How to Write an Opinion Essay

Talking about academic writing, it is inevitable to pay due attention to the specifications of the opinion essay. It is one of the typical kinds of writing for international exams, college or university admissions, and similar experiences. That explains why I learned about this essay type only when I decided to participate in the international student exchange program.

To be honest, it is one of the simplest yet most responsible types of academic writing that presupposes ultimate attention to detail, maximum accuracy, and consistency. At some point, I was ready to start looking for the professional assistance of online writers, but fortunately, Brandon noticed my struggles and helped me out. He is exceptionally experienced in essay writing, so he provides me with profound guidelines and tips every time I am stuck with a specific assignment.

The very first sentence he told me was hilarious. He mentioned that for writing an opinion essay, you need to have an opinion. Does it sound crazy? Believe me, it is the exact point you need to start with.

Although I was getting used to a persuasive essay, a narrative paper, and other forms of academic writing, crafting an opinion text turned out to be a real challenge.

What Is an Opinion Essay

As a college student, I need to produce different types of assignments often. Therefore, a cause and effect essay, narrative paper, and a variety of other writing tasks seem to be trivial, while an opinion essay is something completely new and different. It took me a few hours and constant Brandon's help to cope with the task and get an opportunity to succeed with the exchange program.

In fact, it is quite a common type of academic writing where the writer should evaluate different opinions to find out the strong and weak points that can either support or destroy your strategy.

Opinion Essay Definition

Opinion essays are widely known as "agree/disagree" papers. Most commonly, they often come up in the writing exams. Additionally, some teachers and professors assign this task to test the student's ability to support a specific viewpoint.

Opinion Essay Outline

As mentioned in various guidelines and recommendations, you need to start your work with an extended, complex outline. It will guide you through the writing process, giving you the necessary level of motivation and inspiration. There is hardly any student who will deny that a well-structured outline may help avoid the devastating writer's block, drawing closer to the desired result.

If you occasionally have an opportunity to analyze numerous opinion essay examples, you will learn to detect basic outline statements right away. Follow the pattern to produce an impeccable essay worth the highest grade.

Introduction. Just like with an argumentative essay or any other type of academic writing, an opinion text should start with the relevant opening passage. Introduce the topic, grab the reader's attention and intrigue the audience with an excellent thesis statement. Make a short plan of the introductory passage.
Body paragraphs. Following the traditional structure, the opinion text should include a few paragraphs to convey the main ideas and reveal the theme. Every next paragraph should be related to the previous one, still introducing a completely different issue. At this point, sophisticated writing skills are inevitable for students to find the link between each part of the writing. Unknown facts, supporting ideas, and crucial statements should support each paragraph of your essay. Keep in mind that you are working on the outline, so you need to mention 1-2 sentences for each body paragraph. Double-check that they are logically-built, concise, and comprehensible. These sentences will help you come up with a well-structured paper later.
Conclusion. It is inevitable to mention a meaningful sentence or phrase that will help you summarize your essay.

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing an Opinion Paper

Primarily to the beginning of your work, it is inevitable to choose an opinion essay topic. If your professor has provided one, then you can skip the first and the most daunting task. Instead, you can proceed directly to researching and outlining your essay. Besides, I want to emphasize an important rule Brandon repeats every single time: "You need to decide on your viewpoint right when you know the topic of your opinion paper." Crafting this type of paper, you will basically have to introduce your opinion and provide various facts, statistics, and other data that will support your point of view. Therefore, this is the mandatory step that should never be skipped.

Once you know the basic requirements of this type of academic writing, you know how to write an opinion essay. Check out extra tips that may speed your work and improve the quality of the final paper.

Collect information on the topic before you start writing.
Include only relevant and up-to-date evidence that will support your viewpoint.
Consider different ideas, techniques, and concepts that can contribute to the efficiency of your essay.
Convey a strong link to the subject of your text.
Mention unknown facts that will intrigue your readers and make your paper informative, catchy, and engaging.
Keep the opinion essay short, concise and exciting.
Mind the target audience and choose your style accordingly.

What Are the Various Types of Opinion Essays

There is hardly any college student who does not know that every academic writing type has its subtypes. If you strive to write an interesting opinion essay, you need to double-check some important aspects.

The writing style, basic methods, and techniques you use in the paper should depend on the readers.
Irrespective of all the other features and specifications, the personal opinion should be included. In fact, it is the basic point in your paper.
Talk to your professor to get the detailed instructions about a specific type of opinion paper you need to produce.

Finding Examples of Opinion Essays Online

Similar to other types of academic writing, opinion essays should be concise, logical, and relevant. However, even if you know all the theoretical rules, it may still be complicated to craft an excellent paper. From my own experience, I can tell that having an example of a flawless paper may help you achieve the desired effect much faster.

Browse the Internet, searching for the essay samples. Find out a beneficial format of writing an opinion essay, style, and other ideas that can contribute to the high quality of your text.

Opinion Essay Structure

Are you sick and tired of browsing the web, bothering your friends, and asking your professor various questions about the assignment? Here is detailed information on how to start and how to end an opinion essay. No need to search for extra tips and guidelines, as they are all gathered in one place. These recommendations are not only helpful but exceptionally efficient, as most of the conclusions have been made from my personal experience.

The Introduction

When Brandon explained the basic principles of opinion essay writing, everything seemed as clear as day. However, the moment I started working on the assignment, the situation changed immediately. First of all, I had no idea how to start an opinion essay, how to impress the readers, make them interested and involved. Fortunately, after some time reading the examples of flawless papers and listening to Brandon giving instructions once again, I managed to produce a profound introduction.

If writing an opinion essay seems overwhelming, just take a deep breath, relax and recollect everything you were told. Check out efficient tips that will help you prosper with the assignment:

The first impression is crucial, so you need to make the introductory passage catchy and exciting.
Present the subject under discussion.
State your personal attitude towards the issue.
Finish the introduction with the thesis statement, which should summarize the key point of the whole work.

The Body

As the name implies, an opinion essay aims to present a writer's viewpoint on a specific topic. While the opening passage will help you introduce the theme and the issue under discussion, the body paragraphs should include main reasons and supporting facts. Start every passage with a topic statement, which will clarify the exact point you will talk about. An important note: you should not start a new paragraph just because the last one is too long. Instead, focus on a completely different idea and pay due attention to it. Keep in mind that individual opinion adds to the relevance and prominence of your paper.

Apart from the general recommendations and guidelines, there are several particular rules you need to follow.

Tense. This point may vary, depending on the type of paper you are writing. Use present tenses to craft a flawless and highly appreciated opinion essay.
Linking. Here, I mean linking words that will help you make the paper well-structured but still logical and consistent. Various phrases can be used to present ideas, express opinions, and give reasons.
Vocabulary. Although it is the subtype of academic writing, you should not overuse phrasal verbs, colloquial expressions, and idioms which can transform your opinion text into a scholarly article.
Punctuation. Avoid formal punctuation, specifically contractions and exclamation marks.
Citing. If you quote somebody, do not forget to include the corresponding citation.

The Conclusion

No matter if you are working on a traditional compare and contrast essay or a completely different opinion paper, a conclusion is important. Every time I work with academic writing, I face the challenge of crafting a short, concise, and informative ending. At this point, it is crucial to be attentive and caring for details.

If you do not have an idea of how to conclude an opinion essay, here are a few tips that may help you achieve the desired effect.

A closing part should not introduce any new information.
Restate your thesis statement.
Summarize the key ideas mentioned in your paper.
Finish your opinion text with a provocative question, which will make readers consider the topic for a while.

This is an excellent example of a three or more paragraph college paper. This scheme helps me every time I get a writing assignment. However, it is up to every learner to add some ideas, unknown facts, and extraordinary examples to make the essay engaging and informative.