Study tips & tricks
How to Go From Providence NYC’s Hottest Venues to A+ Essays
Author:
Samantha Williams
Mar 11, 2025
12 min
Table of contents
- Make Your Writing as Mesmerizing as the Best Wedding Venues
- #1 Just Like Events, Essays Need Structure
- #2 An Entrance That Sparks Curiosity=A Hook That Grabs Attention
- #3 Details and Pacing Create an Atmosphere—Both in Events and Essays
- #4 A Strong Argument Is the Main Event of Your Essay
- #5 The Grand Finale=A Memorable Conclusion
- #6 Event Planners Edit Themselves—Essay Writers Need to, Too
- Final Thoughts
Make Your Writing as Mesmerizing as the Best Wedding Venues
Have you ever been to Providence, one of New York’s most historical and mesmerizing venues? If so, it will be easy for you to visualize everything we’re going to discuss here. If not, we’ll paint the picture for you.
Housed in a former church, it’s arguably the most atmospheric place in the city. Mahogany woodwork, stained-glass windows, and chandeliers with intimate lighting all come together to create a unique atmosphere. Imagine how unforgettable a wedding held there would be?
Wedding venues are only part of what we’re about to discuss, though. Our main focus is to help you achieve the same captivating effect in your writing as Providence does when housing events. Believe it or not, planning weddings is not unlike writing. Let’s break it down.
#1 Just Like Events, Essays Need Structure
Imagine you’re having a private event—say, an intimate wedding reception—at Providence NYC or another beautiful venue. However, for some reason, you decide to forgo any structure and tell your wedding planner to just leave your guests be, without directing them however gently. What would happen?
The answer is total chaos. Even with careful planning, an event that has no structure is doomed. Your guests will all be doing whatever they feel like; you’ll lose a few to the bar; at some point, someone will forget they’re there for a wedding and start treating your big day as their chance to show off.
Scary, right? Well, that’s why a well-thought-out flow is critical—for both events and essays.
How Do the Best NYC Venues Structure Events?
If you’ve ever been to an event at Providence NYC, you likely have an answer to this question already. If you haven’t, though, don’t worry—we’ll paint the picture for you.
Everything follows this flow: entrance → main event → grand finale.
Entrance. First, your guests are greeted at the entrance once they arrive. A wedding concierge or event coordinator checks your guests’ names, gives them direction, and otherwise ensures a smooth arrival experience.
Main event. All the magic happens during this time. Guests settle in, speeches are made, toasts are given, and everyone is having a great time—but only if your event coordinator is keeping things structured.
Grand finale. No event is complete without a memorable send-off. It can be whatever you want—something simple like the last dance, luxurious like a firework display, or anything in between. What matters is that it ties the entire experience together and communicates to your guests that the party is over.
How Should a Well-Written Essay Be Structured?
Now, let’s apply this to essays. Just like an event, a good essay follows this structure: entrance → main event → grand finale.
Entrance→Introduction. The introduction of your essay is where you grab your reader’s attention with an intriguing hook, give some context, and voice the central idea of your essay in a thesis statement. This is pretty much the same as what a coordinator does when they greet guests at the doors.
Main event→Body paragraphs. Think of each body paragraph as a section of your wedding, all carefully preplanned, well-structured, and compelling. They all start with a topic sentence so that the reader knows what to expect—just like the coordinator announces what’s about to happen (say, the parents’ toasts) during the wedding.
Grand finale→Conclusion. If you want the reader to remember your essay, you need a send-off, too. Remind them what they’ve just read and include something catchy that will stick with them after they put your essay away—basically, fireworks.
#2 An Entrance That Sparks Curiosity=A Hook That Grabs Attention
How about we switch perspectives and put ourselves in your guests’ shoes? Imagine they arrive at your wedding, and there’s nothing at the entrance—no coordinator, zero direction, and subpar decorations that make them question if they’re even at the right building. How would they feel?
They’d most likely be confused. If the venue is huge (or if they did arrive at the wrong address), they might try to contact someone to help them out. However, if there’s no one available—unlikely, sure, but we’re simply speculating—they’ll just leave.
So, how can we avoid this?
First Impressions Matter—Both in Events and Essays
Check pictures from events at Providence NYC. One of the things you’ll notice is that the entrance is never treated as an afterthought. It’s the first thing guests see, so it has to be inviting, intriguing, and memorable. Here’s what we mean:
Decorations make it instantly clear what’s happening. Flowers, pictures, and other relevant decorations do more than just look pretty. They also signal to your guests that they’re where they are supposed to be—your wedding.
There’s someone who greets the guests and welcomes them to the wedding. A good coordinator (or whoever is meeting your guests) makes the guests even more excited about the event they’re about to step into. Most importantly, they give the guests important information, like how much time they have for their pre-party cocktails at the bar and where the restrooms are.
The guests get a general idea of what to expect. Finally, unless your wedding is very freeform, it makes sense to have the coordinator share the program so that the guests understand the timing and don’t miss anything important.
The same requirements apply to the first few sentences of your essay, AKA the hook. Just like the entrance of your wedding, it has to:
- Make it clear what the audience is about to read.
- Draw the reader’s attention and keep them interested.
- Set the tone and make clear what’s yet to come.
How to Write an Effective Hook
Not every first sentence is a hook. Or, more accurately, not everything students think is a hook is actually a hook.
To avoid repeating other people’s mistakes, avoid bland openings, like “In today’s fast-paced world, technology is integral to…” If that’s how you choose to open your essay, the reader will get bored before they even reach the thesis statement.
For example, if you’re writing about the Providence Education Center, please don’t start with anything along the lines of “education is invaluable”—that’s too obvious and dull.
Instead, use more engaging techniques, such as:
- An anecdote. “Last year, a student walked into the Providence Education Center unsure of her future…”
- A bold question. “What if the traditional classroom isn’t the best place for every student to thrive?”
- A surprising fact. “Did you know that over 70% of Providence Education Center graduates report feeling more prepared for real-world challenges than their peers?”
See? Even if the topic is boring, an effective hook can make it seem not that dull.
#3 Details and Pacing Create an Atmosphere—Both in Events and Essays
If your wedding is at least somewhat fancy—which, if you’re having it at a venue like Providence NYC, it definitely is—it’ll have a color scheme, a curated playlist, and carefully thought-out decorations. Why? Because to be cohesive and memorable, every event needs a unique atmosphere. And so does an essay.
Why the Atmosphere Matters
Lighting, décor, music, and other elements of an event all contribute to the vibe. If they feel disjointed, the impression your guests get is that you threw the party together half-heartedly at the last minute, without much thought.
Think of what your (and your partner’s!) extended family might say behind your back—are you sure you want your wedding to turn into a lesson in poor planning?
Together with the structure, the atmosphere, or vibe, is what ties everything together. It creates a holistic experience that feels thoughtful and curated.
When wedding planners manage to achieve this, minor mistakes and emergencies—both inevitable at a large event like a wedding—don’t matter. Your guests won’t even notice them behind the perfect facade—which is exactly what you want.
How to Create “Atmosphere” in Essays
Similarly, when a writer manages to make their text feel truly immersive, the reader might not even notice a couple of typos and a weaker transition or two. They’ll be too focused on the small world the writer built in their text and, if we’re talking about essays specifically, on the compelling central argument the writer is making.
How can you achieve this? There are two main strategies, both equally important:
- Use sensory details. Unless it’s a narrative essay, you don’t typically have much room for sensory details—how and why would you mention how something smells when arguing for corporate gender quotas, right?
And yet, you have to do your best. Even in non-narrative writing, sensory details help the emotional resonance of your writing.
For example, instead of simply stating the “divide” of gender inequality in corporate settings, you can mention the “weight of unspoken pressure” women face or the “sharp contrast” between men’s vs. women’s standing. The idea is to evoke an emotional reaction in the reader.
2. Control your pacing. Every event speeds up or slows down throughout the day to match the mood—your essay should do the same. Otherwise, it will be monotonous, and your reader will inevitably get bored.
To avoid this, mix up different sentence structures and punctuation. Shorter sentences create a sense of intensity. They’re good for making your boldest arguments seem even catchier. In turn, longer, flowing sentences work better for reflecting on your evidence and making the reader follow your trail of thought.
Remember, academic writing might have to be at least somewhat formal—but it doesn’t have to be dry.
#4 A Strong Argument Is the Main Event of Your Essay
Your audience losing focus while reading your essay is equivalent to your guests wandering off mid-wedding to entertain themselves.
Let’s discuss how to avoid both.
What Great Venues Do to Keep Guests Engaged
Weddings are long, and it takes a lot of work on the coordinator’s part to keep guests from losing interest (and overusing the free bar) halfway through. How do they achieve this?
- Timing. Key moments of every wedding—like speeches, dances, and toasts—are always scheduled at intervals to give guests a chance to enjoy themselves in between. That’s why any wedding planner will raise their eyebrows at a groom who says his father’s speech is planned to be 10 minutes long.
- Entertainment. Photo booths, games, a live band—all these are optional at a wedding, but they help entertain guests and occupy their time with something other than drinking. If you’ve been to a wedding at least once, you know how important that is.
- Clear communication. Again, your guests need to know most of what’s in store for them. Even something as simple as a wedding program at the entrance can help guests plan. It prevents awkward situations like when a bridesmaid is nowhere to be found when she is supposed to play a video about the couple.
- Surprise elements. We’re saying that your guests need to know “most of what’s in store for them” because there’s room for unexpected elements even at the most type-A wedding. For example, a surprise music performance is both memorable and handy—it motivates your guests to get up and dance.
How Can You Keep the Reader’s Attention Throughout Your Essay?
Just like with events, the only way to make your essay compelling and engaging—and prevent your reader from losing focus after a few paragraphs—is to polish your main event, aka your body paragraphs, to perfection.
First, make sure every paragraph serves a purpose. Nothing’s more difficult to follow than a messy essay. Every body paragraph you have must be dedicated to a single argument. It also needs a clear structure: a topic sentence→explanation→evidence→analysis→concluding sentence.
Also, anticipate and address counterarguments. As a reader, it’s very satisfying to think of a counterargument while reading only to see the writer address it a few lines later. It communicates that the writer is well-informed and objective.
When you acknowledge the opposing views on whatever you’re writing about, it makes your overall argument stronger.
Say the overall topic of your essay is “Is Providence College a Good School?” You definitely need to dedicate a couple of paragraphs to why some people think it’s not—only to then show why those people are wrong.
#5 The Grand Finale=A Memorable Conclusion
If you’ve ever explored the topic of speech writing and public speaking in general, you know that one of the most common tips is to end with something that will stay with your audience long after you leave the stage.
People can’t remember everything you say—but they will for sure remember the impression they were left with. Your last few phrases are the best way to control that impression.
The ending matters in public speaking, events, essays, and basically everything else. Just think how you would feel if you were a guest at a wedding that ended with the newlyweds abruptly taking the mic and saying, “Hey, thank you for coming. We’re done here.”
Confused and somewhat disrespected, right? This ending would be the number one thing you remembered from that wedding, even if the rest was great.
Good venues and wedding planners and coordinators never allow such things to happen. Instead, they keep guests informed on the timeline so that they know in advance when the event is nearing its end. Also, they come up with thoughtful ways to make the guests feel valued and the wedding memorable, like small party favors wrapped in pretty packages.
Strong vs. Weak Essay Conclusions
Now, let’s apply the same approach to essay conclusions. What do strong vs. weak conclusions look like?
Weak: repetitive, vague, abrupt, underwhelming, forgettable.
Strong: thoughtful, clear, compelling, satisfying, memorable.
Let’s take a look at a couple of examples. Imagine you’re still writing that Providence College essay on whether or not Providence College is a good school.
Weak: In conclusion, Providence College has some good aspects, but there are other colleges that might be better. It’s a decent school overall, but it might not be for everyone.
Why is it weak? It lacks specificity, depth, and a clear final statement. The reader is left unsatisfied, and the overall impression is vague.
Strong: Overall, Providence College offers a productive academic environment, a tight-knit community, and opportunities for personal and professional growth, including career counseling and academic guidance outside the classroom.
Why is it strong? It clearly summarizes the key points, emphasizes the benefits, and leaves the reader with a definitive positive impression of Providence College.
You would need to expand on the one sentence we offered and add a catchy closure, but what matters the most is that you have effectively reminded the reader what you’ve just successfully argued in your essay.
#6 Event Planners Edit Themselves—Essay Writers Need to, Too
Too much creativity can make an event feel disorganized, confusing, and overwhelming—even more so when it’s a wedding, which is notoriously chaotic.
To make a wedding feel well-thought-out and elevated, event planners have to edit themselves (and, most importantly, the couple, who are often trying to fit as many things as possible into their big day).
In fact, that’s one of the reasons why wedding rehearsal dinners are a thing—they help coordinators see if the timing and everything else works. If it doesn’t—which happens sometimes—they can make last-minute changes to refine the program before the big day.
A Few Essay Editing Tips
Every writer has to do the same to their essays. Simply skim-reading your essay once you’re done writing the first draft isn’t enough. We recommend using these techniques instead:
- Read it out loud. This is the best way to reduce repetitions and improve clarity. When you read your essay out loud, you’ll catch more things that require editing. In particular, it’s great for finding tautologies—which can be tricky to spot just by reading through the text.
- Cut the fluff. Event spaces never allow clutter during big events; they understand the value of breathing room, both in terms of physical space and timing.
When editing your essay, you need to trim excess words, too. Pay particular attention to adjectives and adverbs—when used minimally yet effectively, they help create a vibe, but too many of them add nothing to the text and can annoy the reader.
3. Check transitions. If you fail to use transitions, your essay will not flow well, and it will be harder for you to hold the reader’s attention. That being said, too many transitions are also a thing, especially for new writers. Try to find the right balance.
4. If possible, get a peer review. Did you know that sometimes, the couple, close family, and wedding planners all gather together after the rehearsal dinner to share their thoughts and discuss necessary changes?
More points of view create a more holistic picture. You can achieve this by asking a friend to beta-read your essay before you submit it. A pair of fresh eyes can do wonders for your text.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re about to plan a wedding at a 5-star venue or write an essay for your English 101 class, please keep our entrance → main event → grand finale flow in mind.
- Start with carefully planning everything out. When you have a good outline, you’re 50% done already.
- Next, make sure your introduction—particularly the hook—does what it’s supposed to do, meaning grabs the reader’s attention and previews the content of your essay.
- Then, work on your body paragraphs. Pay attention to topic sentences and transitions so that your ideas are easy to follow.
- Next, come up with a conclusion that ties everything together and stays with the reader even after they move from your essay to something else.
- Finally, edit relentlessly. Meeting the word count is important, sure, but if it’s 60% meaningless fluff, we can guarantee you won’t get that A. Quality over quantity, always.
You’re all set now. We hope the comparison to venues and event planning will help you memorize our tips. Good luck with your writing!
FAQ
Every essay needs an introduction, a few body paragraphs, and a conclusion. The number of body paragraphs depends on the overall length of the essay, as well as on how many arguments the writer wants to include. Also, make sure your introduction starts with an effective hook to grab the reader’s attention and a thesis statement that previews your central argument.
A topic sentence is the first sentence of your body paragraphs. It should clearly voice the argument you’re defending (or refuting) in the paragraph. For example, if you’re dedicating a paragraph to how good the location of Providence College is, your topic sentence needs to answer the questions of “Where is Providence College?” and why it’s there and not anywhere else.
The minimum number of paragraphs is 5: an introduction, 3 body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, there’s basically no upper limit. The longer your essay is, the more body paragraphs it will have. However, make sure to follow the word count requirements. An essay that’s too long is just as bad for your reader’s impression (and your grade!) as a too-short one.
The best editing tool you can use to refine your essay once you’re done with the first draft is probably Grammarly. It’s easy to use and helpful, and it has settings that let you adjust the suggestions to your needs. Still, we promise—no editing tool can replace a human beta reader who can offer and explain their feedback.
