Shaping your thesis

At some point in the process of preparing to write your PhD, you will need to step back from your project, and tell the STORY of your research. Once again Murray (2002:187) suggests that this process requires you to shape your ideas, and use your intuition to produce your thesis into a coherent whole which reflects originality. A good way to think about how to structure your thesis is to use Brown’s (1994:1-8 in Murray 2002) Eight Questions.
Brown’s Eight Questions (1994: 1-8) cited in Murray 2002

1. Who are your intended readers? (list three to five names)
2. What did you do? (50 words)
3. Why did you do it? (50 words)
4. What happened? (50 words)
5. What do the results mean in theory? (50 words)
6. What do the results mean in practice? (50 words)
7. What is the key benefit for readers? (25 words)
8. What remains unresolved? (no word limit)

This exercise asks you think ahead about what you will do, and thus to link work already done, with work that still needs doing. Murray suggests this will help you to think about the whole project, including the gaps. Seeing the project from the perspective of its entirety, will help you to gain your own authorial voice, and help you to know the extent to which you are in control of your project. For more general advice see the Postgrad Resources cite. For some clear questions and answers on avoiding plagiarism, look at the 'How not to Plagiarise' website at the University of Toronto. There is a useful self test on plagiarism at the University of Southern Mississippi that may also be helpful.

Source: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/sedu/academic-integrity/PhD/shaping-your-thesis.php