1) Read other people's essay
Reading other people's essay can help you develop and build on your own essay-writing style. Try to read a range of other essays, including those of your peers and academics. Read essays on a wide variety of subjects, not necessarily just those that you are studying; different disciplines might apply different kinds of arguments or styles, so the wider you read, the more possible techniques there are for you to pick up and use in essays of your own.
As you read other people's essays, do not just take them at face value. Be critical: what do you like about them? What do not you like about them? How persuasive do you think they are? Is the argument a balanced one, with points adequately supported with evidence? Has the writer used any techniques you have not seen before? Essays should be balanced, so you can learn from the the best of these writers and pick up some techniques to help you shape a balanced piece.
2) Build and use your vocabulary
A good vocabulary will allow you to express exactly what you mean, as clearly and concisely as possible. Economy with words is a characteristic of all good essays, because readers do not like having their time wasted with long, rambling points that could have been expressed in half the number of words.
One way of ensuring that you can communicate clearly and to the point is through accurate and effective use of advanced vocabulary. A good essay writer should never rest on their laurels when it comes to vocabulary; it is something you should be working on continually, as there are always new words to learn that could help convey a point more effectively. What is more, deploying a good vocabulary displays intelligence and allows you to be more persuasive in your essay-writing.
Put the new words you have learned to good use right away, perhaps setting yourself the challenge of including a minimum number of new ones in each you write. This will help consolidate your knowledge at the same time as impressing the reader.
One important thing to remember, though: do not use big word just for the sake of it. Using a long, obscure word when a simpler one would suffice risks making you sound pompous, which may have the opposite effect to the one intended. What is more, be wary of adding words for the sake of it; cut the waffle by reviewing each sentence and removing any words or sentences that do not add anything to what you are saying. Ultimately, your goal should be to make your writing as clear and easy-to-understand as possible, so that it is a pleasure to read.
3) Use words to help develop an argument
Part of sounding intelligent in an essay is not repeating yourself; as you are writing, focus on using language effectively to help build an argument and create a sense of structure. To that end, avoid using the same word every time; many people overuse the word "also", for example. Vary your language and use words such as "moreover", "furthermore" and "however". Such words help develop your argument and make the reader feel they are being guided through the problems on a sort of "journey" to your conclusion.
4) Tone of voice
The most important consideration when you are writing is making yourself easy for readers to understand; but you can still do this and utilise a range of interesting syntax at the same time. Employ a variety of sentence structures, long and short, but do not let your sentences become too long and rambling or they become difficult to read. Effective punctuation is vital in conveying your arguments persuasively; the last thing a teacher or lecturer wants to read is an essay riddled with poor grammar. What's more, the reader should not have to read a sentence more than once to understand it.
Writing in the active rather than passive voice is a well-known trick of the trade that writers use to give their writing a sense of immediately and make it more compelling; you too can deploy this technique in your essays by steering clear of the passive voice. Over the course of an entire essay. you'd be surprised what a difference this makes to your tone.
5) Elevator pitch
The elevator Pitch is a technique used by salespeople when condensing the arguments for buying a product into the shortest possible summary of why customer should consider a purchase. The salesperson is told to imagine themselves i a lift; in the time it takes for that lift to reach the desire floor, they should have given a compelling argument in favour of that product that would result in the customer buying it, or at least wanting to know more. Your Elevator Pitch for your essay should sell the idea of it to a reader, leaving them wanting to read the essay in question. This is quite a tough exercise, as it forces you to be ruthlessly concise in your thinking and choice of words; but you can use this summary to help you write your introduction, and it'll help you achieve clarity in what you are trying to say.
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