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Research writing is writing that uses evidence (from journals, books, magazines, the Internet, experts, etc.) to persuade or inform an audience about a particular point.
Research writing exists in a variety of different forms.
IN CONTEXT
Academics, journalists, or other researchers might write articles for journals or magazines; other scholars might create web pages that both use research to make some sort of point and that show readers how to find more research on a particular topic. All of these types of writing projects can be done by a single writer who seeks advice from others or by a number of writers who collaborate on the project.
The form of research writing we will be focusing on in this course is academic research writing, which tends to differ from other kinds of research writing in three significant ways:
No essay or book simply “appeared” one day from the writer’s brain; rather, all writing projects come together after the writer, with the help of others, works through the process of writing.
An added component in the writing process of research projects is, obviously, research. Rarely does research begin before some initial writing (even if it is nothing more than brainstorming or pre-writing exercises) takes place, and research is usually not fully completed until the entire writing project is completed.
Instead, research comes into play at all parts of the process and can have a profound effect on the other stages.
IN CONTEXT
Chances are you will need to do at least some simple research to develop an idea to write about in the first place. You might do the bulk of your research as you write your rough draft, though you will almost certainly have to do more research based on the revisions that you decide to make to your project.
There are two other things to think about in relation to a writing process that includes research:
EXAMPLE
The process that you will go through in writing for this class will be different from the process you would go through in responding to an essay question on a Sociology midterm, or in sending an email to a friend. This is true in part because your purposes for writing these various types of texts are simply different.Second, the process of writing isn’t quite as linear and straightforward as it might seem. Writers generally start by coming up with an idea, but often go back to that original idea and make changes to it after they write several drafts, do research, talk with others, and so on.
Thus, the writing process might be more accurately represented like this:
Instead of thinking of the writing process as an ordered list, you should think of it more as a “web” where different points can and do connect with each other in many ways, and as a process that changes according to the demands of each writing project.
Source: This content has been adapted from Lumen Learning's "Academic Research Writing: What is it?" tutorial.