How do I Write a Literature Research Paper?

Writing a literature research paper is much like crafting any other type of research paper, and usually begins with a subject or problem to consider. If you have a specific assignment from an instructor, then you should already have a direction for your paper to follow. On the other hand, if the paper is more open and you need to devise your own direction from your narrative, then you may want to consider different aspects of the literature you have read or the work that is to be written about. You should investigate the piece of literature you need to write your literature research paper on, as this will help give you direction and provide research for your work.

The simplest way to understand a literature research paper is to consider the two aspects of the paper separately, then bring them together. As the first part of the paper, the literature you are going to be writing about is quite important. If a specific work has been assigned, then you already have a direction. Without that direction, you may wish to decide on a specific piece of literature to research and write about, as this will make your literature research paper more focused.

The research necessary for a literature research paper is often the most time consuming part of the process. If you have access to a school, university, or college library, then you may want to start your research there. Begin with fairly general search queries such as the name of the work you are researching, or a noted scholar who has written about the work. You can then find some strong sources to use in your literature research paper, and further investigate specific ideas.

Once you have these disparate pieces for your literature research paper, then you will need to bring them together and create something new and whole using your own ideas as well. Your own ideas are potentially more important than the research itself, since it demonstrates to your instructor just what you know and the thought you have put into the paper. Typically, the research is there to show you have put time into it, and to give you the ideas of others to play off of. How you use your own ideas is very important, since it shows you have read the original work and the research, and then made your own advances toward a better understanding and a more informed reading of the work.

Beyond these somewhat abstract concepts, you should follow whatever stylistic or formatting guidelines for your literature research paper your instructor has provided. Be sure to use strong language and draw connections between your research, the original work, and your own ideas whenever possible. You may also want to reference other works you have read for the class, as a way to extend your paper beyond a narrow context and demonstrate that you can find connections within a greater body of literature.