Has this ever happened to you? Professor: Where is your thesis statement? Student: … If so, don’t worry. You’re not the first person to struggle with writing a thesis statement, and you won’t be the last. This part of essay writing has vexed many college students, but luckily, I’m here to show you the ropes. …
You’ve spent quite a bit of time in your English classes writing argumentative essays. You’ve even gotten pretty good at writing on the topics your instructor assigns. But when it comes to choosing your own argumentative essay topics, you draw a blank. It’s not that there aren’t any good topics to choose from. It’s that you …
There are tons of scary stories—ones filled with ghosts or vampires or zombies. But in my opinion, there’s nothing scarier than the stories that show what the world could be like if left in the hands of the wrong people. One of the books that demonstrate this point the best is George Orwell’s 1984. And …
If literature isn’t your thing and you’ve been reading long, boring novels all semester, the chance to read and write about a short story might be just what you need to get interested in literature again. After all, everyone loves a good story, and a short one (especially when it comes to reading something you’re …
Ask any old person (that is, anyone over the age of 40) about what it was like researching and evaluating sources 20+ years ago. They’ll tell you about a strange process of going to the library to read books, take notes, and make copies—all without using a single computer. Another strange anomaly of researching in …
Most of us have heard the arguments about the devastating effects of global warming. We’ve also heard the arguments that the entire idea of global warming is a hoax. While the topic continues to be debated, what’s not debatable is that you need to write an essay about global warming. (Yes, really, you do. Did …
Do you love a good monster movie? Do you enjoy a gruesome fight between the hero of the story and the evil nemesis? If you do, I bet you’d love to read an epic poem translated from Old English about monsters and a hero, right? Okay, so epic poetry translated from Old English may not …
You’re looking for a great compare and contrast essay topic to kick start your assignment. How can you choose an interesting topic that’s simultaneously narrow yet broad enough to provide you with plenty of great material? In this blog post, I’ll give you 70 compare and contrast essay topics. I’ve also included links to sample essays …
Ever have the grand idea to bake a super-amazing birthday cake for your significant other, then realize that you have no idea how to bake? If your baking skills are anything like mine, you probably struggled a bit and worried that your cake would taste more like the cardboard box the cake mix came in …
Some of the greatest figures in our human history have been rule breakers. There were the American revolutionaries who refused to pay their taxes without being represented in the British parliament. There was Nelson Mandela who joined the African National Congress and fought against Apartheid, which had been the law of the South African land …
I know what you’re thinking. Another Shakespeare play to analyze? I get it. Shakespeare can be hard to read. But here’s the thing… Shakespeare wrote some of the most well-known and most replicated plays. Ever. The themes he uses can be found throughout literature and film even today. So right now, we’re going to explore …
“All the world’s a stage, / And all the men and women merely players.” Don’t worry, you didn’t miss a line while you were reading. This particular quote is from one of Shakespeare’s other plays, As You Like It. However, it perfectly sums up The Taming of the Shrew. It can be argued that everyone …
All semester you’ve known you’d have to write an argumentative essay. You figured you had it made because you had what you thought was a surefire plan to rework last semester’s paper about gun control. Then your prof dropped a bombshell. Along with the assignment guidelines, she included a list of banned topics. All the …
When I arrived at the monkey exhibit at the zoo, it was 3:00 p.m., and there weren’t many people around. There was only one small girl wearing white shorts and blue flip flops and her mom, who was holding a bag filled with snacks and souvenirs from the zoo. When I looked for the monkeys, …
Here’s something you might not know about me. I have amazingly keen powers of observation. Right now, I see a student looking for a little help on an observation essay. Pretty good, huh? But an observation essay isn’t just about listing what you see. In a way, it’s like narrative writing. You need to frame …
You’ve decided to write a persuasive essay, and the topic you’ve chosen is cyber bullying—specifically, something should be done about it, but what? The core, or the “guts,” of your essay should come from your own thoughts and views on the issue. To really make an impact, though, you should support your arguments with citations …
Interviews can be fascinating stuff. Watching an interview with your favorite celebrity can keep you on the edge of your seat because you want to know everything about what makes that person tick. On the opposite side of the spectrum are the dull interviews that are about as fascinating as watching paint dry. What makes …
Who says all good books have to be happy ones? The Grapes of Wrath certainly proves this is just not the case. It takes place during the Great Depression, so you know right away that it’s not going to be a particularly uplifting story. But just because the story has a lot of depressing elements …
Have you ever wondered what it might be like to just aimlessly wander the country, enjoying the journey instead of worrying about the destination? If so, Jack Kerouac’s On the Road might be the perfect book for you. Many people say that this is a book that changes their whole view on life. That’s because …
Let’s say you just moved into your dorm room, and you’re moving in with a heavy, awkward, flat box that’s soon to become your TV stand. When you open the box, the directions are text only. There are no images to show what screw A or fastener B actually look like and no diagrams to …
Over the years, I’m sure at least some of your teachers have used unique writing assignments to help you learn. Maybe you learned about the Civil War by writing a letter from the point of view of Abraham Lincoln. Or maybe you learned about character and plot by re-writing the ending of Hamlet. Some topics …