Essays: Fusilli not Spaghetti

If your essay was pasta, what would it be – fusilli or spaghetti?

I spent all my time at college thinking essays were like uncooked spaghetti – long, straight, and easy to follow.

To me, the spaghetti essay process was:

However, after reflecting on thousands of student essays and reports, I have realised the folly of my ways. The essay process isn’t spaghetti. It’s pasta spirals, properly called fusilli:

Fusilli go round and round, not arrow-straight like uncooked spaghetti. The essay-writing process is also more spiral than straight. It looks like this:

Getting Started:

That gets you started, but you need to add in writing as early as possible:

Middle stages:

First, let me briefly explain this somewhat counter-intuitive process, and then tell you the benefits of it.

The essay cycle process

1. The question – Start with the question and make sure you fully understand it. Most essays ask for your argument or evaluation. Seldom will you be asked merely to describe something.

2. An overview – As soon as you understand the question, there are two questions:

• What do I already know? And,

• What can I find out quickly?

For the first, brainstorm the question.

For the second, read a few overviews. Look in a couple encyclopedias or dictionaries for introductions. Don’t start with a dense and deep book unless you are already proficient in the topic. Start with an overview, and then drill down for depth.

The Reference Section of the Library is great for this.

(Also, when you find overview articles, note the sources they reference – these are usually the significant scholars on your topic.)

3. Thesis – As early as possible, write your initial thesis statement.

This is your one-sentence answer to the essay question. It is probably not very good yet, and that’s all right. The point is to start with a basic answer and then modify it as you work through your essay. Expect to revise it several times as you keep improving your answer.

4. Outline – Now outline your argument. What are your few best points? Plan how you will argue in a couple clear points why your thesis is correct.

Hint: Avoid minor points and details in this. Use your best few arguments, which will usually be big points. The introductory articles you read in step 2 should guide you towards this.

Again, your argument is probably not yet very good, and that’s all right. The point is to start your thinking process, and this section is tentative. By continually revising your outline, you are continually thinking about your answer.

Keep asking yourself what are your big arguments. Keep the details in their supporting role, or leave them out if they don’t help! Go for big, clear, main points over mountains of detail. The details will then insert themselves only when you need them.

5. Sources – Now that you have a tentative outline and initial answer, start your deeper research. Use sources your lecturer recommended, references from your overview readings, or references you found in the Library catalogue and databases. But control yourself. Start with your best sources, and read just enough sources to help you revise your thesis, improve your outline, and improve your argument.

6. Writing – Seriously consider writing a few sections as you go:

• Write when you have a fair idea of what you want to say for a section, and

• Write when you need to think further. A lot of academic research coaches push this as writing to think. They argue that by writing when it’s hard, you force yourself to clarify your thinking and arguments. You realise what you do know. And you see those places where you need to do more thinking or reading. So try writing to think. It helps you think more clearly, even though you normally toss out what you write.

From here on, you repeat this cycle, adding sources, refining your thesis, and sharpening  your main arguments. Occasionally, write to think. And when it is time to write your final draft, you will write a better essay and you will write more quickly.

Benefits:

The benefits of this spiral process include:

• You save time, and write a better essay, probably with less work.

• You develop your answer from day one. You don’t just accumulate data and then search for the answer.

• You figure out your main points from the start. And the main points are where you develop clarity and make your case. All the details either support those main points or need to be tossed out.

• Starting with smaller overviews helps you focus on the main arguments on your topic. It also can lead you to a few good sources.

• By reading just enough sources, you have several advantages. First, you focus on only the best sources (see my posts on relevance and reliability of sources). Second, you restrict yourself to just enough sources to get the job done well. Third, you have time to add sources where you need them, as you need them. Finally, you can go back in the end and add a few more ‘to spice up your essay’ if you have time. Quality sources always beat quantities of sources.

• By developing your thesis, basic argument, and outline from the start, you are always ready to write something. If something goes wrong – sickness, family emergencies, life – then you can probably write something.

• Writing to think has a few advantages. First, it clarifies your thinking on unclear points and can provide rough drafts for different parts of your essay. And that means you can write your final draft more quickly and confidently.

• Finally, good thinking takes time. This process gets you thinking at the start, and helps you to clarify your thinking throughout the essay process.

So, you’ve got less than a fortnight to write your next essay. Go for fusilli spirals, not raw spaghetti.