This isn't a blog in the usual sense; the whole idea is that you use it when you need to.
Think of it as a resource like a blender in the kitchen or a jack in the car.
So why not store it in the garage or kitchen cupboard (aka your bookmarks).
Then you can take it out when you need it and use it for that funeral, that wedding, that retirement party.
Or even that difficult letter, that killer comment on the blog or that convincing reply.
You can even use it like a sort of comment resource. Instead of going for the person like we all usually do, why not use it to see what happens if you say, "If only we had..." or even "most experts might raise an eyebrow at this."
So go on, bookmark it now!

Ласкаво просимо до всіх українців! Сподіваюся, ви знайдете це корисним. Якщо вам потрібна будь-яка форма коментарів у блогах, будь-яка форма офіційних листів, будь-яка політична заява, це хороший шаблон. У нашому містечку у нас є українська церква, і я мав честь відвідати там похорон. Тут хороня моя хороша подруга місіс Робінсон (українка, пов'язана, на мою думку, з маршалом Тимошенко, який залишає чоловіка-англійця і трьома дітьми).

Вы можете перевести это, нажав (Select Language) Выбор языка выше

Добро пожаловать всем российским и британским читателям. Я надеюсь, что ваши навыки эссе улучшить!

Anyone for an Essay?: How do you start your post, comment, tweet,speech?...

Anyone for an Essay?: 
This is intended for experts who are getting - dare I? - stale, it is intended for those who find writing - anything - difficult and for busy people who want some fresh ideas for their blogpost, comment, local newsletter…

How do you start?

There is the computer staring at you waiting for your input.

So how do you start? How do you feed the hungry screen?

Most people use their favourite couple of arguments all the time. And they have their favourite ways of starting off too. And we don't realise we are doing it.

It's summer!

Change into something fresh for a change!

Here are some different approaches. Why not try a different one for a change? Take your pick - then click!

1. Be nice.
2. Help the reader/audience with some timely advice.
3. Explain succinctly what you are going to say.
4. Start with a story.
5. Explain exactly what the opposition are on about.
6. Tell a joke.
7. What do the audience want from you? Meet their need.

OK.

Now for the paragraphs…

Done that?
Here are some ideas for an unforgettable climax!

OK.So now you have thought of a killer first paragraph.What about the rest?

1. President Trump/Karl Marx/Heinrich Himmler would agree with all of that. But it would be much more civilized to…
2. I think this is really a bit sexist/ racist/ Islamophobic/ unacceptable (etc) myself. Here's why...
3. Everyone does it. Come on! It is quite normal to…
4. How out of date all this is! We need to move on a bit. And here's how...
5. How would you like it if someone did that to you? There are victims here...
6. Let's just define what we are talking about...
7. Actually the facts don't support this argument. The most recent figures are these...
8. I think there are three separate things going on here. The first is...
9. Everyone knows that stealing is wrong/ hitting women is wrong/ people should be treated fairly (etc). This means…
10. I believe that Shakespeare/Confucius/Winston Churchill (or pick your own: Madonna? ) once said...
11. This is a very complicated subject. Let's just break it up into its separate parts shall we. First...
12. OK. So if we do this, what will be the probable result?...
13. True or false? Helpful or dangerous? Which one are we talking about? Let's look at the alternatives...
14. (Pick a celebrity who holds opposite views to your own.)Well he/she would say that! Let's take a sneaky peak into their lives, shall we? Let us, for example, take a look at...
15. Fair's fair! The same rules should apply across the board. So is this a fair discussion? I don't think so...
16. OK. So something is not quite right. Who is to blame?...
17. People should support... And here's why...
18. A funny thing about this topic is... (Pick something unusual).
19. Everyone thinks that... Actually this is not the case at all. Here's why...
20. Oh yes! (Name a public celebrity who is on the other side of the argument.) That is rich coming from her/him! (Now put the boot in).
21. Let's not play the blame game. There is nothing wrong in...
22. It would have been better, looking back, if...
23. I think that... is rather like marmite/spaghetti/minestrone (or something completely ridiculous like a...) ... it would have been a mistake if we had...
24. Think of a nickname for a famous personality who is interested in what you are discussing. Now talk about their views using the nickname.
25. Post hoc, propter hoc: just because things happen after other things, that does not imply cause.

Please notice that you can click on each suggestion for a fuller explanation of the idea. I would like to thank the great Aristotle for inspiring this idea in his Rhetoric. He was the personal teacher and coach, of course, of Alexander the Great.

Anyone for an Essay?:

Anyone for an Essay?:

Descriptive writing.

Here's a couple of hints.
I am not going to show the address because I do not want to show a fellow writer up in public.

Cut the adjectives (and, yes, the adverbs too)!

“And so, I’m going for a swim,” she declared, dropping her white cotton sundress on the chair behind her. Without a second thought, she ran out toward the water. A refreshing dip into the splashing waves would do wonders to clear her mind and wash away the stickiness from the melted shaved ice.
She wasn’t surprised that Jason was fast on her heels. They splashed into the water at precisely the same moment. Tessa watched as he expertly dove into an oncoming wave as she jumped it. When he resurfaced, Jason’s smile took her breath away.

Is this a bit better?

“And so, I’m going for a swim,” she declared, dropping her dress on the chair behind her. Without a thought, (better perhaps: Impulsively?) she ran toward the water. The waves would do wonders to clear her mind and wash away the stickiness.
She wasn’t surprised that Jason was on her heels. They splashed into the water at the same moment. Tessa watched as he dove (dived?) into a wave as she jumped it. When he resurfaced, Jason’s smile took her breath away.

Here is a master of writing who uses adjectives reluctantly:

Eventually they put Reacher in a car and drove him to a motel a mile away, where the night clerk gave him a room, which had all the features Reacher expected, because he had seen such rooms a thousand times before. There was a raucous through-the-wall heater, which would be too noisy to sleep with, which would save the owner money on electricity. There were low-watt bulbs in all the fixtures, likewise. There was a low pile carpet that after cleaning would dry in hours, so the room could rent again the same day. Not that the carpet wold be cleaned often. It was dark and patterned and ideal for concealing stains. As was the bedspread. No doubt the shower would be weak and strangled, and the towels thin, and the soap small, and the shampoo cheap. The furniture was made of wood, all dark and bruised, and the television set was small and old, and the curtains were grey with grime.
All as expected. Nothing he hadn't seen a thousand times before.
But still dismal.

If you read through Lee Child and cut any of his adjectives out, you spoil the sense.
And see how he puts exactly the right one at the very end of the phrase to give it emphasis.

Anyone for an Essay?:

Anyone for an Essay?:

Now what?

Note for Exam people: GCSE/AS/A level.

Andrana, if you are reading this – well done! Andrana is one of my best students ever. She went to an ordinary Comprehensive in UK. She was desperate for me to teach her how to write an essay for her exam. I thought she was being modest when I arrived at her house to coach her.
Andrana was obviously bright. She was also very anxious to succeed both in her exams and in her life.
The trouble was that her teacher at school never actually explained how to write an essay. So Andrana had no idea!
When you can do something – cook scrambled eggs, drive a car, play football – it is so easy to assume that everyone (except terminally stupid people) can do it too. Essays like, yes, scrambled eggs, need to be taught.
So this site is for that.
It is relevant. It is simple to work.
It is full of traditional and well tried ways.
So I hope that you begin to share my passion for writing as you set forth on your essay.

This is from the AQA site:

4.3.2 Original writingStudents will produce one piece of original writing based on one of the following three areas:The Power of PersuasionThe Power of StorytellingThe Power of Information
The power of persuasiona piece of investigative journalisma speech delivered on a controversial topica letter to an MP.The power of storytellinga short storyan extract from a biographya dramatic monologue.The power of informationa piece of travel journalisma blog focusing on social issuesa piece of local history.

To date, the blog which you are reading has given six very helpful hints as to how to start your piece of writing.
It has also given over 20 different ways of starting a paragraph and how to set about filling that paragraph up with interesting and compelling sentences.
Finally it has given three ways to finish your piece.
Whatever you happen to choose to write about, these hints will give you a good start and set you apart fom the rest of the pack.



Go for it!