How to Write an Essay in MLA Format?

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How to Write an Essay in MLA Format?

How to Write an Essay in MLA Format?

An essay in MLA requires you to be well-versed in MLA formatting. By knowing the rules of formatting in MLA style, you can accurately format your essay and make sure the authenticity of your work. Therefore, you need to get yourself familiarized with MLA formatting before writing an essay in MLA format.

Given below are some useful tips for writing an essay in MLA format:

  • First Page:

You should start writing on the top right side of the page with the information mentioned below:

  • Your name
  • Name of Instructor
  • Course Title and number
  • Date of Submission

Leave double spaces between each of the sentences. Centralize the title of your page and use double space after the title and begin writing. In MLA format, you do not need to create a separate ‘title page’. You need to include the header with your last name and page number. Keep the header half of an inch. Remember to have one inch margin on both sides of the page. Choose times new roman and keep it to 12 point size.

  • Subsequent Pages:

Keep the headers with your last name and page number for all the subsequent pages. Enumerate all the pages in consecutive sequence. Keep the size of header half of an inch for rest of the pages.

  • Endnotes

Write the header on all of the following pages. The size of the headers must be the same on every page. Use double spacing between all your lines.

  • Bibliography

Write bibliography 1 inch to the top of your page. Document all your sources and arrange them in alphabetical order again with double spaced lines.

While writing your essay in MLA, you need to be well-versed with the ins and outs of its format. By properly organizing your essay in MLA format, you can make yourself stand out among others and keep away from plagiarism. Therefore, it is necessary to first get yourself acquainted with the rules of formatting in MLA before writing your essay. By following the above mentioned guidelines, you can format your essay according to the rules of MLA rules.

How to Write a Memoir Essay?

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A memoire essay is focused on a specific memory in a person’s life. It entails interpreting that memory and describes why it has a particular influence on your life. It is important to employ sensory details when writing a memoire essay. It digs into the past of a person to interpret his/her present.

•    Before writing a memoire essay, it is first important to choose a particular event from your past to base you essay. You can mind map for a good idea to write in your essay. This will help you come up with some good idea for your essay. Search through your memory lane and make a list of important life events from your past that has an influence on your life.

•    Pick one of these memories for your memoire essay. Decide on how you would want to present your essay: flashback (in which you describe events as they have happened in your life starting from your present circumstances), Chronological order (starting from the very beginning) or reverse chronological order.

•    After you have chosen a memory from your past, you should make an outline of your essay. Add all the important details of your life in it. Make sure if you have organized your events in the right order.

•    Afterwards, start writing your essay. Explain your readers about the sequence of events and make them clear to your readers.

•    Use descriptive language for your main characters. Employ sensory details to make them appear real and concrete.

•    Wrap up your whole essay by elucidating to the readers about the significance of the event and telling them how this event has changed your life.

Important Tips

•    You can choose from any event in your life to base your memoire essay as long as it is significant to you. But keep your focus only on one event. Use plenty of details in your essay to describe why you have chosen this particular event. Write it in such a way as you are telling a story to your friend.

•    Avoid choosing tragic events like illness, death or any such events when considering a topic for your essay. It is always easier to write on something that had a positive influence in your life rather than writing on a sad or upsetting event.

How to Write a Proposal Essay

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The aim of a proposal essay is to persuade an authority in order to take initiative or a course of action for an issue. A good topic idea for a proposal essay is one that develops from a person’s beliefs and passions. When considering a topic for a proposal essay, it always helps to first assess your level of knowledge and expertise on it, what issues are associated with the topic and your writing skills to persuade the readers to consider your proposal.

Following are some tips that will help you come up with a good essay topic idea and write a convincing proposal essay:

Address an Issue

A good topic idea for a proposal essay is to consider problems in your society that needs to be solved. This will involve you making a list of problems within your society or vicinity. You can go about writing on number of issues from lack of civil amenities like unavailability of public toilets, amusement parks and sports field to more serious matters like impaired infrastructure in case of a broken water pipelines, sewerage overflow, or shortage of water/electricity etc. You need to address the issue and propose relevant steps for actions in order to invoke them take action. After you have come up with a topic idea, you need to devise a strategy and propose it to the readers with solid examples and facts.

Present your Viewpoint

Many times, it so happens that what we think as an issue might not be a serious issue for someone else. Therefore, you need to craft your essay is such a way that it makes a solid impression in the mind of the readers and convince them that it is a serious issue. A good topic idea for a proposal essay should stem from your beliefs. You can ask some questions pertaining the issue that may help you develop a thought into a good topic idea for your essay. For example, do you think that a particular ordinance or law is too rigid? Consider some other alternatives for the law. Do you feel that there is a loophole in your local schooling system? Come up with some novel and better idea for schooling. Since, a proposal essay is based on your personal beliefs, it is better to first determine how strongly you feel about an issue. The stronger you feel about an issue, the better your essay will be.

How to Write a Synthesis Essay?

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Synthesis essay requires you to put together different ideas from various sources and present them in your voice in order to describe them.  You need to find two sources that have information pertaining to your topic.  Find information that offers two different or opposing ideas, and then interpret them to give your own standpoint. A good piece of advice is to be selective when choosing information to present in your paper.

Following are some important tips that will help you write a proper synthesis essay:

•    You need to go through different sources from printed materials like books, newspapers and magazines to scientific studies or audio/visual sources like movies, documentaries etc in order to get some good ideas. Make notes of important information as you go ahead with your research.

•    After you have conducted thorough research on your topic and get ideas, you need to formulate a thesis. It must be concise and short, and clearly present the purpose of your paper. Make it powerful enough to grab attention of the readers.

•    Now, you need to make an outline. This is a proper organizational plan of your essay. Consider how you want to go about writing your essay and how the information will be presented in it. Keep in mind to make a proper order of information in your outline and include your sources in it.

•    Start your essay with introductory paragraph. This is where you need to provide the sources that you intend to combine in your essay. Include the name of author and title of each source and summarize their ideas. Here you need to introduce the thesis of your essay, ideally in the last sentence of the paragraph.

•    Next comes the body section of your essay. Here, you need to write about ideas that you have gathered from your research in order to support your thesis. Compare and contrast them to inform the readers about the similarities and differences between them. Remember! Always quote the sources properly and according to the given citation style like APA, MLA, and Harvard etc.

•    Wrap up your whole essay. This is the last part of your essay. Here, you need to remind the readers about the arguments that you have presented in the body and link the readers back to your thesis. Moreover, you can tell them to further research certain elements of your topic that you could not discuss due to the parameters of your research.

•    Lastly, you have to edit your essay to make it free from any grammar, revision, spelling or punctuation issues.

How to Write a Profile Essay?

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A profile essay is among the most challenging types of essay writing. It is aimed to give accounts about a subject to the readers. It presents both an objective and expressive interpretations about a subject. It is different from a biographical or an autobiographical essay in that it gives firsthand account of a subject or event whereas an autobiography or biography is based on the memorable experiences of a person. There are some important tips to keep in mind when writing a profile essay. They are:

Choose the Subject

You can choose from writing about a controversial person to any ordinary person. You just need to examine your subject closely and with your own perspective. You can also go about writing on an enigmatic place or an event that might sound interesting to the readers.

Plan your Essay

Before writing a profile essay, you need to go through various interview sessions with the subject or the people who knows the subject. Afterwards, you need to organize the contents of the interview in the manner that give an emerging image of the subject rather than writing them in plain style.

Use Descriptive Language

A good profile essay creates in the mind of the readers a vivid image of the subject. Therefore, always use specific details about your subject like how it looks dresses, talks, smells etc. You can use these descriptions to give an overall impression about the subject.  While the information from others should be used only to describe the subject and not give an opinion on his/her life.

Speak Your Mind

A profile essay is only meant to give an impression of a subject based on the writer’s personal interpretations based on his observations and research. You need to present your essay in such a way that it speak for your attitude about the subject. These are the elements that draw a line between a profile essay from other descriptive form of writings like biography.

To sum up, writing a profile essay can be learning experience if you do it in its true sense. Learning how to write a profile essay will also aid you in writing other forms of narrative or descriptive writing such as biography or memoire essay.

How to Write a Reflective Essay?

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A reflective essay is a personal narrative written before applying in a college. Since, it is a personal account of a memorable experience, it should be written in first person voice. Like other essay format, a reflective essay is consisted of three main parts:

(1) Introduction: It describes the topic of your essay

(2) Body: It gives an insight look into your topic

(3) Conclusion: It summarizes your whole essay

Life Changing Experience

Writing on a life changing experience can be a good theme for your essay. It can be a tragic ordeal or a happy change that have a significant influence in your life. You can go about writing on the demise of a relative or your close friend, starting a married, a career shift, a life transforming spiritual experience etc. When writing on a life changing experience, you need to discuss your attitude before and after the event. You need to describe in particular how the event has changed your mentality and outlook towards life. If writing on a tragic experience, be sure to talk about the rehabilitation phase.

Write About your Mentor

A mentor plays an important role in a person’s life. A mentor can be your teacher, friend, favorite writer, or a religious or political personality. They lead you to the right path and motivate you to achieve your goals. A mentor can help you pursue your dreams, encourage you in tough time, or recover from a personal tragedy. Your mentor is not necessarily your teacher or friend; s/he might be a celebrity or an idol. There are many people who look up to public figure and emulate them. When discussing about your mentor, you should introduce him/her to your readers and tell them what s/he has achieved, what inspirations you draw from him/her, why you want to be like him/her and how you will accomplish your goals by following him/her.

Think About a Life-Changing Mistake

Mistake is the best opportunity to learn and grow as an individual. It gives you valuable lessons about life. When writing about a mistake that changed your life for better or worse, consider writing the circumstances that lead you to a good or bad situation, how you could have abstain from that mistake, what alternative course of actions could have been pursued. Tell the readers if the mistake affected you in a negative manner and then you may discuss how you intend to change it into a positive way.

How to Quote Sources in an Essay?

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In writing an essay, you need to cite quotes and words of other people and while doing this you need to properly acknowledge them in right style. This authenticates your work and keeps you away from plagiarism. A common way of quoting sources is to use footnotes or endnotes. A footnote is written within a body of text while an endnote is written at the end of the page. In both cases, you must adhere to the right formatting style for quoting your sources. Therefore, it is important for you to get acquainted with rules for quoting sources in an essay. This article will focus on some of the prominent rules for properly quoting sources in an essay paper.

Following are some rules necessary to quote a source in your essay:

Rule#1

Be very particular when quoting sources in your essay. Use the quotations only when accuracy is needed or when you need to make an impression. Paraphrase the quotation and make sure if it is used in the right context.

Rule#2

You need to use double quotations when you use a quote which is less than four sentences. Never use quotation marks when paraphrasing a piece of information.

Rule#3

Always indent a citation in case it is longer than four lines. Avoid using quotation marks around indented text.

Rule#4

Capitalize the first letter of a quotation only when if it is a complete sentence and not in case of a clause or fragment. Use ‘periods’ and ‘commas’ within the quotation marks. Whereas a colon or semi-colon should be used outside. Put question mark or exclamatory sign within the quotation marks if they are used inside the quotation, but use them outside in case they are meant for the sentence as a whole.

Rule#5

Cite every quotation, even if you use it in paraphrased form. Use a number in superscript at the end of each quotation after a period. In the bibliography, type the number and the source name.

Remember! When quoting sources, you need to conform to the right format as per your required style. Ask to your teacher and make sure if you are using the right style. This is important and in case of failure to comply the right style, your assignment might be cancelled out.

Keep in mind the above mentioned tips in order to properly quote sources in your essay.

How To Write A Personal Profile Essay

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Though there are many types of essay assignments, writing an essay on personal profile is the most demanding. Not only you have to go through an extensive research about the person you are focusing on, but also give an articulate description of his personality and life. But there are some useful tips that will help you write a compelling personal profile essay. To know them, you must read on:

•    Do a one-on-one interview with the person. But do your homework before the meeting. Create list of questions to ask him in order to bring out the best from the interview. Start with the basic questions such as who, when, where, what and why and observe his appearance and mannerisms during the responses. Afterwards, ask him about his achievements, interests and hobbies. Exploring these facts will allow you to know the real person behind him.

•    Start your essay by giving a biographical sketch of the person i.e. his name, title, appearance, professional accomplishments and other important information relating to “WH” questions. Focus your paper on a specific attribute of the person and use it as your “thesis”. This must be something unique in his personality.

•    Write the ‘body part’ by using ‘inverted-pyramid organizational layout’. The writer should begin with a succinct and interesting title, and then build upon the story from the most interesting part towards the least important, according to the The Prentice Hall Guide for College Writers.

•    Use as many paragraphs as required by your assignment. For example, if you are writing a 200-250 word long assignment, then you will not require any additional body paragraph. But for a 300-500 word long assignment, you might need 1-2 additional paragraphs. Each paragraph should focus on a new topic. For example, if you are discussing professional life of a person, then you will cover 2-3 major points of his career.

•    Finish your essay with a powerful conclusion. Here you will restate main points of your essay. Give your final words about the person or his life. Link your audience back to the thesis statement and leave them on a meaningful note.

•    Finally, you must edit your work to make it free from mistakes. Check if you have included all the important facts and information about the person. Make sure if you have used proper spelling and accurate grammar. If you answer ‘yes’ for these considerations, only then you should submit your work.

Important Tips!

•    Use a tape recorder to interview a person. This will help you get back to any important part of the interview when needed.

•    Organise your tasks. Set specific time for interviewing, outlining, writing and editing.

•    Use proper spelling of names of the individuals or books while writing your essay. Use accurate dates.

6 Must-Read Tips For Writing An Essay!

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Writing a good essay depends on number of factors such as essay type, word count, and topic. But regardless of these factors, there are some important tips that are applicable in any type of essay whatsoever. They are as follows:

 

1.    Determine the type of essay you are going to write such as argumentative essay, descriptive essay or compare and contrast essay. An argumentative essay discusses an idea, people or situation and aims to persuade the readers the way you feel about it. A descriptive essay describes an event in an anecdotal way by using sensory details. While a compare and contrast essay compares two ideas, events and people and shed light on their positive and negative aspects. After you have established the type of the essay, choose your topic.

2.    Once you have chosen a good topic, then you have to create a compelling thesis statement. Make it concise and attention-grabbing.

3.    Start by writing an introductory paragraph. You will introduce your topic as well as provide background information to the readers and tell them why you are discussing it. Make it interesting and attention-grabbing. Use eye-catching details to hold attention of the readers. An introduction only gives an overview about what you will discuss in the essay; therefore you should not discuss your topic in detail in this section. Mention at least three ideas from your topic. Introduce your thesis here.

4.    Now, write body paragraphs of your essay. Use at least three paragraphs to discuss your topic. Each paragraph should focus on a separate idea from your introductory paragraph. Use ideas in the order they appeared in the introduction. Each of your ideas should be supported by relevant evidence, facts and examples.

5.    Finally, write conclusion of your essay. In this section, you will summarise all the ideas presented in the introductory and body paragraphs. Here you will also give your comments about what you have acquired through your discussion.

6.    And last but not the least; you must revise your work before submitting it. Go through your entire work and check if there is anything missing in your work. Make sure if you have used proper transitional words in between sentences and paragraphs. Lastly, reread your whole work and check if it sounds coherent and logical.

Warnings!

•    Be sure to conform to the requirements of your college. Your essay assignment must meet the specified word count given by your college.

•    Proofread your paper thoroughly to make it free from spelling, grammar or punctuation errors. Having such mistakes will significantly affect the quality of your assignment.

13 Useful Tips To Revise A Rough Draft Effectively!

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After you have finished your rough draft, you have to revise it to make it free from errors. But it is not just about “revising your work” but “revising your work effectively”. Therefore it is important to know the tips to help you accomplish the “revision” part “effectively”. To know them, you must read on:

1.    Check if your topic is focused and comprehensive. Be sure that it meets requirements of your assignment.

2.    Check if your thesis statement answers the following elements:

a.    Short and clear

b.    Addresses a specific problem

c.    Have relevant keywords

3.    Go through each paragraph of your work. Check if it clearly describes the topic sentence with solid evidence and facts. Make sure if you have included relevant examples, references and quotations to support the argument.

4.    Be sure that each of your paragraphs is effective. Check if all paragraphs explain the arguments without leaving any question in minds of the readers. If a paragraph is too short, then it is better to clip it from the paper. And if it is too long, then it should be rewritten or split up into several paragraphs.

5.    Organize the paragraphs in hierarchical order- starting from the strongest argument and ending on the weakest. Or use chronological steps if the time is important.

6.    Make sure if your essay sound coherent. It is necessary to use proper transitional words between sentences and paragraphs so that they make smooth transitions into each other. Combine or trim sentences wherever necessary.

7.    Remove words that have been used more than one time in a sentence. Use synonyms or other alternative words. Refer to your thesaurus.

8.    Be sure to use the most accurate citation style for the type of your paper.

9.    Now, reread your whole work and check if it has any of the following elements:

a.    Spelling, grammar and punctuation errors

b.    Any lapse in format and style of the paper

c.    Any technical words, jargons, abbreviations or loanwords that need to be explained

d.    Any run-on or cluttered sentences

10.    Finally, you must ask yourself the following questions after you have finished reading the paper:

11.    Have I effectively conveyed my message to the readers?

12.    Is there anything missing in my final draft?

13.    Have I used relevant keywords throughout my essay?

Remember!

•    Use “red” or “green” highlighter while revising your work.

•    After you have revised the “body part”, only then you should rewrite the “introduction” and “conclusion” parts so that they complement each other.

•    If possible, have your work proofread by an expert before submitting it.