How do I make my essays and speeches stand out? - Tip #1

Answer 1

Have an audience.

Students often write or speak with only one of three audiences in mind: themselves, their classmates, or their teacher.

Having oneself as an audience leads to obscurity in both style and argumentation. Obscurity occurs in style because the student doesn't think about what the audience doesn't know (a writer knows herself, after all!) and doesn't consider strong objections or reservations about her claims.

Having classmates or the teacher as an audience leads to narrow and boring writing and speaking. The student's knowledge of classmates and the teacher is typically limited to classroom experience, and so there is little breadth or variety to what the student can draw upon. Students who write or speak to their classmates become too informal and narrow in focus. Students who write for the teacher are tempted to use false formality and jargon that they hope will impress.

Good teachers want students to write essays that appeal to a specific audience that is different from the student herself or the teacher. The next time you sit down to write an essay, think about who might be a realistic audience for the type of argument you wish to make. Then spend time using examples, experiences, and appeals that draw from what you know or can guess about that specific audience.

Answer 2

Great question. Short answer - Make the content relevant to your audience. The more your audience can see it, understand it, and experience it, the impact you will have. Create example, analogies, and stories that your audience can understand and experience.

Answer 3

You do not specify if you are writing an essay for an undergraduate class. If this is what you meant, here are essential rules to keep in mind:

1. A convincing, well structured and supported paper with a strong thesis will help you stand out. Often, it is not so much about being original as it is about showing you've understood your class discussions and concepts.
2. Do your research, based on class readings, primary sources, secondary sources or external readings if allowed. Outline your ideas to create the foundation for your body paragraphs.
3. Write a specific (no vague terms), debatable thesis statement, which will allow you to go beyond the obvious and the kind of paper that mostly summarizes ideas but does not analyze. Your professor is looking for analyses or interpretations of what is required of you in the prompt.
4. You may want to include a counter argument, which will strengthen your thesis and show that you are being thorough in your argumentation.
5. Support your claims with evidence from the texts you've read or a particular book, if you're writing for a literature paper. Cite adequately in using the style guide your professor required (MLA, APA, Chicago).
6. Provide transitions that connect your paragraphs in a logical way and allow your reader to follow your train of thought. So, make sure that your topic sentences are specific, introduce and connect each paragraph's ideas. A Pocket Style Manual by Diana Hacker is excellent at giving you all the rules you will need and even signal verbs that introduce citations.
7. Do not rush through the conclusion. Very often, professors expect you to wrap up in your last paragraph and explain what you've learned while researching and writing for your essay. This is your last chance to be convincing and address the "So what?" of your thesis.
8. You will also stand out by avoiding many common mistakes. Write your sentences concisely. Delete words that weigh down your sentences. Stay away from passive voice and choose active voice. Use verbs rather than noun strings. Be consistent with tense usage and choose the correct one depending on whether you write for a Government, History or Literature paper.

Answer 4

Adding humor to your writing and speeches--even if they are about serious topics of discussion--is a guaranteed attention getter. Humor helps the writer and subsequently their audience loosen up when it comes to enjoying what they are delivering and receiving on paper, respectively. If you are able to throw in some puns here and there that simultaneously showcase your combination literary and comedic talents, all the better!

Also, the more articulate you are in your speeches when delivering them in person or online as the case may be, the more people will sit up and take notice to what you have to say thanks to your crisp, clear tone of voice and language along with it. This includes making direct eye contact with your audience at all times when standing and speaking before them in person or onscreen accordingly.

It's the little things that count the most. Take advantage of them and they will serve you and your written and spoken work well. :)

Answer 5

This is a little tip that always assured me A's in college.

If you have any freedom to choose your topic and/or argument, always choose something controversial or different from what everyone else is doing. You may also like to attempt to argue against the established beliefs of the certain topic. If you give a good argument based on research, cite your sources well, and write at a respectable level, your essay will stand out. Remember, your professor/teacher has to read maybe hundreds of papers that are very similar, and I guarantee they get bored. You want your paper to grab their attention and interest them on a scholarly level. Maybe they've never heard your perspective on a topic before, and that will impress them. In other words, try and think outside of the box.