日本では、9月の4連休は、各地の観光地で、コロナ後最高の人出だったとか。ニュースで見た空港や高速道路の混雑ぶりにびっくりしました。

You got your essay assignment, but where do you begin?

First, you need to comprehend the purpose of your assignment. Are you supposed to describe, define, analyze, or argue something? Second, assess how much you already know about the topic and whether you need to do additional research. Do some brainstorming by jotting down the ideas you already possess about the topic to formulate questions for research. Third, consider how many pages you are expected to write and when the assignment is due to create a timeline for the assignment.

Let's say you have one week to complete a 5-page paper. These general guidelines will ensure a stress-free writing experience.

Day 1 Do some research. Focus on specific questions to thoroughly investigate the topic. While reading, take plenty of notes and remember to record the sources you use to cite them properly later and to avoid plagiarism.

Day 2 Review your notes. Based on the collected information, create a rough outline with the major points reflecting your main idea. This outline will most likely change, but it will help you see whether you have presented a strong argument and whether you need to do additional research.

Day 3 Engage in freewriting. Following your rough outline, write freely about your topic based on what you have learned from research and include any other ideas that come to your mind. In other words, for your first draft, generate ideas without paying attention to grammar or correct word choice. Don't worry about having an introduction yet, or especially a conclusion. Maybe you can craft a tentative thesis statement at this point, articulating the main idea of the essay. Now set aside your paper for a few hours or return to it the next day. Seeing your paper with fresh eyes will allow you to be a better judge of your writing. You'll be able to detect what's accomplished, what's lacking, and what's irrelevant in your writing. Moreover, once you have activated your brain, you will be thinking about your essay throughout the day and creating some new ideas as you are doing other things.

Day 4 Revise and organize your first draft. Ask yourself the following questions: Are the major points of my argument stated clearly? Are they arranged in a logical order? Is my thesis statement clear? Do I repeat some ideas? Did I forget to explain something? You can also add an introduction. But do not waste your time correcting grammar and vocabulary during this writing stage. Again, leave this second draft alone for a while.

Day 5 Continue revising your essay. Shift your attention to the reasoning within the paragraphs and logical connections between paragraphs. Make sure the introduction creates the context for the whole paper. Check if you have thoughtful topic sentences that reflect the main point of the paragraph and sufficient commentary for the quotes. Incorporate logical transitions between ideas within and among the paragraphs. Add a conclusion. You may also need to remove irrelevant or repetitive statements, but do not delete them right away; cut and paste them on a blank page as they may come in handy during the next revision process. Also, for more logic and clarity, move some statements to different paragraphs, or arrange paragraphs differently.

Day 6 Revise your sentences for lower-order concerns. It means you work on improving grammar, word choice, and punctuation.

Day 7 Review the whole paper one more time for surface issues such as typos or issues with grammar and vocabulary that you may have overlooked earlier. Hooray! Now you are ready to submit your essay!

This is an example of purposeful and confident writing. The timeline I have suggested gives you an approximate idea about the process of essay writing. If you get a smaller or bigger assignment, you adjust your planning accordingly. Carefully planning your writing will save you time, energy, and possible frustration. Remember, we are not born good writers; we become good writers.