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It's that time of year, so here's some advice on how to write more effective essays/dissertations/journal articles:
1. In your intro give a clear account of your argument/RQ. Make sure the entire essay is focussed on answering that one RQ/making that argument.
1. In your intro give a clear account of your argument/RQ. Make sure the entire essay is focussed on answering that one RQ/making that argument.
2. Signpost your argument. Don’t say “I will look at” (or examine). Say “I will argue” and make sure everything in the essay contributes to you making this argument.
3. Whenever possible, link to broader literature/themes/debates. Use these to bring insights to your case, and use your case to bring insights to bigger debates.
4. If you set out a theoretical approach or framework in the intro, use it to structure the rest of the essay. Eg ‘x theory identifies three key points, in the essay I will examine these in turn’ and then return to it throughout the essay, especially in the conclusion.
5. A related point: tell us why you’re selecting some incidents/factors to look at and not others (and if you can't justify it, rethink your choice).
6. Tell us why that theory or framework best helps explain your case or puzzle and/or how your case or puzzle enables you to critique or refine the theory.
7. Don’t have your second para/section ‘backward looking’ eg ‘before we do x we need to look at y’. Look at y if it is relevant, but do this analytically or thematically, not as history/background.
8. Tell us why you’re relying on some sources/texts, but not others. Eg what do they bring? Why are they stronger? Don't just cite them, but engage with the author's arguments.
9. Don’t separate your data or case from your analysis/discussion unless you’ve run an experiment/conducted a survey. The entire text should be analytical. Description separated from analysis is much harder to read.
10. Make sure your conclusion and your introduction speak to each other/ describe the same essay or diss. Often conclusions make good intros. Move it and rewrite your conclusion (a tip I owe to Mona Callahan, my @Bishopsbarons high school English teacher and debate coach)
