Writing a research paper comparing Kurt Vonnegut and Chuck Palahniuk?

Hello,

I'm new to both this website, and also writing essays for upper-year courses. With that being said, I need a bit of guidance (clearly!) in writing a paper for my second year Research Methods class. My professor instructed us to write a research paper arguing a point, which could be then argued against. I asked him what he thought about a paper comparing Kurt Vonnegut and Chuck Palahniuk, and he said that was an excellent idea.The trouble is... I'm not entirely sure how to organize my essay, what points to cover, etc., considering that it has to argue something. Am I supposed to mention the counter argument? I'm lost!

EDIT:
Also, since I cannot find any literature addressing the pair, how do I approach research?

You should start by researching scholarly articles on both. My biggest mistake was not doing this. And always mention counterarguments. It is necessary in developing a strong paper.