By Purdue OWL (2019)
These companion pieces come from my absolute favorite writing resources on the internet: Purdue OWL. Both are one-page crash courses that cover pretty much everything you need to know about dividing paragraphs up.
I know a lot of people last semester were struggling with paragraphing, so hopefully this will help you going forward in your life as a writer, whether you apply it to personal statements, future essays, or even a blog.
The first piece, “On Paragraphs,” explains the four elements needed for a good paragraph: “Unity, Coherence, A Topic Sentence, and Adequate Development.” The second, “Paragraphing,” reveals how you can use the visual proportions of your paper to tell which ideas might need more development.
If you want, it’s worth giving these techniques a try on old cover letters, personal statements, or essays, to see where your paragraphing skills are currently at.
Odyssey, Extra! 