This chapter of The Curious Researcher is all about beginning the actual process of writing. After reading through this material, I have picked out a few key things to remember.
- Don't procrastinate. "Research writing is recursive. You often have to circle back to where you've already been, discovering holes in your research or looking at your subject from now angles."
- Determine beforehand whether or not you feel it appropriate to include "I" in your paper. It is important to make your work personal, yet there are ways to do so without including "I."
- Your introduction should serve as the purpose of a flashlight, not a floodlight. That is to say that you want to set a direction for your paper in the intro, rather than highlighting every aspect of what is to come.
- The first few steps are the hardest (a common idea surfacing around runners). The same is true with writing. "One thing that will make it easier to get started is to write three leads to your paper, instead of agonizing over one that must be perfect." Try the following methods:
- Anecdote
- Scene
- Profile
- Background
- Quotation
- Dialogue
- Question
- Contrast
- Announcement
- "Don't assume that all research papers are supposed to sound a certain way and that you must mindlessly conform to that voice." Your writing voice should reflect who you are as an individual.
- "As you draft your research paper, look for ways to work the common ground between your topic and your readers."
- A strong ending is important as readers tend to remember the beginning and ending more than the rest of the piece.
- Organization is key!!
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