Organizing Your Writing Like a Boss

By Johannes Helmold

 

How to make your thesis statement brilliant

• Make it specific, but not too specific.
• Indicate what you are going to write about later.
• Don’t begin with “This paper” and other cookie-cutter phrases.
• Show valid support.
• Be assertive.

Create an outline that will keep you on track

• Put your thesis statement at the top.
• Write bullet points for each section of your paper.
• Use keywords and phrases instead of detailed notes.
• Number and order your outline in a logical manner.

Topic sentences are your best friends

• A good topic sentence transitions from the previous paragraph and tells the reader what the current paragraph is about.
• Find a balance between being too specific and too general.
• They shouldn’t sound like they came out of the blue.

Transition to fruition

• Make your transitions organic.
• Ideally, you should have a transition at the beginning and end of each paragraph.
• Use keywords and phrases from previous paragraphs.
• A transition does not need to be longer than one sentence.

Conclude like a dude (or dudette)

• Show why the paper was important.
• Don’t just summarize. Synthesize. Show how your main points and examples fit together.
• Give readers something to think about after reading your paper.
• Don’t apologize or sound timid.

Tricks

• Read your paper out loud while editing. You will hear different mistakes where a silent reading does not allow you to notice such mistakes.
• Read your paper backwards, from bottom to top. It may sound weird, but it will help your brain to find flaws you wouldn’t see normally.

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