Ask yourself questions about the research topic you've chosen.
- WHO is an important person related to this topic? WHO cares about this topic?
- WHAT makes this topic so interesting to me? WHAT do people need to know before coming to an opinion about this topic? WHAT happens if people don't know about this topic?
- WHERE does this topic most affect?
- WHEN does this topic matter - historically? right now? in the future?
- WHY does this topic matter?
- HOW does this topic impact me? HOW does this affect others?
This helps to clarify what aspects of the topic you want to pursue in the research and consequent paper. The answers can often provide topic sentences for the paragraphs of the body of the paper.
