I have to write a discursive essay on how junkfood leads to obesity and my views about eating well and keeping fit. i just need a few hints about how i should start.

Answer 1

First, you may have to search and research, but once you learn some good sources and methods, you should have success. In addition to searching on the Internet, you also need to make best friends with the reference librarian(s) in your local or college library. Libraries these days subscribe to enormous research databases, and they are often more useful than Internet searches. Ask your librarian if you have access to EBSCOHost -- it has several databases within it, including at least three for health sciences, one for military and government, one huge one for academic research, and others.

For Internet searching:
http://hanlib.sou.edu/searchtools/
At this webpage, you can go immediately to the search sites (first three columns across the top) -- or even better you can scroll down until you see the section called HOW TO SEARCH THE INTERNET. Those are the links to start with. You'll not only learn how to come up with good search terms, but also how to evaluate the webpages you get as results. Some will be good and others will be garbage. You need to know how to tell the difference.

My favorite way to search is to go to Google's advanced search page http://www.google.com/advanced_search?hl=en and put my search words or phrases into the first or second search box (either "all the words" or "exact phrase"). Another is to start out at http://scholar.google.com. However, there many other strategies for searching you can use, and the HOW TO SEARCH THE INTERNET section will help you best.

Learning to use Google or other search engines can save you time and help you learn to find information efficiently. Here are some websites that can teach you how:

http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/FindInfo.html

http://hanlib.sou.edu/searchtools/searchtips.html

http://www.pandia.com/goalgetter/index.html

http://websearch.about.com/mbody.htm?once=true&COB=home&PM=112_100_T

... and one to help you judge whether a particular website's information is worth your time:

http://hanlib.sou.edu/searchtools/evaluate.html

Happy searching.

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Then, you need to use the writing process to help you organize your thoughts and to write a really good paper:

http://www.angelfire.com/wi/writingprocess/

http://www.ipl.org/div/teen/aplus/
Use the Step by Step links to help you through this process.

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Please feel free to re-post as you go along if you have specific questions about any part of this process.

Answer 2

Start by writing your ideas on the subject. Just take a piece of paper and write down ideas, incidents, anything that comes to mind on the topic. Then organize what you have written into "linked" ideas. Then write an outline so that you have an organization. THEN you can begin to write your essay.
Jotting down and then organizing saves a lot of time and energy and makes a more cohesive essay.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5107873_write-discursive-essay.html