide available on the Guardian's website, or look for an online publication of Strunk and Whyte's The Elements of Style. Both are great reference points. The most important thing with essay format and presentation is to be consistent. English is a complicated language, and quite often there's no right answer. Should you indent paragraphs, for example? If your university doesn't provide any guidance, just decide which you like best, and stick to it. An essay with inconsistent format looks scruffy, and you'd be amazed how damaging that can be to your marks. A great essay that's badly presented might well lose a couple of percent - and what a waste that would be. Make sure you do your work justice and present it well.
Get the balance right
Guess what? We're back to those headline points. You don't want to spend 3,000 words on one of your points, and then only have 1,000 to deal with the other four. Maybe you've got a lot more to say about one of your subject areas? Well, maybe you need to revisit your headlines, just focus on a couple and break them down a little bit more. Maybe you don't really have anything to say about any of your headlines? Well, in that case you might need to do a little bit more background reading. But all is not lost! It won't take you long to get some ideas together. Remember all the study resources you have - your lecture notes, critical work, study guides, journals, online resources. Just pick one, start reading, and those ideas will start to come.
Likewise, if you want to include a lot of quotations, make sure the balance between quotations and your own work is right. If you just fill your essay up with work from other critics, no one's going to be impressed, and at worst you'll get in trouble for plagiarism. Present your quotes properly - introduce them with a quick description of why they are relevant, insert your quotation, then draw out the points that you think are interesting and discuss them.
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Other study area articles
- Essay Conclusion
- Essay Format
- Essay Introduction
- Essay Writing And Grammar
- How To Form Your Essay Title
- How To Reference Your Essay
- How To Use Punctuation In An Essay
- How To Write An Essay
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