Guide for writing influential Observation Essays with easy to understand instructions and compelling tips. This article includes 7 powerful steps and 7 incredible tips for helping you to write better Observation essays.

An observational essay is an opportunity for a person to provide their impression of an event, item or person. This article seeks to assist a writer understand the steps they can take to providing a well structured and written observational essay.

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What is an observation essay?

An observational essay is one where the writer takes the reader on the same journey they underwent when attending an event or viewing a piece of art and so on. For instance, an observational essay can be written on the experiences one underwent at a new year’s party. The writer gets to detail the events that led up to midnight and those preceding it.

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In an observational essay, the writer needs to engage all their senses and detail as much as they can about the experience. It is about placing the reader in the shoes of the writer. Whether the views given are objective or subjective, the reader wants to know what happened and how it happened to the writer.

Instructions (Steps)

1. Experience

In order to write an observational essay, the writer should have experienced the event first hand. Working on information from others does not cut it and does not make for a legitimate observational essay. The event may be something planned or unplanned. For instance, people who narrate being in the middle of a robbery may write an observational essay of their experience. Reporters who came on the scene after the fact cannot relate to the experience in the same way as the victims. This kind of scenario is unplanned. A food critic visiting a restaurant so as to do a review is a planned observation.

When the experience is planned, a writer should ensure they take notes and record as many impressions as they can of their experience. If possible they should have a system to ensure they take away as many relevant impressions as they can. This is common with restaurant reviews. The critic knows to note their impression right from when they arrive at the restaurant till the presentation of the bill. They will note the courtesy of the maitre d’, the attentiveness of the waiters, the ambience and furnishings, the location of the table, drinks and food on offer, their pricing, their taste, and even the music played. The critic will have a system that allows him to make note of these crucial areas.

2. Detail experience

In order to proper note the experience, it helps to make use of a notebook. In this way the first impression can be noted. Any other occurrences that would lead to a change in the first impression also noted. When writing a observational essay, it is good to give a chronology of events as they occur as well as providing a detailed description. Taking notes ensures that later impressions do not distract from what the reader would experience for themselves were they there. At times a writer may have an opinion that is later influenced to change by listening g to what other experienced. By making notes, a writer ensures that he or she is giving a succinct account of what occurred in their case.

3. Make an outline

Using the example of the restaurant critic, it helps to have a list of what areas one wants to make an impression from. Using an outline applies both before and after the experience. It helps in planning ahead, where possible, and in creating the final essay document.

4. Introduction

In the introductory section, the writer need sot give the reader a chance to familiarize themselves with the situation at hand. The writer should provide some background information and provide their thesis statement. For instance if the situation is a political rally, the writer should detail which party is being represented and why the rally was called for.

5. Main Body

This is where the writer can make use of all the notes they have taken. By this point, they should have arranged the notes with the outline so as to arrange what information will appear in the main body. There is lots of flexibility in how to present the details here. The only rule is to ensure the flow of details is made clearly and concisely, without repetitions and in an interesting manner.

6. Conclusion

The conclusion section does not need to be lengthy. At this point, the writer needs to only summarize the points brought up within the body so that they arrive at a conclusion that supports the earlier stated thesis statement.

7. Review

Once the first draft is completed, the writer should always go over it again to ensure the flow of the essay allows for an interesting read. The writer can also recruit a friend to offer a critique of the work and hep give helpful pointers on what to eliminate and what to add on.

Tips

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1. Be very concise and clear on the impression made by the subject matter. The purpose of an observation essay is to provide the reader with a sense of the experience felt by the writer.

2. Use a notebook to jot down one’s impression of the experience. This is the best way to remember in what way every sense was triggered and the impression made. Trying to recall from memory at a later date will leave out forgotten experiences.

3. You do not have to detail each and every experience. When jotting down notes, a writer should provide as many points and impressions as possible. In writing the final document however, this should not be the case. There is a thesis statement to consider, so the writer should structure their work to support the position of the statement. This may mean leaving out a few details. Also some details may be minor in the grand scheme of things and not really needed to give a good recounting of the situation.

4. Describe a couple of situations. This makes for more interesting reading and allows the reader to get a wider impression of the situation than just what the writer experienced.

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5. Do not skimp on the details. In a way this essay is partly like a descriptive narrative. It is a chance to have the reader experience the event through the senses of the writer. They get to taste what was tasted, hear what was heard, smell the scent, see what was in view and touch what was touched. It is as though they were there as well.

6. Try to be objective. Even though the impressions made will be personal o the writer, he or she should at least make an attempt to be fair in their descriptions.

7. Do not go overboard with the descriptive language. As enjoyable or detestable as the experience may have been, it is important that it does not cloud the writer’s judgement or leave them incapable of giving a fair description to the reader of what took place.

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