Essay Writing & Managing a Reading list:

• Other people’s essays/notes: if you can’t make a lecture or you know someone who’s already written the essay, this is a great source of info. Most people are more than happy to share – just use it to inform you, don’t copy or plagiarise!
• Reading lists: so helpful yet intimidating they deserve their own section:

Navigating a reading list:

One of the big changes from school is that you have to find many of your own resources, often based on a reading list (I’m still undecided if a really long or really empty list is better). 

• Usually, the lists are too long and impossible to complete, so prioritise; no-one will read everything.
• That said, some things are more important to read than others.
  • If you’re writing about primary texts (English, languages, politics, philosophy etc.), you should prioritise these. If it’s too long, try to read at least one chapter / a sample, so you can at least blag with SOME idea of what the tone/style is. My friends have written multiple essays using just sparknotes; is it useful – of course; Sparknotes is your friend, but having only one friend is unhealthy, no?
  • Some reading lists use symbols like asterisks or colours to indicate which texts are essential.
  • Ask! Many universities use student support documents (or something similar) which outline your health/condition(s) and what access arrangements you need, and which get sent to your teachers so you don’t have to explain yourself repeatedly (good, huh? – try asking your tutor or disability support centre for info). One access arrangement is the option for simplified (i.e. shortened) reading lists, so if you’re struggling for whatever reason you can ask your essay supervisor to recommend which readings are most important.
  • Find at least one ‘introduction to’ / ‘guide to’ book; they often have useful overviews of different features you might like to cover all in one place – you can use it to inform what line of enquiry you pursue, and what you read next.
  • See if you can find an audiobook version or if the textbook has an online edition. Most computers have a read aloud function if you don’t mind a robotic voice. Some people find it easier to listen to books and can be useful if you are running low on energy.
  • Articles online can be shorter and pack in just as much useful info. A book isn’t necessarily more relevant to your essay just because it’s printed.

When reading:

• You don’t have to read the whole book – find the most relevant chapter(s), or use the index for the specific pages you want
  • If the book is quite dense or heavy going I find setting yourself a chapter or number of pages to read in each session is a good way of working through a book rather than trying to get through it in one long chunk. This will help keep you focused and make sure what you are reading is actually going in rather than just scanning through to try and finish the whole book.
• Online books / articles are great for searching for key terms, saving you reading time.
• When you’re making notes, write down the page number for each quote/note you take. EVERY. SINGLE. ONE. You’ll thank me later.
• As with lecture notes, how you make notes is up to you, but if you’re torn between handwriting and typing, I’d go typed: don’t underestimate the relief & satisfaction of being able to search for keywords and quotes when you’re mid-essay, desperately trying to remember who said that really great line that would work just perfectly to back up your point here… 
• Rephrasing: If you’re typing, remember that copying and pasting quotes from online books and articles is easier, but it won’t necessarily stick in your brain the same way as it would if you reword it and typed it out. It’ll boost your own understanding, but I accept it can take longer, so you have to find your own balance here.
• Be confident: I am guilty of over-note-taking, because I’m convinced every word of every academic text is invaluable and 100 times better than my ideas. You might find impressive, great ideas, but if they aren’t relevant to your essay then save yourself time and skip them, you don’t need to note down the entire book. 

Writing:

• MAKE A PLAN. I cannot stress this enough. Aim for at least one page, ideally two, and have all of the points you want to make; it’s much better to spend time getting confident with your plan than starting to write too soon and having to start over. 
  • Your plan and structure is up to you, and often depends on the nature of your title/question, although you’ll always need an introduction and a conclusion (don’t stress about how long or what percentage of your essay these are, a standard paragraph for each is fine so long as you include what you need)
• If you find the quotes as you go or when drafting your plan, you’ll save time when writing and you won’t forget to include any zingers.
• The beginning is, of course, a very good place to start: introductions can be fairly formulaic so you know what to include (explain the question and its context, define key terms, outline your argument(s) and conclusion), making it easier to write even when you’re unsure about the rest of it. That said, if you want to start somewhere else, do – it’s your essay, your work, do what suits you.
  • Try not to just repeat the question in the introduction. Avoid the sentence “In this essay I shall “repeat essay title here” 
• Everyone works differently: I like blocking out a full day and just knuckling down to write; other people prefer to write gradually, and intersperse it with other work. Find what suits you; for all the procrastinators out there, if you’re going to write at the last minute at least plan beforehand so you can see if you are going to struggle and might need to seek more help or spend longer writing.
• Be calm. You’ve written millions of paragraphs at GCSE and A level where you argue a point. Whatever variation of Point, Evidence, Explanation/analysis Evaluate, Link you learned, you can use it here – it’s not babyish, it’s a great way to be clear in your writing. University essays are different, but that’s not to say that you don’t already have the skills to write them! Likewise, you don’t have to use PEEEL etc. – there’s a lot more freedom to pursue your arguments and thoughts, without worrying about a rigid structure of for, against, for against; many university essays aren’t yes/no debates like that anyway.
• Try to limit your paragraphs to 100-300 words; keep it reader-friendly.
• Take regular breaks.
• Referencing: you may be asked to use a specific referencing format, so we won’t give an example, but you can find useful reference generators online like this one: Cite This For Me: Harvard, APA, MLA Reference Generator
  • Some people like to reference as they go; I personally do it at the end, when I can celebrate not having to think anymore and just copy and paste footnotes, but it’s a personal choice. 
• Have a break (at least an hour, ideally overnight) before you reread it; check coherence, grammar, spelling; these often slip through the net when you’re writing lots at once and get tired. 
  • If you’re having a mind blank or panic, go and do something else; chat with a friend or call home, do something happy to distract yourself
• This sounds bizarre, but I needed to hear it, so I’ll say it here: you do not need to work in a library or at a desk to be a ‘proper student’ or to write high quality work. The person reading it will never know if you were in bed all day writing, and if that’s what you need to do for your health, your essay won’t suffer because of it. 

When the writing isn’t going well:

• Ask for a deadline extension. It’s not failing in the least; every single student I know has at one time or another missed a deadline or had to ask for an extension. It can be one of the access arrangements suggested in your student support document, so that your supervisors should approve it without challenging you.
  • N.B. If you’re writing a coursework or exam essay, you need to ask for the extension ASAP as there will probably be an application process.
• If you are really struggling and won’t be able to write an essay even with an extension, don’t worry: you can ask for permission to submit an essay plan instead of an essay. Yet again, you can ask for this to be suggested in your student support document. 
  • N.B. This is unlikely to be possible for coursework essays etc.
• Remember that it is your learning and education, so if writing the essay completely is going to burn you out and is impacting on your health and other work, unless it’s a coursework or exam essay it doesn’t have to be perfect or complete. 

Good luck, stop striving for perfection or procrastinating (is anyone ever in the middle?) and do what you can. That’s enough.