Adapting Tone and Style for Different Essay Types

[Fflmanno]

Last week I had to write a reflective essay for the first time and honestly, I had no idea what I was doing. I kept writing it like a personal diary entry, full of “I felt this” and “I thought that,” but when I got it back, my lecturer said it lacked structure and actual reflection. Apparently, just saying what happened isn’t enough—you’re supposed to analyze the experience too? I thought reflective just meant… reflecting! Guess not.

[palmariums]

I had the same problem during my first year. I was just narrating events with no real insight, and my professor basically said it read like a blog post. What helped me improve was understanding that reflection means connecting the experience to ideas or theories, not just storytelling. I found this guide super helpful when I had to rewrite mine: https://www.ozessay.com.au/blog/how-to-write-a-reflective-essay/. It breaks it down in a way that actually makes sense—not too academic but still solid advice.

[BugMeNot]

I’ve noticed that essays that feel the most authentic usually come from a mix of personal engagement and just enough structure to guide the flow. Too much structure, and it sounds robotic. Too little, and it’s just a stream of thoughts. Same thing goes for presentations, really—people connect way more when you’re clear but still sound human. That balance is everything.

[alonkuper]

I’m doing a group project where I’m responsible for writing the literature review section. The topic is technical, and I’m not confident in my academic writing. Is there any AI tool that could help generate a solid review quickly?

[johnwesen]

When I told my teammate I was struggling with the literature review, she pointed me to https://textero.io/literature-review-tool. We’re working on a complex engineering project, and I needed to submit a first draft fast. Textero helped me generate a review that was both technically accurate and clearly written. The AI pulled in relevant studies and even organized them by themes. I couldn’t believe how professional it sounded—and neither could my team. It gave me the confidence boost I needed, and we’re now ahead of schedule.