Some students may wonder why they have colleagues who perform better with their coursework duties, particularly with their essay assignments. Whilst a greater factor of this success may stem from the student’s talent to write effective essays, the overall quality of the essay does not depend on sheer writing talent alone. Generally, an effective essay must have valuable and solid content, a well-organised structure and an academic tone that implies objectivity without compromising coherence of discourse. These elements can be satisfactorily complied with if the students properly plan the compositional aspect of their essays, which takes more than one stage.