So now you have your writing assignment for either a high school class or a college course. What should you do?

FIRST STEPS

1. Read over what the assignment is and what the parameters are. Parameters are the requirements and formatting your teacher wants for the assignment.
2. To get an idea, if the teacher has not assigned a specific idea, jot down whatever comes to mind when you think of the over-arching topic given to you to research.
3. Once you have selected an idea, write down a list of your questions about it. What do you need to know about it? Be specific as possible in your questions. These will help you with your research.
4. Now you need to get started on the research!!!

As you do your research, please remember to cite your sources. Before you begin seriously reading a written work, jot down all of the details you will need for your citation: title, author, publisher/webpage, date of access, date of publication, if it has been published before, edition, et cetera. Once you begin your research, include quotation marks around anything that you directly quote from the book and write the page number next to it. Clearly indicate in your notes which ideas belong to the author AND which ideas belong to you. This way, you can avoid accidental plagiarism, and keep your paper honest. 

After you have all of your notes and have formed a clearer idea of your subject, highlight which ideas are yours. Take out your list of questions and see if your questions have been answered. Now ask yourself: How can I make this more complete? How can I fill in the gaps?

Pick out the most important ideas, and the ideas that connect easily, and use these to begin building your actual research paper. If you need to do this, make an "easy" outline. Easy outlines have a very loose structure but are a great guide for building your research paper. If the teacher has assigned a structured outline, it is best to follow that assignment and type out a structured outline.

Sometimes it is best to write the Introduction last. However, write a loose introduction to give your thoughts something to follow. 

THE BODY

1. Use your easy outline to begin writing your paper.
2. Use transitional words between ideas in order to connect them effectively.
3. DO NOT USE A BIG WORD WHEN A SIMPLE WORD SAYS IT BETTER.
4. Incorporate your research to prove your ideas or to illustrate your ideas.

The last thing you need to do is write your bibliography. Use your MLA or APA handbook as to how to do this. There are also websites that can help you with the correct formatting of bibliographies.

It's not over yet!!!!!!!

You still need to proofread and edit if necessary. Make sure that there no spelling errors, and check your grammar. Avoid slang at all costs.

Breathe. You've worked hard and done your best.

A good paper is one in which you've put forth your best effort. 

Depending on how long you have until the paper is due, a great idea is to work in sections.

• Do the first steps within the first two weeks after it has been assigned and ask your teacher for input on your ideas. 
• Research a few hours every day. Even half an hour is good. Write your paper in sections. The first draft does not have to be perfect. Drafts are not meant to be perfect. 
• When you proofread, then you can smooth it all out, fix any grammar and style problems, and viola! Your paper is written in less than 5 weeks. You'll have less stress doing it this way than if you decide to wait until the night before the paper is due.