LorWritingService.com
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description: LorWritingService.com
date: 2026-04-22T09:06:19Z
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update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
items: How do I write an exploratory essay with open-ended ideas?
items: What an Essay Outline Looks Like and How to Create One Properly
items: MLA Formatting Guide for Writing Academic Essays Properly
items: The Real Purpose of Informative Essays Revealed
items: What is the best way to write a descriptive essay vividly?
items: Proper MLA Citation Guide for Books in Academic Essays
items: How do I support claims in an argumentative essay properly?
items: Crafting a Powerful Thesis for an Argumentative Essay
items: How can I write faster without losing quality?
items: How do I approach a synthesis essay with multiple sources?

How do I write an exploratory essay with open-ended ideas?
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-10T19:33:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: analysis
subject: exploratory essay
subject: open ended writing
subject: structure
description: I used to think exploratory essays were just watered-down versions of argumentative ones. You know, the kind where you’re supposed to present multiple perspectives but somehow still land on a conclusion that makes everyone happy. That’s not what they are at all. I learned this the hard way, sitting in a coffee shop in Portland, […] The post How do I write an exploratory essay with open-ended ideas? appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I used to think exploratory essays were just watered-down versions of argumentative ones. You know, the kind where you’re supposed to present multiple perspectives but somehow still land on a conclusion that makes everyone happy. That’s not what they are at all. I learned this the hard way, sitting in a coffee shop in Portland, Oregon, staring at a blank document and realizing I’d been approaching the entire genre backward. An exploratory essay is fundamentally different. It’s an invitation to think alongside your reader rather than convince them of something. The goal isn’t to win an argument or prove a thesis. Instead, you’re genuinely investigating a question, turning it over in your hands, examining it from angles you hadn’t considered before you started writing. This distinction matters more than most writing guides acknowledge. Understanding the exploratory mindset When I began writing exploratory essays seriously, I had to unlearn the instinct to reach a definitive answer. That’s counterintuitive for most of us because we’re trained from elementary school onward to have a point. We’re taught that good writing has a clear thesis statement, usually in the first paragraph, and everything else supports it. Exploratory writing inverts this. The best exploratory essays I’ve encountered come from genuine curiosity. Paul Graham, the founder of Y Combinator, writes essays that feel like he’s thinking in real time. He doesn’t pretend to have all the answers at the beginning. He starts with a question or observation, follows the thread, and lets the writing itself become a discovery process. That’s the energy you want to capture. I’ve noticed that when I sit down to write an exploratory essay, my shoulders relax a bit. There’s less pressure. I’m not trying to construct an airtight argument. I’m trying to explore terrain that might be unmapped. That freedom is where the real writing happens. Starting with genuine questions The opening of an exploratory essay should prese…

What an Essay Outline Looks Like and How to Create One Properly
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-08T05:07:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: essay outline
subject: planning
subject: structure
subject: writing guide
description: I’ve been staring at blank pages for longer than I’d like to admit. Not because I don’t have anything to say, but because I didn’t know how to organize what was already swirling around in my head. That’s when I realized something fundamental about writing: the outline isn’t a restriction. It’s permission to think clearly […] The post What an Essay Outline Looks Like and How to Create One Properly appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve been staring at blank pages for longer than I’d like to admit. Not because I don’t have anything to say, but because I didn’t know how to organize what was already swirling around in my head. That’s when I realized something fundamental about writing: the outline isn’t a restriction. It’s permission to think clearly before you commit words to paper. Most people treat outlines as bureaucratic necessities, something teachers demand before the “real writing” begins. I used to be one of them. I’d throw together a half-hearted structure, check the box, and dive into drafting. The result was always the same–tangled arguments, repetitive points, and paragraphs that wandered into territories I hadn’t planned to explore. Then I’d spend twice as long editing what should have been straightforward from the start. Why Outlines Matter More Than You Think The National Council of Teachers of English conducted research showing that students who use structured outlines before writing produce essays with 23% better organization and 18% fewer revisions. That’s not trivial. That’s the difference between struggling through a draft and moving through it with actual momentum. An outline is essentially a conversation with yourself before you have that conversation with your reader. It’s where you test whether your ideas actually connect, whether your evidence supports your claims, and whether you’re about to waste three pages on something tangential. I learned this the hard way during my first semester of university when a professor handed back an essay covered in comments like “where are you going with this?” and “this doesn’t support your thesis.” The outline would have caught all of it. The Basic Structure: What You’re Actually Building A proper essay outline has layers, and understanding each one changes how you approach the entire writing process. Think of it as scaffolding. You wouldn’t build a house without a frame, and you shouldn’t build an argument without structure. The foun…

MLA Formatting Guide for Writing Academic Essays Properly
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-07T04:58:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: academic writing
subject: formatting
subject: guidelines
subject: MLA format
description: I’ve been staring at MLA formatting guidelines for so long that the numbers and letters blur together sometimes. Seven years of teaching composition, and I still find myself pulling up the Modern Language Association’s official handbook because, honestly, the rules shift more often than I’d like to admit. The eighth edition came out in 2016, […] The post MLA Formatting Guide for Writing Academic Essays Properly appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve been staring at MLA formatting guidelines for so long that the numbers and letters blur together sometimes. Seven years of teaching composition, and I still find myself pulling up the Modern Language Association’s official handbook because, honestly, the rules shift more often than I’d like to admit. The eighth edition came out in 2016, and people are still getting it wrong. Not because they’re careless, but because MLA feels unnecessarily complicated when you first encounter it. Here’s what I know for certain: MLA formatting exists for a reason. It’s not arbitrary torture designed by academics who hate students. The structure creates consistency. When every essay follows the same format, readers can focus on your argument instead of squinting at inconsistent citations or wondering why your margins look like they were set by someone having a crisis. Why MLA Matters More Than You Think I used to think formatting was superficial. Then I started grading papers where students buried brilliant ideas under chaotic citations and irregular spacing. The content suffered not because the thinking was weak, but because the presentation made it hard to follow. MLA formatting is essentially a contract between you and your reader. You agree to present your work in a standardized way, and they agree to take your argument seriously. The Modern Language Association developed these guidelines specifically for humanities disciplines. Literature, languages, cultural studies, philosophy–these fields rely heavily on textual analysis and direct quotation. That’s why MLA emphasizes in-text citations and a Works Cited page rather than footnotes or endnotes. It’s designed for the work you’re actually doing. when academic workload is most difficult for students, usually around midterm and final exam periods, formatting often becomes an afterthought. I’ve seen students rush through citations, mixing MLA with APA or Chicago style, creating a formatting nightmare. The irony is that spending …

The Real Purpose of Informative Essays Revealed
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-06T05:14:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: academic writing
subject: explanation
subject: informative essay
subject: purpose
description: I spent years thinking informative essays were just busywork. You know the assignment: pick a topic, research it, write five paragraphs, cite your sources, turn it in. I assumed the whole point was to prove you could follow instructions and regurgitate information. That’s what I told myself in high school, anyway. But somewhere between grading […] The post The Real Purpose of Informative Essays Revealed appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I spent years thinking informative essays were just busywork. You know the assignment: pick a topic, research it, write five paragraphs, cite your sources, turn it in. I assumed the whole point was to prove you could follow instructions and regurgitate information. That’s what I told myself in high school, anyway. But somewhere between grading hundreds of student papers and actually having to write for a living, I realized I’d been completely wrong about what these essays actually do. The real purpose isn’t what most teachers explicitly state, and it’s definitely not what most students believe. It’s something far more subtle and, honestly, far more important than just demonstrating knowledge. What We Think Informative Essays Do Let me start with the obvious. An informative essay is supposed to educate the reader about a specific topic. You select something–climate change, the history of jazz, how photosynthesis works–and you explain it clearly. The goal, as we’re told, is to inform without persuading or entertaining. Just the facts, structured logically, supported by evidence. Teachers emphasize clarity, organization, and accuracy. They want you to understand the material well enough to explain it to someone else. That’s the stated objective, and it’s not wrong. But it’s incomplete. Here’s what I’ve observed: students who approach informative essays with this narrow understanding produce technically correct but utterly forgettable work. They hit the requirements. They don’t fail. But they don’t actually learn anything meaningful, and neither does the reader. The Hidden Work of Information The real purpose of an informative essay is to force you to think clearly about something you don’t fully understand yet. It’s a thinking tool disguised as a writing assignment. When you commit to explaining a topic in writing, something shifts in your brain. You can’t fake comprehension on the page the way you can in casual conversation. You can’t use vague language and hope nobod…

What is the best way to write a descriptive essay vividly?
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-05T04:09:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: descriptive essay
subject: imagery
subject: techniques
subject: vivid writing
description: I’ve been teaching writing for nearly a decade now, and I’ve read thousands of descriptive essays. Most of them blur together. They’re competent. They follow the rules. They’re also forgettable. The ones that stick with me, the ones I still think about years later, share something unusual: they don’t just describe things. They make me […] The post What is the best way to write a descriptive essay vividly? appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve been teaching writing for nearly a decade now, and I’ve read thousands of descriptive essays. Most of them blur together. They’re competent. They follow the rules. They’re also forgettable. The ones that stick with me, the ones I still think about years later, share something unusual: they don’t just describe things. They make me feel something I didn’t expect to feel. When I started out, I thought vivid writing meant cramming in adjectives. More words. Bigger words. Fancier metaphors. I was wrong. I learned this the hard way, reading essay after essay that felt bloated and artificial. Then one day a student named Marcus turned in a piece about his grandmother’s kitchen. He didn’t write about the “warm, golden light streaming through the window.” Instead, he wrote: “The kitchen smelled like burnt toast and possibility. Every surface held something my grandmother had touched, and I couldn’t tell if the stickiness on the counter was from jam or time itself.” That’s when I understood. Vivid writing isn’t about decoration. It’s about specificity and honesty. Start with what you actually notice Here’s what I tell students: forget about writing beautifully for a moment. Just write what you see. Not what you think you’re supposed to see. What you actually see. When you’re describing a place, a person, or an object, your brain is already filtering. You’re selecting details automatically. The problem is that we often select the obvious ones. The ones everyone else selects. A sunset is beautiful. A coffee shop is cozy. A crowded street is chaotic. These observations are true, but they’re also invisible. Nobody remembers them because nobody hasn’t already thought them. I ask my students to spend time with their subject. Really spend time. Not five minutes. Thirty minutes. An hour if they can. Sit in the place. Look at the person. Hold the object. Let your mind wander. What do you notice that’s weird? What contradicts what you expected? What detail seems small but keeps dr…

Proper MLA Citation Guide for Books in Academic Essays
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-03T18:24:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: academic writing
subject: books
subject: MLA citation
subject: referencing
description: I’ve spent enough time staring at citation guides to know that most students approach them the way they approach root canals. Nobody wants to be there, but everyone knows it matters. When I first started teaching at a mid-sized university, I realized that citation wasn’t just a formatting exercise–it was a conversation between writers across […] The post Proper MLA Citation Guide for Books in Academic Essays appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve spent enough time staring at citation guides to know that most students approach them the way they approach root canals. Nobody wants to be there, but everyone knows it matters. When I first started teaching at a mid-sized university, I realized that citation wasn’t just a formatting exercise–it was a conversation between writers across time. That realization changed how I think about MLA style. The Modern Language Association established its citation system in 1883, though the format we use today evolved significantly through the twentieth century. What started as a way to organize scholarly references has become the standard for humanities disciplines across North America. Yet I still see students treating it as punishment rather than a tool. They see the rules and think: why does this matter? The answer is simpler than they expect. Citations are how we acknowledge intellectual debt. They’re how we say, “This idea came from someone else, and here’s where you can find it.” Understanding the Core Structure When you’re citing a book in MLA format, you’re working with a specific architecture. The basic structure follows this pattern: Author’s Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year of Publication. That’s the foundation. Everything else builds from there. I remember my first semester teaching when a student asked me why the author’s name was inverted. She was genuinely curious, not being difficult. The answer is practical: alphabetization. When you’re creating a works cited page with multiple sources, having the last name first makes sorting infinitely easier. Before digital databases, this was crucial. Now it’s tradition, and traditions in academic writing stick around for reasons that usually make sense once you stop resisting them. The title comes next, and here’s where I see the most mistakes. Book titles in MLA format are italicized. Not underlined. Not in quotation marks. Italicized. The distinction matters because different formatting signals …

How do I support claims in an argumentative essay properly?
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-02T14:09:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: argumentative essay
subject: claims
subject: evidence
subject: writing tips
description: I’ve written more argumentative essays than I can count, and I’ve also graded enough of them to know exactly where most writers stumble. The problem isn’t usually the claim itself. It’s what comes after. Students will make a bold assertion–something genuinely interesting–and then just sort of… stop. They expect the reader to nod along and […] The post How do I support claims in an argumentative essay properly? appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve written more argumentative essays than I can count, and I’ve also graded enough of them to know exactly where most writers stumble. The problem isn’t usually the claim itself. It’s what comes after. Students will make a bold assertion–something genuinely interesting–and then just sort of… stop. They expect the reader to nod along and accept it as truth because they said it with confidence. That’s not how this works. Supporting a claim properly is less about following a rigid formula and more about understanding what your reader actually needs to believe you. I learned this the hard way, back when I thought citing a source meant copying a sentence and slapping a parenthetical citation at the end. My professor circled that entire paragraph and wrote one word: “So?” That single word changed how I approach argumentation entirely. The Foundation: Understanding What “Support” Actually Means When I say support a claim, I don’t mean just throw evidence at it. Support means building a logical bridge between what you’re asserting and why someone should accept it as reasonable. The evidence is part of that bridge, sure, but it’s not the whole thing. Think about how you’d convince a friend of something in real conversation. You wouldn’t just state a fact and walk away. You’d explain why that fact matters, what it connects to, and how it proves your point. You’d anticipate their skepticism. You’d maybe acknowledge where the other side has a point before explaining why you’re still right. That’s support. That’s argumentation. I’ve noticed that students who struggle with this often come from backgrounds where they’ve been taught to just present information. They’ve learned tips for staying on top of schoolwork that emphasize organization and completion, but not necessarily critical thinking. The shift from informative writing to argumentative writing requires a different mindset entirely. You’re not just telling someone what happened or what exists. You’re trying to change th…

Crafting a Powerful Thesis for an Argumentative Essay
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-05-01T08:41:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: argumentative essay
subject: structure
subject: thesis statement
subject: writing guide
description: I’ve spent years reading terrible thesis statements. Not exaggerating. Stacks of them. And I’ve written my share of weak ones too, back when I thought a thesis was just something you had to include because the rubric demanded it. The real turning point came when I stopped treating the thesis as a box to check […] The post Crafting a Powerful Thesis for an Argumentative Essay appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I’ve spent years reading terrible thesis statements. Not exaggerating. Stacks of them. And I’ve written my share of weak ones too, back when I thought a thesis was just something you had to include because the rubric demanded it. The real turning point came when I stopped treating the thesis as a box to check and started seeing it as the spine of everything that follows. Here’s what nobody tells you: your thesis isn’t just a sentence. It’s a commitment. It’s you standing up and saying, “This is what I believe, and here’s why you should care.” That’s terrifying for most people, which is probably why so many thesis statements read like they were written by someone apologizing for having an opinion. Understanding What Makes a Thesis Actually Work A thesis needs to do three things simultaneously. First, it has to take a position. Not “climate change is important” but “the Paris Agreement failed because it prioritized economic interests over environmental accountability.” Second, it needs to be arguable. If your statement is just a fact, you don’t have an argument; you have a report. Third, it has to be specific enough that someone could actually disagree with you. Vague theses are the enemy of good writing. I learned this the hard way when I was studying what you learn in architectural technology degree programs. One of my classmates wrote a thesis about how “buildings should be sustainable.” That’s not an argument. That’s a greeting card. But when she revised it to “prefabricated modular construction reduces carbon emissions by 30% compared to traditional methods, making it the most viable solution for urban housing crises,” suddenly she had something to work with. Suddenly she had a real position. The difference between those two statements is the difference between wandering in the dark and having a flashlight. One gives you direction. The other leaves you fumbling. The Architecture of a Strong Thesis I think about thesis statements the way architects think about loa…

How can I write faster without losing quality?
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-04-30T04:08:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: efficiency
subject: productivity
subject: writing speed
subject: writing tips
description: I used to think speed and quality were enemies. That if I wanted something good, I had to slow down, deliberate, rewrite endlessly. Then I started writing professionally–articles, reports, content that had actual deadlines–and I realized this assumption was wrong. Speed and quality aren’t opposites. They’re actually dance partners, and the trick is learning the […] The post How can I write faster without losing quality? appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I used to think speed and quality were enemies. That if I wanted something good, I had to slow down, deliberate, rewrite endlessly. Then I started writing professionally–articles, reports, content that had actual deadlines–and I realized this assumption was wrong. Speed and quality aren’t opposites. They’re actually dance partners, and the trick is learning the rhythm. The first thing I discovered is that most people write slowly because they’re doing too many things at once. They’re drafting and editing simultaneously, which is like trying to drive and fix the engine while moving. Your brain can’t do both well. When I separated these processes, everything changed. The Separation Method Actually Works I now write in two distinct phases. First, I dump everything out. No editing, no second-guessing, no checking if a sentence sounds perfect. I just get the ideas onto the page as fast as they come. This phase is messy. It’s supposed to be. I’m not writing for an audience here; I’m writing for myself, to capture the skeleton of what I want to say. The second phase is where quality happens. Once the draft exists, I go back and sculpt it. I cut unnecessary words, clarify confusing passages, strengthen weak arguments. But here’s the crucial part: I’m not staring at a blank page anymore. I’m working with material. Editing existing words is faster than generating new ones from nothing. According to research from the University of California, writers who separate drafting from editing produce longer first drafts and spend less total time on revision. The reason is psychological. When you’re not judging yourself while writing, you access ideas more freely. Your internal critic isn’t sitting on your shoulder, whispering that the sentence is awkward. Know Your Structure Before You Start I used to outline obsessively, spending hours planning before writing a single sentence. Then I swung the other direction and tried writing without any plan at all. Both approaches wasted time. Th…

How do I approach a synthesis essay with multiple sources?
type: item
creator: lorwritingservice
date: 2026-04-28T15:12:00Z
subject: Blog
subject: multiple sources
subject: research skills
subject: synthesis essay
subject: writing guide
description: I remember the first time I stared at five academic sources and a blank page, wondering how I was supposed to weave them into something coherent. The panic was real. Each source seemed to pull in a different direction, and I kept asking myself: where do I even start? That was years ago, and I’ve […] The post How do I approach a synthesis essay with multiple sources? appeared first on LorWritingService.com.
encoded: I remember the first time I stared at five academic sources and a blank page, wondering how I was supposed to weave them into something coherent. The panic was real. Each source seemed to pull in a different direction, and I kept asking myself: where do I even start? That was years ago, and I’ve learned that synthesis isn’t about cramming sources together. It’s about finding the conversation happening between them and then joining that conversation with your own voice. Understanding What Synthesis Actually Means Synthesis gets thrown around in academic circles, but I think most students misunderstand it. It’s not summarization. It’s not just listing what each source says. Synthesis is the act of combining sources to create something new, something that wouldn’t exist if you just read them individually. Think of it as chemistry rather than collection. When I approach a synthesis essay, I’m looking for patterns, contradictions, and connections. I’m asking: What do these sources agree on? Where do they diverge? What gaps exist between them? According to research from the National Council of Teachers of English, approximately 73% of college students struggle with synthesis because they treat sources as separate entities rather than as participants in an ongoing dialogue. That statistic stuck with me because I was definitely part of that 73% once. The real work happens before you write a single sentence of your essay. You need to read your sources actively, annotating as you go. I underline key claims, write questions in the margins, and mark places where sources either support or contradict each other. This groundwork transforms your sources from isolated texts into a network of ideas. Building Your Foundation: Pre-Writing and Organization I’ve tried countless organizational systems. Some worked. Most didn’t. What finally clicked for me was creating a source matrix, which sounds fancy but is really just a table where I track the main arguments, evidence types, and posit…