Although a prospectus encompasses only a few pages, including bibliography, it requires a great deal of thought, reading and planning. It means that you must actually begin researching a topic before you commit to writing a paper on the subject. Often, initial research reveals that the topic has already been adequately addressed or that source materials are unobtainable. Second, from the outset of your work you need to frame a research question. It is not enough to have a topic.
Good research begins with questions that beg for answers.
Third, you need to provide a summary of previous research in the field. It is important to show how others have answered or not answered the question you have posed. This need not read like a list. You can group different authors under two or three categories of approaches to the problem. Provide a brief summary of each position.