Hundreds of students squeeze their brains every day trying to understand how to write an excellent essay. Are you one of them? Are you trying to reveal some complicated secrets of essay writing?
 
Well, we should say that you are wasting your time. One of the main secrets of an effective essay is its format or the way a paper is organized.
 
Definitely, there are a lot of ways to arrange an essay. However, you are in school and should follow some academic standards. Thus, there is no need to reinvent the bike and squeeze your brains. Simply learn what basic essay format is all about and use these principles every time.
 
Some students say that things like basic essay format kill students’ creative ideas and the right to express themselves in papers. It is not exactly so. You may express any idea and opinion of yours. The point is that basic essay format will make your ideas organized and your work easier. Besides, the reader appreciates basic essay format as well, because it makes getting through a paper easier.
 
So, let us present you the main aspects of basic essay format.
 
Basic essay format: introduction
 
This is what your essay begins with. This first section should answer three important questions:

1. What are you going to talk about in this essay?
2. How are you going to talk about it?
3. What are you going to prove in your essay? (actually, it is your thesis statement).

Basic essay format: body paragraphs
 
Body paragraphs disclose those points made in your thesis. Basic essay format says that the body should be arranged as follows:

• You present a point;
• You explain it;
• You support it.

Basic essay format: conclusions
 
You can go the simplest way here and just restate what you have said in the introduction.
 
Read our next article if you want to know how to layout an essay.