Writing Papers: Researching Your Work

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Choosing a topic is the first step. Next, you need to see what research is available on that topic.

Knowing in Advance What You Want to Find

Before you start hitting the library or the Internet, spend some time thinking about what you hope to find. If a magic genie appeared on your desk and said, “What do you need to complete this paper?”, what would you say? What information do you need to make your arguments? Jot down any ideas you have. This wish list will give you some direction when you start your hunt for information.

Know What Your Audience Expects

Picture your audience. To whom are you writing? What are their characteristics? What convinces them? Moves them? Angers them? It’s easy to just think of a general audience or to write for the instructor alone, but doing so can make the paper too generic, too bland. Instead, think about your paper as an article, and then ask, “Where would I publish it? Who would read it?”

The whole paper process is kind of contrived, because you’re writing for the instructor. Still, you’ll improve your writing skills if you think of a more specific audience. You’ll also be able to find and evaluate your research if you think about your readers’ needs.

Finding Sources

Now that you have a good plan for what you’re looking for, you can set off on your hunt. In doing your research, consider books, magazines and newspapers, the Internet, and other media.

You can search for relevant books at your library. As another option, consider online sources of books, such as Amazon.com, which enables you to display sample pages from some books. You can use this to look at tables of contents, back covers, sample pages, or other parts of books. Using this preview, you can get a sense of the book’s content. Does it contain information you need? You may then decide to track it down at your library.

For some Amazon.com titles, you can even search through a book. For example, suppose you find a title that sounded interesting, but you aren’t sure whether it’s relevant to your idea. If the book is available for searching on Amazon.com, you can find out.

Other sources of information include magazines and newspapers. Your library should have current magazines and newspapers, as well as access to past issues. You can see whether any magazines or newspapers cover a topic using online search tools or the Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature.

The Internet is also a rich source of material; it has revolutionized how you do research (among other things). You may be able to find all you need without leaving your home.

Finally, consider other types of media, including movies, documentaries, illustrations, fictional work, and so on.