50-Point Essay Checklist: How to Write an A+ Essay

Essay writing can be manageable if you take a strategic approach to the process. Yet it still requires your close attention. The variety of requirements, including the format intricacies and language peculiarities, can make your head spin. It’s easier to forget something than not.

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However: This will never be the case if you use the following all-inclusive essay checklist made by our custom writing service for you. It covers everything, from structure to formatting with examples. Learn how to write an A+ essay right here. Or even print the practical checklist out! And remember, you can always ask “Write my essay, Custom-Writing,” and we’ll help you right away.

1. 📄 Structure

Let’s explore the organization as the first section of our checklist for writing an essay. The logical structure is the first thing you should start editing. Ignore it, and everything is lost. Nail it, and it’ll be a perfect start for an ideal essay for you.

1Does your essay have an introduction (about 10% of total word count), conclusion (about 10% of total word count), and several body paragraphs (the rest of word count)?Yes
No
2Does your essay have a thesis statement at the end of the introduction paragraph? (a sentence or two briefly summarizing your main conclusions)Yes
No
3Does your thesis statement rock?
A. Does it express a distinct point of view?
B. Does it pass the ‘so what’ question?
C. Does it give a roadmap for the entire paper?
Yes
No
4Is the rest of the paper connected with the ideas expressed in the thesis statement?Yes
No
5Does your introduction contain an attention hook (an interesting fact, a quote, stats, a story, or disturbing observations)?Yes
No
6Do your main body paragraphs have a hamburger structure? An opening sentence that briefly summarizes the main point you’re going to present. Actual arguments with supporting evidence. A concluding sentence that repeats what the paragraph has said.Yes
No
7Are there transition sentences between the different sections of your paper that make it flow?Yes
No
8Is your conclusion free from any new information not covered in the previous sections?Yes
No
9Does your conclusion offer any directions for further research or practical implications of what has been discussed?Yes
No
10Is your essay easy to read? Are the sentences reasonably long? In case you need to introduce some urgent fixes, try using a free sentence rewriter that will immediately alter your writing.Yes
No

2. đŸ”€ Grammar

Grammar should not be disappointing for a reader. What’s more, it shouldn’t be an issue for your paper. This part of the essay writing checklist illustrates the top 10 points about grammar. They deserve your attention!

11Subject-verb agreement
Wrong: She and her friends goes to the zoo.
Correct: She and her friends go to the zoo.
Yes
No
12Pronoun-antecedent agreement
Wrong: Everyone has unwrapped their presents.
Correct: Everyone has unwrapped his or her present.
Yes
No
13Tense shift
Wrong: She said she will be a rock star.
Correct: She said she would be a rock star.
Yes
No
14Faulty parallelism
Wrong: She likes singing, dancing, and to chat with friends on Facebook.
Correct: She likes singing, dancing, and chatting with friends on Facebook.
Yes
No
15Passive voice
Wrong: The window was closed by my sister.
Correct: My sister closed the window.
Yes
No
16‘There are’ sentences which can be usually improved.
Wrong: There are 20 students in our class.
Correct: Or class has 20 students.
Yes
No
17Vague pronoun reference
Wrong: Jim offended his stepfather, but it did not stop him from asking for help.
Correct: Jim offended his stepfather, but it did not stop the young man from asking for help.
Yes
No
18Misplaced or dangling modifiers
Wrong: When writing an essay, requirements can be unclear.
Correct: When writing an essay, a student can find requirements unclear.
Yes
No
19Apostrophes
Wrong: The students’ studying rituals’ can be extraordinary.
Correct: The students’ studying rituals’ can be extraordinary.
Yes
No
20Easily confused words:
Affect/effect, accept/except, lead/led etc.
Yes
No

3. 📝 Essay Style

Style is like your face as a writer. It can make all the difference between a Facebook post and an A+ paper for you. So, make sure you’ve polished it with our checklist for essay writing.

21No slang or semi-official language (awesome, cool, kids)Yes
No
22No contracted forms (isn’t, he’s, etc.)Yes
No
23No phrasal verbs (get off, go on, sit down.)Yes
No
24No vague and overused words, such as things, matter, stuff.Yes
No
25No first-person pronouns (I, we, my, our) *Unless it is required in your task.Yes
No
26Some sentences start with impersonal pronouns (It is argued that It is believed that
)Yes
No
27Some sentences include modal verbs can, could, may, might, which soften your claims.Yes
No
28All judgments are cautious and non-discriminative (no blacks and Indians, but African Americans and Native Americans.)Yes
No
29Connecting words act like glue, connecting the different parts of your essay, and making the relations between them clear.Yes
No
30No biased opinions. All claims are supported by arguments and research of trusted scholars.Yes
No

4. ⚠ Punctuation

Punctuation matters as well—don’t avoid it while revising. Hold on; just a few final touches will bring you one big step closer to your super quality academic essay.

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31No sentence fragments
Wrong: Although caffeine can have negative implications for a nervous system.
Correct: Although caffeine can have negative implications for a nervous system, students drink a lot of coffee when studying for finals.
Yes
No
32Comas after introductory elements
Wrong: When it comes to the choice of a movie people differ in their tastes.
Correct: When it comes to the choice of a movie, people differ in their tastes.
Yes
No
33No superfluous comas
Wrong: Dark chocolate can have a number of positive effects, such as, enhancing cognitive ability and keeping awake.
Correct: Dark chocolate can have a number of positive effects, such as enhancing cognitive ability and keeping awake.
Yes
No
34No run-on sentences
Wrong: He passed all exams and his friends invited him to the beach.
Correct: He passed all exams, and his friends invited him to the beach.
Yes
No
35Commas with non-restrictive elements
Wrong: My coat which I bought the day I met John was old fashioned, but I loved it.
Correct: My coat, which I bought the day I met John, was old fashioned, but I loved it.
Yes
No
36No quotation marks for emphasis
Wrong: There is no such thing as “free” lunch.
Correct: There is no such thing as free lunch.
Yes
No
37Punctuation within quotation marks
Wrong: “To be or not to be: that is the question”.
Correct: “To be or not to be: that is the question.”
Yes
No
38Conjunctions, connecting smaller parts of complex and compound sentences.
Wrong: We wanted to stay at home we found a great series on TV.
Correct: We wanted to stay at home, and we found a great series on TV.
Yes
No
39No misplaced hyphens
Wrong: Home-work free holidays are every student’s dream.
Correct: Homework-free holidays are every student’s dream.
Yes
No
40No monotonous sentence structures
Wrong: I cooked dinner. I watched TV. I went to bed early.
Correct: I cooked dinner before I started watching TV, and it allowed me to go to be earlier.
Yes
No

5. 📰 Essay Format

The format is the last but not the least step to an A+ paper for you. The essay checklist below will show you which features are to consider while editing.

41Margins 1 inch (2.54 cm) on all sidesYes
No
42Font Arial (or Times New Roman) 12Yes
No
43Double spacingYes
No
44Title page (if it’s not MLA style)Yes
No
45Reference listYes
No
46Properly formatted in-text quotationsYes
No
47Every in-text quotation has a corresponding entry in the reference list.Yes
No
48Every entry in the reference list has at least one in-text quotation.Yes
No
49All critical information (stats, figures, scholars’ discoveries) has citations showing where it was found.Yes
No
50Appendices (if any) start on a new page after the reference list.Yes
No

So, that was a quick but comprehensive self-editing essay writing checklist for you. We hope now you understand how to write an A+ essay. Please let us know if it helped you eliminate some errors from your papers.

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This article was developed by the editorial team of Custom-Writing.org, a professional writing service with 3-hour delivery.
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