Writing a good thesis-driven essay requires these two things: making a point and sticking to that point. And yet most writers struggle with both of these. Why is that, and what can be done to remedy this?

The first challenge is making a point--the point the entire composition will attempt to argue. Most writers are adept at choosing a topic for their compositions. But a thesis-driven composition requires not only a topic, but an assertion or point about the topic, i.e. the thesis. Most writers unintentionally make two, three, or even more assertions in their thesis. This they do by not understanding or confusing the difference between main points, subordinate points, and compound elements of a sentence. They think they are only putting one idea forward, when in reality it is more than one; or even more problematic, their true assertion is hidden within the subordinate elements of their thesis, while the subordinate element of the thesis masquerades as the main point. Or they may fall prey to the sophistication trap--in attempting to sound erudite, they lose their true point in labyrinthian sentence constructions full of unnecessary appendages because stating something simply sounds too bare. Yet an unclear thesis leads to a confused essay, lacking coherence.

Once the point has been stated clearly and succinctly in the thesis, the second hurdle is in sticking to that point. The operative word here is point. When writing topic sentences, many writers veer from their point without realizing it. This problem is sometimes rooted in an unclear thesis, but often it is a problem with topic sentences that perform a subtle bait-and-switch, moving from the original point of the thesis to one that is tangential to the topic. This misstep is further obscured when the topic sentences are either bloated in their attempt to sound sophisticated, or are too narrative in style, without any clear assertion. Since the topic sentences guide the paragraphs, confused topic sentences will most certainly lead the writer astray.

Enter the T-Set. The T-Set is my derivation of the X-Set put forward by Professor William Kerrigan in his excellent Writing to the Point. Crafting a T-Set solves these problems and builds coherence into the essay right from the beginning.

The T-Set includes the thesis and the topic sentences of the essay. The T-Set, however, is not an outline--it is the thesis and the topic sentences exactly as they will be written in the first draft of the essay itself. The thesis in the T-Set must be a declarative sentence that makes one point (and only one point). The topic sentences must be entirely about that point--they must echo the thesis in construction and include the keywords (topic and point) from the thesis, evidencing parallelism. Each topic sentence must follow the same mode of development (example, reason, parts of the whole). Creating the T-Set forces the writer to articulate with exceptional clarity the point and supporting points of the argument while avoiding any redundancy, in the exact forms they will be used in the essay. This enforces coherence.

This is not as easy as it sounds! It is, in fact, devilishly difficult. At first glance, a T-Set may seem too simplistic--the sentences are short and devoid of stylistic flourish or nuance. And yet, this is the secret--if you cannot make your point simply, then you do not really know what your point is. And if you are not clear about your point, you will find yourself sooner or later arguing a different point entirely--or redundantly repeating yourself without realizing that you are doing so.

Crafting T-sets and writing essays from them trains your ability make a point and stay on point as well as trains your ability to spot an argument that has been derailed by faux-coherence or attempted eloquence--whether it is your own or someone else's. Once you master this, you will then be able to tackle compositions that have more layers or variation: those containing both coordinate and subordinate points, comparisons, paragraphs of transition and paragraphs of context, and those that utilize multiple modes of development. But Professor Kerrigan, who initially developed his method of writing for college-level students, never saw the end of its utility. He saw his X-Set as the foundation of all good essay writing, whether student or professional. And after all these years of teaching the T-Set, I agree.