Now that you've carefully completed each of the 3 steps described so far (assuming that you have), you've got a good paper within reach. Here are some suggestions for how you can carry the project through to completion.

• Write a thesis sentence. This is what you plan to "prove."
• Create an outline of the paper you plan to write. Every part of your outlined paper should support your thesis.
• Select only the information you've found that helps support the points in your outline. It may be difficult, but you should scrap anything else, no matter how interesting it is. (It may not be wasted -- you could be a contestant on Jeopardy someday.)
• Identify any gaps in your research. If you find any that need to be fixed, look for a source that helps fill that gap specifically.
• Write.
• Rewrite.
• Use an appropriate style (e.g., MLA or APA) to give credit for facts, ideas and exact quotes you use in your paper.
• Take a break. You've earned it.
• Take one more careful look at your paper. Look for spelling and punctuation errors, clumsy language, or other minor problems. Fix them.
• You've done it. Turn the paper in, focus on something else, and look forward to the day when you get the graded paper back--with the teacher's suggestions on how you could have done better.