The worst mistake you can have in writing essays is failing to answer the question being raised. An essay is almost always intended to address a specific issue or to defend or attack a particular argument. You should be able to grasp the topic wholly so that you will know what areas to look into. Your essay can fail instantly if it does not hit the topic directly.

Discussing at full length the topics related to the question asked but not the question itself, no matter how good it is, will make your essay useless. It is not enough that you keep a mental note of everything. If there are important points that are essential in your essay, write it down on a piece of paper and pin it on your notice-board or in a place where you can always see it. You should always keep in mind that you are not only writing for the sake of writing but is answering a specific question.

Analyse that question. Ponder on it.

Essays can sometimes go as long as a chapter of a book without addressing the issue and most of the time, students are oblivious of it. You must answer the given question, not go around it. “Am I answering the question?” should always be in your head the entire time, especially when you are writing your first paragraph and finishing up with your conclusion. You would not want to leave your reader thinking “Then? What’s next?” So make it clear. Answer the question.