{"id":8044,"date":"2020-05-18T14:20:53","date_gmt":"2020-05-18T02:20:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=8044"},"modified":"2020-05-18T14:20:58","modified_gmt":"2020-05-18T02:20:58","slug":"getting-started-writing-your-thesis-and-beating-writers-block","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=8044","title":{"rendered":"Getting Started Writing your Thesis and Beating Writer&#8217;s Block"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.1-e1589767481190.jpg?resize=375%2C293&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hand holding pen in front of blank white surface\" class=\"wp-image-8045\" width=\"375\" height=\"293\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.1-e1589767481190.jpg?w=500&amp;ssl=1 500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.1-e1589767481190.jpg?resize=150%2C117&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.1-e1589767481190.jpg?resize=300%2C235&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 375px) 100vw, 375px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Generally, when I sit down to write something new \u2013 whether that be my thesis or a blog post \u2013 it feels huge and daunting. I just don\u2019t know how I could do it. It feels like I\u2019m in a rowboat, in the middle of the Antarctic Ocean, 20 metre high waves surrounding me, and in front of me a wall of ice, stretching from the horizon to horizon \u2026 and it&#8217;s moving towards me. I\u2019ve got to break through it. How?! It\u2019s massive! I\u2019m so tiny, and I\u2019m being knocked about. If I don\u2019t do something, I\u2019ll be crushed by the wall. What do I do? I put it off. I think of something easier. Anything easier. 9 hours of YouTube videos. A 10km walk. 11 different snack meals. Anything. It is officially too hard, while the deadline (like the wall of ice) gets closer and closer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/embed\/HtcwxReWfOzGE\" class=\"giphy-embed\" allowfullscreen=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"269\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/gifs\/wall-glacier-massive-HtcwxReWfOzGE\">via GIPHY<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The thing is, I do this <em>every.\nsingle. time.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And <strong>every<\/strong> time I have to\nremind myself how to get started, and how to manage the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All I do is to think about what\nthe tasks necessary are, and start to break things down. Soon I find a crack in\nthe ice that I could cleave. Suddenly I realise, it wasn\u2019t a huge ice wall \u2026 it\nwas just a line in the sand I could\u2019ve stepped over, or even just kicked into\nsubmission. And I was anxious and stressed out for hours\/days\/weeks over\nsomething so easy!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/embed\/ZfkoYy1w5506A\" width=\"480\" height=\"322\" frameBorder=\"0\" class=\"giphy-embed\" allowFullScreen><\/iframe><p><a href=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/gifs\/ZfkoYy1w5506A\">via GIPHY<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The first step is to think about\na structure, a skeleton for whatever you\u2019re working on. When I was writing my\nmethods chapter, I knew that it needed to include the three phases of my\nmixed-methods approach, and an introduction, and some kind of summary. 5\nsections already! Then I realised (reading other people\u2019s theses) I\u2019d also need\nto cover how I was going to collect and analyse the data, and a comment on the\ntheoretical and methodological approaches I was using \u2013 7 sections all up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now I\u2019ve got the crystallisation\npoints to build a beautiful gem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure><figure><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/embed\/U3vII5smAp3A4\" class=\"giphy-embed\" allowfullscreen=\"\" width=\"480\" height=\"270\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/figure><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/gifs\/U3vII5smAp3A4\">via GIPHY<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My notes were a jumbled mess.\nThey were written in the order that I\u2019d read things or thought of connections\n(or did revisions on my ethics application), not the order that my examiner\nneeded to make sense of my thesis. So, I worked through my notes in the order\nwritten, and put keywords, references, and notes down in bullet points below\neach of my section headers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I love bullet points for drafts. Seeing a concept in a bullet point helps me think about the order of things, and indicates to me that it is an incomplete idea. As I work through my notes, the bullet points get longer, and layers start to build up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=512%2C342&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Pen resting on notebook\" class=\"wp-image-8046\" width=\"512\" height=\"342\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=1024%2C683&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=150%2C100&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?resize=750%2C500&amp;ssl=1 750w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.2.jpg?w=1125&amp;ssl=1 1125w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>When I finish my notes, I look\nback through the document I have now, a merry mess of bullet points and\nsentence fragments. First thing I do is look through the sections, one at a\ntime, and make sure the sections are in the right order. Then I do the same thing\nwithin each section, dragging and dropping bullet points, adding or removing\nthings as I see fit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I follow this by filling out the ideas so that they make complete sentences. Then build them into paragraphs. Sometimes a paragraph is just a bunch of sentences with linking words.* I\u2019m not very methodical at this point, and go with the first thing that comes to mind or that I see next. If nothing comes to mind and I\u2019m stumped, I pick something, and figure out how I can finish it. Once I\u2019ve gotten a few sentences in, I can usually feel it coming a little easier, and the writing just keeps going. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I repeat this until my little\nscrap of writing has turned into an uncut gem, and I have a draft of something worth\nreading. <br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=512%2C303&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Typewriter with paper displaying the words: &quot;Something worth reading&quot;\" class=\"wp-image-8047\" width=\"512\" height=\"303\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=1024%2C605&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=150%2C89&amp;ssl=1 150w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=300%2C177&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=768%2C453&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?resize=750%2C443&amp;ssl=1 750w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?w=1260&amp;ssl=1 1260w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>What happens, though, when writer&#8217;s block (cue scary music) strikes? I have three main tricks up my sleeve:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Schedule time for writing<\/strong>. Doesn\u2019t have to be good writing. Just has to be writing. Block everything out and make time for writing. <a href=\"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=7636\">Shut Up And Write groups are good<\/a> for that. <a href=\"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?p=7996\">AUT is running a digital SUAW group<\/a>, with details on Student Digital Workspace and on Thesislink (currently just Mondays but can be other days and times if we get enough interested people). <\/li><li><strong>You\u2019ll never feel like writing<\/strong>. Just sit down and do it. A concert pianist doesn\u2019t feel like practicing every day, nor does a dancer want to rehearse every day. But they do. And as a professional writer, you just need to get on and do it. As I mentioned before, sometimes just sitting there and doing a bit is enough to get the ball rolling. It\u2019s like going to the gym and really not feeling it, but saying you can go home if you just do 10 minutes on the spin bike and a stretch \u2026 and suddenly you feel like doing your whole normal workout. If you can do just 15 minutes a day (or even one hour of pomodoro), not only will you be that bit ahead of where you were yesterday, you\u2019ll suddenly find the whole writing process is easier, and you\u2019ll get more done with less sweat and blood! <\/li><li><strong>Know when you\u2019re beat<\/strong>. Sometimes the writing isn\u2019t gonna work right now. I go off, try to do some exercise, get some fresh air, drink some water, and try again later.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Of course, I\u2019m not the first to suggest some fixes for getting started, and beating writers\u2019 block. Courtesy of the University of Auckland, here is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.library.auckland.ac.nz\/study-skills\/postgraduate\/thesis-writing#=1\">list of common problems and some solutions<\/a>. In her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timeshighereducation.com\/blog\/10-tips-writing-phd-thesis\">blog post at Times Higher Education, Ingrid Curl<\/a> gives some similar advice, and its like she\u2019s looking over my shoulder right now, because her first point is not to let your task daunt you! In her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insidehighered.com\/blogs\/gradhacker\/surviving-dissertation-tips-someone-who-mostly-has\">blog post at Inside Higher Ed, Stephanie Hedge<\/a> gives some tips about getting started and keeping going.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I realise, of course, the irony\nof writing this because I\u2019m putting off restructuring a chapter of my thesis.\nBut as that chapter seemed to be building up, and reaching as far as I can see\n\u2026 I\u2019m remembering that I just need to break it down, and put things where they\nneed to be. I have the skeleton already; I just need to block it out! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Where can you go for more help?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>AUT Library: <a href=\"https:\/\/library.aut.ac.nz\/for-researchers\/help-with-academic-writing\">https:\/\/library.aut.ac.nz\/for-researchers\/help-with-academic-writing<\/a> <\/li><li>GRS resources: <a href=\"https:\/\/sdw.aut.ac.nz\/postgraduate-research\/postgraduate-research-online-resources\">https:\/\/sdw.aut.ac.nz\/postgraduate-research\/postgraduate-research-online-resources<\/a> <\/li><li>Writing section of the Thesislink blog: <a href=\"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?cat=1\">https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/?cat=1<\/a> <\/li><li>Research Students Peer Group network: <a href=\"https:\/\/sdw.aut.ac.nz\/postgraduate-research\/postgraduate-student-community-and-events\/student-peer-groups\">https:\/\/sdw.aut.ac.nz\/postgraduate-research\/postgraduate-student-community-and-events\/student-peer-groups<\/a> <\/li><li>Workshops \u2013 including a workshop literally called <strong>getting started with writing<\/strong>: <a href=\"https:\/\/elab.aut.ac.nz\/students\/events\/search?query=getting+started+with+writing&amp;EventType=&amp;campus=\">https:\/\/elab.aut.ac.nz\/students\/events\/search?query=getting+started+with+writing&amp;EventType=&amp;campus=<\/a> <\/li><li>Guidelines for writing a thesis or dissertation: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jou.ufl.edu\/grad\/forms\/Guidelines-for-writing-thesis-or-dissertation.pdf\">https:\/\/www.jou.ufl.edu\/grad\/forms\/Guidelines-for-writing-thesis-or-dissertation.pdf<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>*Please note I\u2019m not a learning advisor!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Generally, when I sit down to write something new &ndash; whether that be my thesis or a blog post &ndash; it feels huge and daunting. I just don&rsquo;t know how [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25763,"featured_media":8047,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[43,97,78],"class_list":["post-8044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-category-5","tag-drafting","tag-motivation","tag-writing"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/SP2.3.jpg?fit=1260%2C744&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p83npQ-25K","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/25763"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8044"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8044\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8070,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8044\/revisions\/8070"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8047"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thesislink.aut.ac.nz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}