Some of us love writing, and some of us don’t. When it comes to writing long essays with a minimum page or word count, it can be a real challenge to get your essay to reach that minimum (especially for a complex or boring topic).
Under pressure, you might resort to increasing font size or expanding your margins. Sure, this will increase the number of pages you’ve written, but it won’t help you reach that elusive minimum word count.
Writing more words can be agonizing, which is why this article will provide you with ten easy tips to make an essay longer.
1. Understand the assignment
If you’ve received a brief, prompt or rubric for your essay, start by re-reading it. Take it apart bit by bit and ask yourself:
- Have I answered all the questions?
- Do I have evidence to back up all my claims?
- Can I add any more information to help the reader better understand my argument?
- Did I meet all the requirements in the brief?
If you didn’t shout “Yes!” to each one of these questions, it’s best to go back and revise your essay. You want to provide your readers with as much relevant information as possible while aligning your work to the brief you received.
You can make use of the Smodin Omni to help you here. This smart AI tool is the ultimate homework solver and tutor and can help you spot gaps in your content.
2. Do more research
Meeting the minimum word count won’t be easy if you don’t do enough research.
An essay can almost always be improved by adding more information. If you make any claims or have a strong argument, you need to have the research to back it up.
Smodin’s AI Writer can help you find additional interesting facts to include in your work. The AI-powered tool can even generate references, which you can investigate further for more information.
Shallow research means you’ll have fewer points to discuss. The more research you do, the deeper you’ll dive into the topic. Students who conduct as much research as possible may find themselves exceeding the word count requirement, cutting back text to stay in the word count range.
3. Elaborate on descriptions or explanations
We’ve always been taught to write concisely, but when it comes to essay writing, sometimes it’s acceptable to elaborate on descriptions.
Fluff is unacceptable, of course, so don’t just write for the sake of writing. But if your explanation or description adds value, then go ahead and add it to reach the required word count.
Sometimes it is difficult to spot where you’re lacking. Smodin’s AI Essay Writer is a helpful tool when it comes to elaboration on explanations or overcoming writer’s block. If you’re struggling to find more words, simply prompt the AI Essay Writer and let it provide you with useful information to include.
4. Use examples and case studies
Including examples and/or case studies is an easy way to make an essay longer.
Using multiple examples is even better.
Examples not only strengthen your argument but also help to drive up the paper’s word count. If you have an entire case study to back your claims or drive your point home, it’s a good idea to include it.
These don’t always have to be real-world examples either. You can use story-telling and metaphors to reaffirm what you’re saying. The Smodin AI Writer can be a very helpful tool when thinking of elaborate examples to include in your essay writing.
5. Change your structure and flow
You’ve probably created an outline before putting pen to paper, as it were. If you’re a diligent writer, you would’ve stuck to your outline for the entire essay.
However, the outline you created before you started writing is not always the way to go. Once you’ve completed your essay but found yourself short on words, you may have to review your structure to check if you:
- Included all your key arguments
- Can restructure it to include more information
Restructuring your content will not only give you more words but can also improve the flow of your essay.
Sometimes it is impossible to spot where you can make changes, especially if you’ve read and re-read your essay half a dozen times. Smodin’s Free AI Paraphrasing Tool can help you restructure your content and create plagiarism-free, high-quality sentences with impeccable flow.
6. Address counterarguments
Most essays focus on only one idea. But, if you want to make an essay longer, you can include a counterargument or different viewpoints.
Even if you’re writing a persuasive essay, including a differing opinion can add bulk to the text while increasing the word count. It also shows your ability to think about topics critically and engage with thinking patterns other than your own.
You can even substantiate the counterarguments by adding evidence in support of them – adding more words and value in the process.
7. Ensure your work is original
Copy-pasting someone else’s work may be a quick way to add some extra words, but you’ll also get flagged for plagiarism.
If you find additional information to make your essay longer, it is crucial to write it in your own words. This will allow you to elaborate on the text you want to include, adding valuable extra words.
To ensure uniqueness if you use AI to write, you can try the Smodin AI Detection Remover. This tool will ensure that your work adds value without being flagged for AI.
8. Have someone else proofread your work
A second pair of eyes can be incredibly beneficial to help you spot gaps in your content. Because of all your research, you have a sound understanding of the topic.
When you ask someone else to read your essay (preferably someone with no knowledge of the content), they can spot areas where you need to add more information or strengthen your argument.
9. Use transitional phrases
We touched on the flow above. A well-written essay flows smoothly from one sentence or paragraph to the next.
Transitional words or phrases can help to improve your flow – plus, they add a couple of extra words to your essay.
Some examples of transitional phrases and words to include are:
- However
- Because
- On the contrary
- Above all
- First of all
- It should be noted
These small additions will quickly make an essay longer and enhance the reading experience.
10. Use quotations
Quotes take up space. You can use relevant quotations (sparingly) to increase the length of your essay.
The emphasis here is on relevance. You shouldn’t stuff your essay full of quotations just for the sake of it. Each quote you include must be related to the point you’re trying to make.
Find thought experts in the field you’re writing about to back your opinions. Or, use the personal experience of others to weave a tale.
Just make sure always to back up your quotes with citations.
FAQs
Is it ethical to use AI to make my essay longer?
Yes; the tools offered by Smodin are completely ethical to use. As long as you use AI to enhance the quality of your essay and not artificially increase your word count through plagiarism, you’re in the clear.
How do I know if my essay is too long?
If you have no maximum word count to stick to, knowing when to stop writing when inspiration hits can be a challenge. An essay is too long if it starts “collecting” fluff (irrelevant content) and/or becomes repetitive. It’s best to write concisely, giving just enough information to prove your point.
How important is revision in extending an essay?
Very! During revision, you’ll be able to spot where there are gaps in the information, where more evidence is needed, or how you can expand and clarify your arguments.
Wrapping Up
Essay writing can be daunting if you’re running out of time and still have a blank page staring you in the face.
Fortunately, you can adopt some easy and practical tips to make an essay longer (without increasing the font size!).
Not only will these techniques help you reach your minimum word count, but they will also produce a well-thought-out and well-researched essay.
Tools like Smodin can also help you overcome your essay-writing challenges. These smart AI writing tools can help you research, write, and improve your essay’s structure, taking the stress of essay writing off your shoulders.
Remember, quality over quantity! And Smodin can get you there.
