I know the point that I want to make, but now what?

Say your thesis is "Lucy Liu’s Joan Watson (from the CBS show Elementary) is the best interpretation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s John Watson since Nigel Bruce.” That one sentence tells you the first three paragraphs that you need to write:

1) Lucy Liu’s Joan Watson (from the CBS show Elementary) is the best interpretation of

2) Arthur Conan Doyle’s John Watson

3) since Nigel Bruce

You begin by describing Joan Watson’s character on the show, using examples from the broadcasts but no opinion. Then you find instances in Doyle’s texts where John Watson’s behavior or character is similar to Liu’s. Finally, you provide examples of how Nigel Bruce’s Watson is like both Liu’s and Doyle’s. This is a good time to go back through what you’ve written to make sure that your sentences flow together and that your examples truly mirror each other.

Flesh out your ideas, but don’t waste time being repetitive (yes, your grader knows you are being repetitive) and in no time you should have a couple of pages! You can keep going, following the pattern of Liu, then Doyle, then Bruce, until you have enough length for a complete paper. You can also send the paper along to us to complete or edit.

It is often the case that the answers to questions about are in the questions themselves. Try to set aside your frustrations and you may find that when you do, you are able to see a clear map of where you are going.