What Am I Supposed to
Write About?!?!
A Quick and Painless Guide
to Choosing a Research Topic
What is a topic?
In a nutshell, a topic is what you are
writing about. Why is it
important?
A topic is the first step is
writing your research paper.
You would not go on vacation
without knowing where you were
going, would you?
How do I choose mine?
 What has been your favorite thing we
have read?
 What characters have stood out to you?
 What authors lived really interesting
lives?
 What are you interested in?
Your everyday interests can be found in
literature!
When all else fails, flip through the
book for interesting texts or… ASK
YOUR TEACHER!!
Here are some ideas…
Character
analyses:
Macbeth, Beowulf,
The Canterbury
Tales
Styles of writing:
Robert Burns, Robert
Browning, William
Blake, Alexander Pope
Authors’ lives influencing
their work:
Jonathan Swift, William
Shakespeare, Samuel
Taylor Coleridge, Wilfred
Owen… basically any of
them!
Other ideas:
Symbolism, big issues
(feminism, racism,
etc.), comparing
several authors
Where do I go from here?
 Once you pick your topic, you have some
direction!
1. Read up on your topic– Make sure that you
know exactly what you want to prove in you
paper.
2. Write out your thesis statement– This states
exactly what you will prove in your paper.
3. Start doing research!
-Reread your text; go to the library; do some online
searches… The sky is the limit, and the more
research, the better. You might be surprised at
what you might find!