Brainstorm Research Paper Subjects

Sometimes, your teacher, professor, or supervisor will assign the subject for your research paper. In these cases, you usually have very little choice about what you will write. You may be able to stretch the subject a bit around the edges or tweak it to fit your specific interests, but most often you will have to follow the assignment precisely as it was given. To do otherwise means risking failure, since the instructor was precise in the assignment.
However, in other cases, you will be instructed to develop the subject and topic on your own. Very often, this is part of the research paper process itself, for it teaches you to generate ideas and evaluate them. It helps you learn valuable decision-making skills in addition to writing and research methods.
Choosing a subject for a research paper calls for good judgment and solid decision-making skills. Experienced writers know that the success or failure of a research paper often depends on the subject; even the best writers find it difficult (if not impossible) to create a winning paper around an unsuitable subject.
The right subject can make your paper; the wrong one can break it. Unsuitable subjects share one or more of the following characteristics:

•    They cannot be completed within the time allocated.
•    They cannot be researched since the material does not exist.
•    They do not persuade since they are expository or narrative.
•    They are trite, boring, or hackneyed.
•    They are inappropriate, offensive, or vulgar.

Nearly every subject can be researched, but not every subject should be researched.

There are a number of reasons for this. For example, why bother researching a subject that many others have done before you? Trite, shopworn, and boring subjects often lead to trite, shopworn, and boring research papers. Give yourself (and your teacher) a break by starting with a fresh, exciting subject.
As a result, it's important to think through a subject completely before you rush into research and writing. In addition, your writing will be better if your subject is suitable for your readers and purpose.
Where can you get ideas for research paper subjects? You have two main sources: yourself or outside experts. Let's start with what you already know.