Planning and Writing an Essay or Research
Paper
1. Choosing the Topic
- It should be
something you’re passionate about or have some vested interest in.
- An assigned
topic can be made interesting if you relate it to issues that concern you.
- It should be
narrowed from a general subject area to a manageable topic that’s workable
for a shorter essay or article.
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For example, “New Technology” would serve as a
general subject of interest while “Managing a Business with a Palm Pilot”
would serve as a specific topic
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2. Brainstorming
- List all
ideas that come to mind—alone or in a group.
- Ask
journalistic questions and answers to ensure you’ve considered all
angles—who, what, when, where, why, how?
- Limit all
writing to point form to avoid writer’s block.
- Consider
your point of view on an issue and establish your own bias or feelings on
a topic
3. Researching Supporting
Information
- Consult
print sources—books, articles, government documents (e.g. Stats Canada) to
lend support to a discussion.
- Check the
Internet for up-to-date information from trusted web sites.
- Choose
specific points of proof from your research; place evidence into relevant sections
of your outline.
- Challenge
yourself. Look for opposing points
of view to see if you’re correct in your beliefs and assumptions.
- Consider
that research can serve as the first stage in choosing a topic if
you don’t know what to write about.
Reading about an area of interest may get you thinking about
something you wish to express.
4. Determining the Thesis, Central Argument,
or Main Idea
- Establish
your main point, purpose or argument.
What message do you want to get across to my reader? Make sure that you can clearly finish
the following statement (even though you’d probably not write it like
this): “In this essay I want to tell you that. . .”
- Look at your
research information and decide what it means?
- Make sure
that you do in fact move from a topic (what your paper is about) to your
point of view (what you have to say about the topic). Examine the example below:
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Using a palm pilot is an innovative way to manage
a business. It allows you to make
your data mobile, thus enabling you to record and manipulate data on the run,
to provide accurate quotes and information to customers, and to carry your
scheduling and contact information at all times.
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5. Outlining
- It’s much
easier to start a draft if you first build an organizational bridge
between your ideas and the first written draft.
- Create a
point-form, visual structure using one of several possible approaches:
- Decimal outline with numbers
- Sentence outline
- Modular outline combining sentences and
point-form
- Visual outline using boxes or bubbles (like
a flow-chart)
- Collection of recipe cards that can be
freely shuffled and organized
- Check out or handout on Creating Effective Outlines
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6. Writing the First Draft
- Work from
the outline to produce coherent prose in paragraph form. Having an outline enables you to start
writing those sections you feel most comfortable with.
- Compose
quickly; don’t worry too much about grammar and style. The goal at this stage is to get the
content and main points “roughed in.”
You can improve sentence structure and style in later drafts.
- Think about
the overall thesis; express your point of view by carefully arranging main
points and supporting data in each paragraph or section of the essay.
7. Writing the 2nd
Draft (Revise & Edit)
- Make sure
content and organization are complete, logical, correct, and coherent.
- Remove
grammar and mechanical errors.
- Vary your
sentence length; use different types of sentences to improve flow and
readability.
- Format the
document carefully, making sure that you cite sources correctly.
8. Having Your Work Proofread
- Get a friend
or professional to review your work, to asses the quality of your
research, the interest level of the piece, the effectiveness of your
style, the persuasiveness of your arguments.
- Make a habit
of looking to others to improve the effectiveness of your writing.
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