Write your first draft

Start with the first topic in your research paper outline. Read all relevant notes
you have gathered that have been marked, example, with the Roman numeral I.
Summarize, paraphrase or quote directly for each idea you plan to use in your
essay. Use a technique that suits you, for example, write summaries, paraphrases or
quotations on note cards, or separate sheets of lined paper. Before you know it,
you have a well-organized term paper completed exactly as outlined.

After you have completed draft, it is worthy to remind everyone that a first draft
is never perfect. You would go through at least three reviews and iterations making
sure it follows thesis before it can be ready for submission. Consider asking
somebody, a friend, or a professional to read your draft and help you identify some
gaps or passages that reader has difficulty understanding. Also, be sure you put
the draft aside, get some fresh air or do something else for a few hours before
going back and reading it again.

After the draft – reviewing your work

Here are some useful tips that every student should follow while working on
research paper draft. It is better to check all aspects twice and submit an
excellent paper for grading.

Read your paper for any content errors. Double-check facts and figures. Arrange and
rearrange ideas to follow your outline format. Reorganize your outline if
necessary, but always keep your paper’s purpose and your readers in mind.

CHECKLIST ONE:
Is my thesis statement concise and clear?
Did I follow my outline? Did I miss anything?
Are my arguments presented in a logical sequence?
Are all sources properly cited to ensure that I am not plagiarizing?
Have I proved my thesis with strong supporting arguments?
Have I made my intentions and points clear in essay?

Re-read your paper for grammatical errors. Use a dictionary or a thesaurus as

needed. Do a spell check. Correct all errors that you spot and improve overall
paper’s quality to the best of your ability. Get someone else to read it over.
Sometimes only a second pair of eyes is managed to see mistakes that you missed.
CHECKLIST TWO:
Did I begin each paragraph with a proper topic sentence?
Have I supported my arguments with documented proof or examples?
Any run-on or unfinished sentences?
Any unnecessary or repetitious words?
Varying lengths of sentences?
Does one paragraph or idea flow smoothly into the next?
Any spelling or grammatical errors?
Are quotes accurate in source, spelling, and punctuation?
Are all my citations accurate and in correct format?
Did I avoid using contractions? Use “cannot” instead of “can’t”, “do not” instead
of “don’t”?
Did I use third person as much as possible? Avoid using phrases such as “I think”,
“I guess”, “I suppose”
Have I made my points clear and interesting but remained objective?
Did I leave a sense of completion for my reader(s) at the end of the paper?
USE “THE ELEMENTS OF STYLE” BY WILLIAM STRUNK
For an excellent source on English composition, check out this classic book by
William Strunk, Jr. on the Elements of Style. Contents include Elementary Rules of
Usage, Elementary Principles of Composition, Words & Expressions Commonly Misused,
An Approach to Style with a List of Reminders: Place yourself in the background,
Revise and rewrite, Avoid fancy words, Be clear, Do not inject opinion, Do not take
shortcuts at the cost of clarity, and much more. Details of The Elements of Style
by William Strunk, Jr. partially available online.

APPLY CORRECT CITATION AND FORMATTING

There is also a particular formatting style you must follow. It depends on the
field of your studies or requirements of your University supervisor. There are
several formatting styles typically used. The most commonly used are APA style and
MLA style. However, there are such style guides as, Harvard, Chicago Manual of
Style, American Medical Association (AMA) Style, APSA (American Political Science
Association), ASA (American Sociological Association), IEEE (Institute of
Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and more. Check informative style guides
before completing formatting.

APA (American Psychological Association) style is mostly used to cite sources

within social sciences field. The detailed information is in Publication Manual of
American Psychological Association, (6th ed., 2nd printing).

MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used for liberal arts and
humanities. The most recent printed guide on it is MLA Handbook (8th ed.). Instead
of providing individual recommendations for each publishing format (printed,
online, e-books, etc.), this edition recommends a single universal set of
guidelines, which writers can apply to any kind of source. Also, remember to use
parenthetical citations for MLA research paper format correctly.

Tools for research paper help

After you’ve done your review and did a few rounds of iterations for your research
report, it is time to subject your paper to copy editing. Thanks to artificial
intelligence-driven (AI) sites, copy editing is no longer such an expensive and
onerous task. And professional copy editing can be done free of charge with the set
of tools that can be found online.

Grammar checkers offer a chance to scan paper and find spelling mistakes, lexical
or grammar issues. Even if paper’s content is good, misspelled words and errors in
tenses may result in a low grade that will be very disappointing.

Plagiarism checkers provide excellent service such as text scan to make sure that
your paper did not miss any crucial citation or did not fail to give credit to
specific quotations and passages. Plagiarism is a plague that must be avoided at
all costs. Researchers must take great care in giving credit where credit is due.
Doing otherwise may lead to not only failing grades but also ruined careers and
reputations.

Citation generators. Writing the research report, researchers should follow certain
conventions of citing other people’s work in final paper of the study. The most
common citation styles include American Psychological Society (APA), Harvard
Citation, Chicago Manual of Style, and a few others that can be easily generated
with help of free tools. Use it to transform one citation style to another. This is
especially helpful if you are trying to submit your research report for peer-review
or publication consideration with various publication outlets prescribing different
citation styles.

Title page generators. A title page is the first thing your professor sees upon
grading research paper. So, it should be formatted perfectly. Many college students
find it difficult to memorize all indents, title case letters, and spaces that are
specific for each standard. Use a generator to create title pages and format your
citations in APA, MLA, Chicago and other styles.

When you have a research report ready, it is time to submit it for publication
consideration or for peer-review for a potential presentation at a conference. It
is important for researcher to read and follow carefully prescribed editorial
guidelines of publication that you are submitting it to. Not following guidelines
could prove detrimental — rejection of otherwise solid research work.

Some words of encouragement

Writing a research paper need not be a daunting and frustrating task. There is a
set formula that a student or researcher follows to succeed with this scholarly
endeavor. The best place to start with this process is to think about the topics
that you