Planning and designing a research project is a valuable first step in the writing process. This stage entails^{3, 4, 7, 8}:

• Defining the purpose of your writing product;
• Phrasing your (preliminary) research question;
• Understanding the audience you are writing for;
• Designing your preliminary outline;
• Time management

Investing time in the planning phase will prevent you from losing sight of your goals throughout the writing process, it will improve the readability of your text⁷ and you will save time restructuring and ordering your thoughts during the actual writing process⁸.

Keep in mind that the planning phase is only the first step in the writing process. It is common to come back to your initial plans to e.g., reassess and adapt your research question or outline later on.