Research is a creative, nonlinear process. Experienced scholars will tell you that they rarely end up exactly where they thought they would when they first started out! You'll need to give yourself the time to pursue ideas, reconsider ideas in light of new information, and then craft an original, researched argument.

To be successful in college-level research, you will need to make use of the resources and services of the library. Here are a few reasons why:

• Much scholarship and information is not available freely on the web. Libraries pool their resources to purchase on your behalf access to quality information sources such as databases, journal collections, and reference resources.
• Many materials are not available electronically, either because they have not been digitized yet or their original creators do not wish to make them available digitally.
• Libraries cooperate with one another to lend you items that are not immediately available in your home library.
• Librarians are experts in the organization of knowledge and can help you find treasures that perhaps you didn't even know existed!