An expository essay is different from an argumentative or argumentative essay and, therefore one should follow different rules when writing it. Knowing the purpose of this essay type should help students understand how to develop such essays. It is only when one realizes what is the purpose of the writing, that he or she can dig in to find out how to write an expository essay. Typically, expository essays are to explain a particular topic logically. This type of writing is meant to present an unbiased analysis of a subject based on credible information or facts containing no references to the author’s emotions or personal opinions. So if you have the expository writing assignment, you have to go from what an exposition is. As we have mentioned above, it is nothing but a comprehensive description of something (concept, idea, theory, etc.) Read the article below to understand how to write it, or if you do not have time to research you can buy an expository essay from our expert writing service!
7-Step Expository Essay Writing Guide
Step 1. Select a topic and write a thesis statement. It makes sense to start by choosing a topic for your essay. Sometimes you are given one by your teacher and then you don’t have the headache of coming up with your topic. However, if you have to develop your topic then you need to make sure it will be narrow enough. Some people choose too wide topics that cannot be squeezed into one essay and this becomes a problem. Keep in mind that you have word count limits and you need to have a topic you will be able to manage within those limits. After you have a topic for your expository essay, you need to come up with a thesis statement. It is the sentence that brings the message of the main idea for your writing. This is the cornerstone of your essay upon which you will be building up the entire thing.
Step 2. Choose a development method. When you have a topic along with a thesis sentence, you can move on to choosing a development method. This is where you plan how the exposition will be presented. There are 5 basic development methods you should know about; their names say it all so there is no need to explain them in detail. They are definition, example, compare and contrast, cause and effect, and classification. Select the one that suits your topic and thesis statement developed in step 1.
Step 3. Organize your content. You have to know what parts of the essay you are going to have before putting your thoughts on paper. Writing an expository essay is not some kind of a chaotic frenzy; that is you don’t describe something as you go. Good expositions are always well-planned comprehensive descriptions. At this stage, you have to think about the major divisions of your writing: introduction, main body paragraphs, and conclusion.
Step 4. Develop topic sentences for your body paragraphs. This is where you bring your plan to implementation. Now that you know how many body paragraphs you are going to have in your essay, you should furnish topic sentences for all of them. These topic sentences should be directly related to the thesis statement you have developed in the beginning. They will serve as a skeleton of your expository essay upon which you will be putting some muscles.
Step 5. Write the body paragraphs. Now is the time to put some muscles on the skeleton. You can write your body paragraphs describing your idea or concept following the development method selected and backing it all up with evidence. Keep in mind that each paragraph should develop the support for your paragraph’s topic sentence.
Step 6. Develop your introduction. Although it may seem like the introduction writing belongs to the earlier stages, it is not so. It is much easier to work on the introduction when you have composed the main body of your expository essay. It is important to have your thesis statement within this section as well as to include an engaging opening to gain the readers’ interest.
Step 7. Writing the conclusion. Expository essays should have a strong conclusion that is to be based on the preceding paragraphs. At this stage, you have to restate the thesis and main points of your essay. Don’t try to present any new information as this will make your essay confusing; stick to the things you have mentioned and make a summary of your exposition. This way you will be able to bring your essay to an effective close.
Final Remarks
Knowing how to write an expository essay is all good but putting all of the aforementioned thoughts to practice, takes time and experience. Don’t get upset if something doesn’t work out as you planned. Providing a comprehensive description isn’t easy as it requires staying away from your personal opinions and evaluations. This is very difficult to do. But practice makes it all possible. Besides, following the guide above will be a good head start for those undertaking to write an expository essay.