Essay

Essay is a structured writing platform that helps writers find a topic, organize research, build an outline, and turn rough ideas into finished drafts. It is designed for writers of all levels, including students, everyday writers, and academics and researchers, who want tools that build real writing skills rather than only correct grammar. The platform uses a writing method developed by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson.

A user moves through Plan, Produce, Edit, Cite, and Share stages: an AI Topic Tool suggests subjects worth exploring, Notes captures research and ideas, and Outline structures an argument before a distraction-free Produce stage focuses on a rough first draft. Rewrite and Reorder let a writer experiment with word choice, sentence order, and paragraph flow afterward, while Feedback lets friends, teachers, or peers comment with categorized, specific insights.

Essay includes reference management with keyword, identifier, or Zotero-synced source search, and automatically formats citations, footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographies for submission. A Topic Tool and 10 personalized topic recommendations on the Free plan help a writer choose a subject, and a Save for Later tool stores ideas that do not fit the current draft. The guide behind the method suggests aiming for a first draft about 25% longer than the final version, then cutting it down.

Essay offers a Free plan at $0 with 3 essays, a 5,000 word count limit, and 12 notes, alongside a Core plan at $8 a month ($96 billed annually) for everyday writers and a Pro plan at $12 a month ($145 billed annually) for academics and researchers, both with unlimited essays, word count, and notes. Core and Pro add full citation and reference management with Zotero integration; annual billing saves 33% against the monthly price.

Use cases

• Writing poems, dissertations and argumentative essays
• Writing blog posts and creative writing pieces
• Writing business proposals and project reports
• Writing reference letters