Diana Hacker, Rules for Writers, Fifth Edition

Tips on writing a research paper

Base your paper on at least eight relevant sources reflecting different points of view. Most should be more than one or two pages long. Also, prefer sources with named authors; do not rely heavily on unsigned articles or anonymous Web site material.
Map out a research strategy appropriate for your topic. For current topics, you might seek information in newspapers and magazines and on Web sites. For more historical topics, books and scholarly articles may be best.
Include at least five quotations from sources, but do not quote excessively. Keep most quoted material brief.
Integrate all quoted material and most summaries and paraphrases with clear signal phrases, usually including the author’s name (see sections 53a and 53b in Rules for Writers).
Avoid plagiarism. Enclose borrowed language in quotation marks, put summaries and paraphrases in your own words, and document sources with MLA citations (see section 52 in Rules for Writers). NOTE: Copying strings of words without putting them in quotation marks is plagiarism even if you cite the source.
In preparing the final manuscript, follow MLA guidelines or your instructor’s directions. NOTE: Some instructors will ask you to include a photocopy or printout of each page from a source that you have cited.