-Be clear about the intention in the opening paragraph so focusing on the personal and political relationship based off Taylor Swifts song ‘All too Well’.
-Do not dwell at length on biographical details unless these are directly relevant to your argument.
-Intro should make clear the focus of your essay and its parameters (for example which texts, and which artists/authors if multiple; and which themes/issues/concepts).
-The intro should get us straight to the purpose of the essay. However, avoid merely describing what you are going to do – use the introduction to launch the argument and analysis. Tell us what you are going to do, how you plan to do it and why it is significant.
-Avoid generalisations (i.e. ‘Postmodernists thought …’ [which Postmoderinsts, and did they think of themselves as Postmodernists?]; ‘Late-twentieth-century society’ [which parts of society? Who exactly?] etc.)
-Pay attention to the particulars of the question and make sure you address them.
-Decide what your central argument is going to be. Make sure that this is clear in your own mind before you start writing.
-Make sure that there is a logical progression to the points you make in the essay.
– Be careful to strike a balance between contextual and/or theoretical discussion and close analysis.
-Always support your observations about a text using textual evidence
