1) Let the essay sit overnight. If you don't look at it for awhile, it will help you bring a fresher eye to the paper. You will also hate it less if you sleep on it overnight.

2) When you have ample, quiet time, re-read your essay for:

--meaning (how clearly have you expressed it?)

--purpose (are you explaining, proposing, analyzing, defining?)

--audience (how appropriate is your essay for your audience? Will they be interested in your topic? Will they be able to follow your discussion? Is your language and tone appropriate? What objections might your audience have?)

3) Reconsider!

--your title: it should give readers information, draw them into your essay, and even give them an indication of your view.

--your intro: it should, again, draw your reader into the essay as well as clearly state the topic and make some comment on it (you can also introduce an essay effectively with an intriguing quotation, a startling fact, a question that you'll answer or a strong opinion).

--your conclusion: dessert+doggie bag: will leave your reader satisfied that a full discussion has taken place. You might restate your thesis, draw inferences, and predict implcations. You might also end with a question or quotation, use a vivid image, employ a call for action, or provide a warning.

4) Structure

--Check that each paragraph has a main point, a clear organizational pattern, and enough sentences to constitute a full development

--Check that sentences vary in LENGTH and STRUCTURE and that they don't open with the ugly phrases "There are," "There is," or "This will," "This is," etc etc etc.

--Check words to make sure that you have agents and actions--subjects and verbs that both match and make your writing lively.

--make sure your tone (humorous, serious, impassioned, etc) is appropriate to your purpose and esp. to your audience.

5) At the End

--Re-read out loud! Reading aloud helps because you're forced to do it slowly. You'll catch surface errors you wouldn't if you were reading silently to yourself. Print it out; take a pen and make marks and changes as you read aloud.