Okay, okay. I’m not saying that everyone’s like this. But if you’re like me, and if you have have a 1,000 word essay due at midnight that you haven’t started yet, then you should definitely keep reading--and yes, I’m speaking from personal experience. This personal experience involves copious amounts of caffeine, far too much watching the clock, and more than once, crying. Over the years, though, I’ve learned that once you hit the point of no return with your procrastination, the only thing left to do is buckle down and just get it done.

Here’s how I do it.

1. What do you have to do?

First thing’s first: bring out the prompt again, and look at the requirements. There’s no use in spending several hours writing an essay only to find out that it doesn’t actually meet what your professor wants. Look over the prompt and make sure that you understand what it’s asking. Once you’ve got a solid idea of the prompt, it’s time to sit down and outline.

2. Break it up.

This is the part where you do what everyone hates: outlining. It can seem like a waste of time, especially if you’re cutting it close to the deadline and you want to just sit down and get it done. However, having an outline will make the writing part of the essay so much easier. This way, you don’t have to face the blank page and blinking cursor.

When you start outlining, stay broad at first and just approach the main topics. Use two or three smaller points under each, and you’re well on your way to writing a well-organized essay!

3. Gather sources.

Hopefully at this point you can set aside an hour solely devoted to finding sources. This will take different amounts of time depending on how many sources you need, but it’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to having well-supported arguments. Make sure that they’re reputable sources, and that they have good quotes you can use. Besides quotes being a way to make your arguments airtight, they can also be used to up your word count in a pinch.

When you’re gathering sources, make sure that you either cite them as you go, or keep all of the URLs in a single place--otherwise, when it comes time to go back through your paper and make sure that you’ve cited all of your references, you’re going to have a hard time finding everything again.

4. Flesh it out.

Okay. You’ve got your outline, you’ve got your sources, and you’ve still got time before the deadline hits. Here’s where you go get some caffeine and a snack, and you sit down and write that essay. Go back through your outline and add things to your points until you’ve got full paragraphs.

Don’t forget to take breaks, but make sure that when you do you don’t get lost in the whirlpool of social media. It’s good to keep in contact with the outside world, but don’t do it at the cost of your grade!

Once you’ve written the main body of your article, make sure that you have a solid introduction and conclusion. Go back through and check to see that your transitions flow smoothly from topic to topic, and you’re done!

5. Don’t forget to proofread.

Now, it may be 11:40 and you’re looking forward to collapsing in bed, but you still have one final step: proofreading. It’s no use turning in your essay on time if it’s riddled with typos and sentences that don’t make any sense. Read back through your work and ensure that it answers the prompt, is grammatically correct, and has everything cited the way it needs to be.