The Most Difficult Aspect of Writing an Essay, Ranked

Voting rules: Choose the aspect you think is the most difficult!

Updated on May 1, 2024 06:23

Writing an essay often feels like navigating through a maze of ideas, where each turn represents a unique challenge. These challenges vary widely from writer to writer, making it insightful to determine which aspects are universally daunting. By identifying these common pitfalls, writers can better prepare themselves and improve their writing process. This list serves as a dynamic gauge of collective experiences, shedding light on the nuances of essay writing that stump even seasoned writers. By participating and voting, you contribute to a broader understanding of writing difficulties, helping others find solutions to similar issues. Your input is crucial in shaping a more comprehensible guide for all.

What Is the Most Difficult Aspect of Writing an Essay?

1

61
votes
Choosing a topic

Writer

One of the most difficult aspects of writing an essay is choosing a topic that is both interesting and relevant. This is because the topic will determine what information to include and how to structure the essay.
Choosing a topic is one of the most difficult aspects of writing an essay. It involves the process of selecting a subject or theme that is both intriguing and relevant to the essay's purpose. The topic chosen plays a crucial role in determining the direction, scope, and overall quality of the essay.

Importance: Critical for essay's success

Relevance: Must align with essay's purpose

Intrigue: Should captivate and engage the reader

Originality: Preferably not too common or overly done

Accessibility: Should be able to gather enough research material
2

45
votes
Researching

Researching the topic can be time-consuming and challenging, especially when trying to find credible sources. It is important to use reputable sources to support the arguments in the essay.
Researching is the process of gathering and analyzing relevant information and data to support the arguments and claims made in an essay. It involves investigating various sources and exploring different perspectives on the topic to ensure accuracy and credibility.

Time-consuming: Researching requires a significant amount of time and effort to find reliable sources, read and analyze the information, and extract relevant data.

Information gathering: Researching involves collecting information from various sources such as books, scholarly articles, websites, interviews, surveys, and other credible resources.

Evaluating sources: It is crucial to critically evaluate the credibility, relevance, and reliability of sources during the research process.

Note-taking: While conducting research, note-taking helps in organizing and documenting important information, ideas, and references for later use.

Data analysis: Researching requires analyzing and interpreting gathered data to derive meaningful insights and support the essay's arguments.
3

28
votes
Organizing thoughts

Once the research is done, organizing the thoughts and ideas can be difficult. It is important to create an outline and decide on the main points to be covered.
Organizing thoughts is the process of structuring and arranging ideas or information in a logical and coherent manner within an essay. It involves determining the main points, subtopics, and supporting details, and establishing a clear and effective flow of information throughout the essay.

Main Points: Identifying and defining the main ideas or arguments that will be presented in the essay.

Subtopics: Breaking down the main points into subtopics or sub-arguments to provide more depth and structure.

Supporting Details: Gathering relevant evidence, examples, or research to support each main point or subtopic.

Logical Order: Arranging the main points and subtopics in a logical and coherent order that reinforces the overall argument or thesis statement.

Transitions: Using appropriate transitional words or phrases to guide the reader smoothly from one idea or paragraph to the next.
4

15
votes
Writing a thesis statement

The thesis statement should be clear and concise, and it should state the purpose of the essay. It can be challenging to write a thesis statement that encompasses all the main points of the essay.
Writing a thesis statement is one of the most challenging aspects of essay writing. The thesis statement lays the foundation for the entire essay and provides a concise summary of the main point or argument that the essay will address. It helps guide the reader's understanding and serves as a roadmap for the essay's content.

1: Clear and concise

2: Specific and focused

3: Debatable or arguable

4: Provides a specific claim or main argument

5: Typically located in the introduction
5

18
votes
Developing an introduction

Essay writers and scholars

The introduction should be engaging and should introduce the topic of the essay. It can be difficult to come up with an opening that captures the reader's attention.
Developing an introduction is considered one of the most difficult aspects of writing an essay. It involves setting the tone, capturing the reader's attention, and providing a clear thesis statement to guide the rest of the essay.

1: Introduction must be engaging and captivating

2: It should introduce the topic and provide necessary background information

3: The thesis statement should be concise and clearly state the main argument

4: The introduction should create a logical flow into the body paragraphs

5: It should grab the reader's attention and make them interested in reading further
6

7
votes
Writing strong paragraphs

Each paragraph should contain one main idea and should be well-structured. It can be challenging to write strong paragraphs that flow well and support the thesis.
Writing strong paragraphs is a crucial aspect of essay writing. It entails the skill of organizing ideas and presenting them coherently in a structured format within the confines of a single paragraph.

1: Unity: A strong paragraph focuses on a single main idea or topic.

2: Topic sentence: Each paragraph begins with a clear and concise topic sentence that introduces the main idea.

3: Supporting evidence: Strong paragraphs provide evidence, examples, or arguments to support the main idea.

4: Coherence: Ideas within the paragraph are logically connected and flow smoothly from one to another.

5: Transition words: Effective paragraphs use transitional words or phrases to connect and transition between ideas.
7

12
votes
Avoiding plagiarism

Plagiarism can result in serious consequences, so it is important to properly cite sources and avoid copying content from other sources. It can be difficult to properly cite sources and paraphrase information without accidentally plagiarizing.
Avoiding plagiarism is the act of ensuring that one's work is original and does not contain any content that has been copied or closely imitated from another source without proper citation or acknowledgement.

Importance: Critical for maintaining academic integrity and upholding ethical standards in writing

Methods: Quoting, paraphrasing, and proper citation of sources

Consequences: Academic penalties, damage to reputation, and legal implications

Tools: Plagiarism detection software, citation generators, and style guides

Recognition: Acknowledging the original author or source
8

10
votes
Editing and proofreading

Editing and proofreading are crucial to ensuring that the essay is free of errors and flows well. It can be challenging to catch all the errors and make sure the essay is polished.
Editing and proofreading is a crucial stage in the essay writing process that involves carefully reviewing and refining the content, structure, grammar, and style of the essay to ensure clarity, coherence, and accuracy.

Purpose: To improve the quality and effectiveness of the essay by eliminating errors and polishing the writing.

Tasks: Checking for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors; ensuring proper word choice and sentence structure; reviewing the overall flow and organization of ideas.

Tools: Spell checkers, grammar checkers, style guides, and editing software.

Skills: Strong knowledge of grammar rules, attention to detail, critical thinking, and excellent language proficiency.

Importance: Editing and proofreading enhance the credibility of the essay and improve its readability, ensuring that the intended message is effectively communicated.
9

5
votes
Meeting word count requirements

Essays often have specific word count requirements, which can be challenging to meet while also covering all the necessary information. It can be difficult to balance the amount of information with the word count.
Meeting word count requirements is one of the most challenging aspects of essay writing. It involves ensuring that the essay meets the specified length or word count criteria set by the instructor or the guidelines. It requires carefully crafting the content to be neither too short nor too long, while effectively conveying the intended message.

Word Count Range: The specified word count range that the essay needs to fall within.

Clear and Concise Writing: The essay should be written in a clear and concise manner to minimize unnecessary wordiness.

Thorough Research: Sufficient research should be conducted to gather relevant information and support the arguments within the word count limit.

Effective Organization: The essay should be well-organized with a logical flow of ideas, ensuring that all essential points are covered within the word count.

Avoiding Repetition: Repetitive sentences or information should be avoided to save word count and maintain concise writing.
10

5
votes
Concluding the essay

Writer

The conclusion should summarize the main points of the essay and leave the reader with a lasting impression. It can be difficult to write a conclusion that effectively wraps up the essay.
Concluding the essay refers to the process of wrapping up the main points and arguments presented in the essay in a concise and meaningful manner, providing a sense of closure and leaving a lasting impression on the reader.

1: Summarizes the key points

2: Restates the thesis statement

3: Provides a final thought or reflection

4: Connects back to the introduction

5: Avoids introducing new information

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Discussion

Ranking factors for difficult aspect

Topic selection

Choosing a suitable and engaging topic that is both interesting and relevant to the target audience.
Research and information gathering

Finding reliable sources, evaluating their credibility, and synthesizing the information to form a coherent argument.
Thesis statement

Crafting a clear and concise thesis statement that outlines the main argument or central idea of the essay.
Organization and structure

Organizing the essay effectively and efficiently with a clear introduction, logically ordered body paragraphs, and a strong conclusion that ties everything together.
Coherence and flow

Ensuring that the essay flows seamlessly from one idea to the next, with logical connections between sentences and paragraphs.
Critical thinking and analysis

Analyzing and evaluating the ideas in the essay, questioning assumptions, and making well-reasoned arguments.
Clarity and conciseness

Communicating the ideas and information effectively and clearly, without unnecessary jargon or wordiness.
Tone and style

Maintaining an appropriate tone and style throughout the essay that is suitable for the intended audience and purpose.
Grammar, punctuation, and spelling

Ensuring that the essay is free from errors, and follows the rules and conventions of standard written English.
Revision and editing

Reviewing and refining the essay through multiple drafts, taking into account feedback from peers, teachers, or professional editors.
Time management

Allocating enough time for research, writing, revision, and editing to produce a polished and well-thought-out essay.

About this ranking

This is a community-based ranking of the most difficult aspect of writing an essay. We do our best to provide fair voting, but it is not intended to be exhaustive. So if you notice something or aspect is missing, feel free to help improve the ranking!

Statistics

2596 views
207 votes
10 ranked items

Voting Rules

A participant may cast an up or down vote for each aspect once every 24 hours. The rank of each aspect is then calculated from the weighted sum of all up and down votes.

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More information on most difficult aspect of writing an essay

Writing an essay can be a daunting task for many students, regardless of their academic level or experience. While the process of essay writing may seem straightforward, the reality is that it requires a significant amount of time, effort, and skill. One of the most challenging aspects of writing an essay is getting started. Many students struggle with finding a suitable topic, conducting research, and organizing their thoughts into a cohesive and coherent structure. Additionally, the writing process itself can be nerve-wracking, as students try to express their ideas clearly and concisely while adhering to strict formatting and citation guidelines. Despite the challenges, mastering the art of essay writing is essential for academic and professional success.