A Guide to Descriptive Essay Writing: How to Complete Your Paper in 5 Steps

Writing a descriptive essay should be a pleasure. When assigned this project, you will either get a chance to describe something you genuinely like, or at least provide your unique outlook on the assigned issue.

The following guide will help you to write an excellent descriptive essay in five simple steps.

1. Choose the topic.

First of all, you need to decide what you want to describe. If you were assigned a specific topic, you can skip right to step 2. If not, consider the following factors when you make your decision:

• Personal interest.

You must be genuinely interested in the object you focus your paper on. This will ensure that you create a strong paper.

• Relevance.

Describe something that really matters today. Focusing on some obscure subject that no one is really interested in will only lose you points.

• Educational value.

Your essay is an academic paper, so it has to teach the readers something new and important.

• Scope.

Consider the required word count and make sure that there is enough information for you to create a good essay.

2. Gather information.

Now that you know what you need to focus your research on, start looking for suitable materials. Develop a thesis statement that will give direction to your research. This way, you won’t waste your time going through tons of books that aren’t really relevant for your topic. Libraries and the Internet will definitely provide you with all the information you need. Take careful notes and be sure to write down the name and author of every source you use. This will make compiling your reference list much easier.

3. Develop an outline.

Write a detailed plan for your paper. This will ensure that you don’t miss anything important when you start writing the actual essay.

4. Write the first draft.

Expand every point of the outline by adding evidence and other relevant information. In the end, you should have a paragraph for every point. Don’t try too hard to make it into a literary masterpiece. The initial draft should be focused on providing as much information as possible. You will cut out everything unnecessary at the final stage.

5. Revise and edit.

This is the stage where you turn your draft into a real high quality paper. Start with revising the content. Every paragraph must be logically connected to the next one and all of them should build a wholesome picture. When the content is polished to perfection, eliminate all grammar and spelling mistakes. At this point, your descriptive essay should be perfect.