Writing The Best Research Paper Outline: A Good Manual

Writing a paper is a huge task and is one that even the most seasoned of academics continue to approach with a mixture of dread and anticipation. Once in the flow then it can be an incredibly exhilarating feeling. However, there really is nothing scarier in this world than embarking upon it. This makes writing the best possible outline absolutely essential. So, in case you are wondering about how you should approach this task. Here is a good manual to help you get started:

View it as if it were the end product

It would be foolish to go into this half-baked. You need to commit to writing the outline in the same way that you have already committed to writing the research paper. Think of it as natural evolution; all part and parcel of the same process. If you cannot get into this mind set then you are going to struggle.

Know your subject

You should have already conducted extensive research into your topic by this point. You need to be in the same state of readiness as if you were about to start writing the main deal. While, yes, there may still be a few strands that will require additional time and research, you should have the thrust of your argument clearly in your head by this stage.

Start with the thesis

Your thesis will most likely not be a very lengthy tome. However, it is central to your whole paper and offers the justification for conducting the research in the first instance. If you find that when writing your thesis you are unable to substantiate your argument, then I would seriously consider looking for something else to base the assignment on. Yes, you will have lost the time spent conducting the initial research and writing the thesis. However, this is infinitely preferable to submitting an inferior assignment.

Now write the title

Your title should encapsulate your thesis. Don’t try and be clever with this, otherwise you risk sounding pretentious. Simply create the best possible title that most adequately reflects the nature of the work.

Writing it should be easy

If you have invested enough time and effort conducting the preliminary work and have created a brilliant thesis, then writing the rest of it should flow quite naturally. Give yourself a mental pat on the back. You are nearly there!

Finally…the conclusion and bibliography

Your conclusion is every bit as important as the rest of it. A shoddy conclusion will undoubtedly lose you marks. Likewise, it is incredibly important that you include an accurate bibliography of all of the sources that you have drawn upon.