The situation might be very familiar to you – you are writing your essay, and everything goes pretty much okay until you finish it and find out that your essay doesn’t meet the requirements on word count. This is trouble! What can you do to avoid failing this assignment? Let’s find out the easy ways to increase your paper’s word count.
Add Some Quotes
Using a few quotes throughout your paper is one of the easiest ways to increase the word count. Just look through some researches and works regarding the topic of your essay and search for good quotes that can either support your point of view or just add some value to the evidence that you put in your paper. Sometimes a good quote can be a great opening sentence, especially when you are writing a literature essay.
Make sure you are familiar with the rules regarding quotations. You can find them in the syllabus provided by your professor. Also, don’t put too many quotes, as it will seem a little weird. A few of them will be enough. If you still don’t hit the required word count, keep reading this post.
Throw in Some Transitional Words
Let’s confess – all students sometimes use some fancy and unnecessary words when writing academic papers. But transitional words are actually needed when you have to make your paper’s flow smoother and nicer.
Reread your paper and check if there are some sentences that seem a little chopped. For example, when you need to get to another statement or when you compare different points of view, there should be a transitional phrase which might be:
- Therefore, as a result, hence, thus
- On the other hand, in spite of, nevertheless, in contrast
- In fact, for example, for instance
- Namely, specifically, additionally
- In conclusion, finally, eventually, on the whole, to sum up
Don’t be afraid to use these phrases to amplify your pints and smoothly transition from one fact, example, or idea to another. Especially when it comes to the opening and concluding parts of your essay.
Add More Depth
Sometimes you might think that your point is quite clear without any explanations. But it’s not always so. If you need to increase your paper’s word count, go back to the parts where you can add some depth to the arguments. For example, you might add more detail, illustrate your idea with an opposite point of view for comparison or demonstrate your deep knowledge on the topic by adding extra facts.
You might also need to add a few more examples or mention additional sources if you think that there is not enough supporting evidence. Be sure to do it only in case it’s appropriate, as too many examples will overload your piece.
Work on Introduction and Conclusion
The opening and concluding parts of your essay are as important as the rest of it. In most cases, students start working on their papers without having a steady outline and add more details or ideas as they go. As a result, the introduction part might not be as good as the following body parts. You can go back to the first few paragraphs and edit them to add more information, for example, some basic background or facts regarding other research on the topic that you have found in the process.
The conclusion is also one of the parts that are usually pretty brief and concise. When you have to add something to your essay, don’t just summarize your paper in one sentence; make sure you make this part as complete as possible. In general, your conclusion should give an excellent understanding of the topic.