Common Essay Types

Generally, there are three types of essays that students from middle school, high school and college will encounter. These are: expository essays, persuasive essays and narrative essays. Most of the time, the teacher will assign a particular subject for the essay but there may be instances that you will formulate it on your own.

Expository essays

Expository essays are the most common type of essay that students are tasked to write. Expository basically means explaining or describing a particular subject or matter. This format entails that the writer will explain his or her ideas to the readers. You may be tasked to explain a process, compare and contrast two ideas or things, explain a cause and effect relationship, write a review or critic, define and discuss. The main objective of expository essays is to give information or exposition on a particular subject or matter. You can also add examples, facts and anecdotes to support the information in your essay.

Persuasive essays

A persuasive essay is another easy essay format that you can write. As expository essays are to inform, persuasive essays are to convince. You need to win your readers over to the idea that you are presenting to them in your essay. It is also your objective to convince them of a course of action that you want them to take, such as participating in an advocacy, voting on a certain matter or subscribing to a certain theory. You need to supply all the essential details that will make your persuasive essay credible so that your readers will believe whatever you might have to say. To make your persuasive essay effective, remember to narrow down your topic so that the readers will easily identify it. Also, make sure that your thesis statements are constructed precisely and add the necessary facts to support you idea. Being well- versed and knowledgeable in your topic will help your ideas flow cohesively. Be sure to acknowledge and weigh the other side of your argument so as not to your make essay biased.

Narrative essays

Basically, narrative essays tell a story, report a certain event or describe an experience. Narrative essays are usually, but not limited to, first person point of view. For narrative essays to be effective, writers should be able to craft sufficient and vivid details to make the story engaging for the readers. Thesis statements are also very important components of narrative essays so that readers can get the gist of your paragraphs in one sentence.

Narrative essays can also come in a voice of a fictional character, or even a historical character. For example, you can write in a third person point of view President Abraham Lincoln’s life. To start writing narrative essays, ask yourself the basic questions: who, what, where, when and how. Don’t forget about your thesis statement, as it will guide you to not drift away from your main idea.

These basic types of essays can also be applied to other forms of writing projects. Journal writing is a great way to practice expository and narrative essays and you can practice every night by choosing a particular subject. Poetry can also be expository, narrative or persuasive, as words do not strictly have to rhyme. In text messaging you can also try to go for the expository format when explaining something to your friend. You can also apply the three formats in the lyrics of songs so make it more appealing and understandable for the audience. Finally, always remember that constant practice will greatly help improve your writing skills and the organizational flow of your ideas.